In my late teens came Nirvana, Blur, et al<\/em>.<\/p>\n Between step two and step three, there was…<\/p>\n …Roxette.<\/p>\n The first band I loved (except those in step one) whose music I still own.<\/p>\n My transitional band… and Per Gessle was also my transitional crush, the first guy I liked who wasn’t 100% Non-Threatening Boy1<\/sup><\/p>\n An uncannily accurate depiction of Cath, aged 11-13<\/p><\/div>\n I tried to see them twice in my early teens. The first time was when they were playing in Sheffield, about a 90 minute drive away. A reputable (no, really) ticket dealer in my home town was selling tickets that included cheap bus travel to the gig, which was on a school night.<\/p>\n Would my parents let me go?<\/p>\n They would not.<\/p>\n The second time, a year or so later, they were playing closer to home, and on a weekend. But my French exchange partner would be staying with us on that date. I asked my parents if I could go if Cecile came too (I even said I would pay for both tickets from my allowance), and they said only if she said she liked the band…<\/p>\n and I had to ask her if she liked the band without telling her why I was asking…<\/p>\n I asked her (over the phone, with my Dad supervising) if she liked Roxette.<\/p>\n She did not.<\/p>\n Little did I know on that disappointing night that I would finally get to see them 20+ years later…<\/p>\n …and that it would be (with apologies to readers who were offered a ticket but couldn’t make it) 100% AWESOMESAUCE!<\/strong><\/p>\n Seriously, I had soooooooo much fun last night! The band had so much energy, and the crowd was just amazing: from the moment we walked in, everyone was positively beaming at each other. There wasn’t a shred of cynicism, or of the undercurrent of potential alcohol\/drug\/testosterone-fuelled aggression usually present at big stadium gigs. Everyone danced, everyone sang, people talked to each other (the groups on either side of me and my friends loved my app<\/a> so much they all downloaded it too and joined in). People were even singing (and grinning) on the SkyTrain on the way home.<\/p>\n In short, there was a lot of love in the room.2<\/sup><\/p>\n A friend from work was also there, with a different group of friends, and we were both still grinning so much today that our faces ached as we raved about the show and compared high points with each other over lunch.<\/p>\n Said high points, in no particular order:<\/p>\n It was such a fun, happy night that I’ll even forgive them for not playing my all-time favourite Roxette song:<\/p>\n<\/a>
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