What to wear to a Streetlight Manifesto concert

The End of the Beginning Tour
featuring Streetlight Manifesto, Rodeo Ruby Love and Empty Orchestra
July 9 @ 8:00PM
Lincoln Theatre, Raleigh, NC

I wore:



This was an emotional concert for me, you guys. I saw Streetlight as a brightfaced sophomore in college, back in 2005 (though I had heard of them back in high school; they, like me, are from New Jersey). It poured all night and my friend G. and I walked four blocks each way from the Metro to some hole in the wall in the Navy Yard so see Streetlight perform. This time around, T. (no pictures) and I drove from our precious little town that never has bands to a town four hours north east of here. Raleigh, NC--you may have heard of it?--is the state capital of North Carolina and I have never been there, but I guess I can cross that off my bucket list. Anyway, the reason why this was an emotional show was because it's the end of Streetlight. The guys are packing it in, setting sail for the future without touring almost constantly for the last ten years. Streetlight in 2005 was always one of my favourite concerts, but it didn't hold a candle to Streetlight in 2013. T. and I sat in the balcony on bar stools (hence the bruised tailbone) and watched from above, and we marveled at the view of dudes moshing with iPhones in their hands. When Streetlight finally came out, the pit was so crammed with people that the moshing ended up being simply a sea, swaying angrily back and forth. (I was glad to be in the balcony, I'm too old for that shit.)

T., who had never seen Streetlight perform, and like most of us, never will again, was very impressed. He mentioned that the music is so much better live, and it's true. Streetlight is aggressive, callous, caustic, furious, pounding, manic, and explosive, and that doesn't come across as well when the music chirps out of your iPhone. It's incredible and wild. And when Tomas, the lead singer of the band, announced that this was the last song they'd probably ever play in North Carolina, I may have cried a little bit.

That may also have been from the contact high I received from the dude smoking weed under the balcony all night.