Alright Kiddo, how about we get this story wrapped up? Whatta ya say?
If you’ve missed the last two emails about my very first show ever, opening for Carpenter Brut, you’re going to want to check out the archive and read those over first.
Also, the official video is now LIVE! You can check it out right here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ib473o_-5-o
I’d love to give you a moment by moment recount of the actual performance, but to be honest, I barely remember anything that happened on stage. My brain was in overdrive trying to not mess up (which it failed at) to bother storing much of anything in my memory.
I remember thinking that the real, live cymbals sounded really good, and Steve was smart to suggest using those. I remember messing up the guitar part several times because of nervous energy (You’ll get to enjoy plenty of that in the video!) I remember the time between each song feeling like an absolute eternity. I remember people cheering during the last synth solo of Green Berets for Breakfast, so that was AWESOME.
But that’s about it! The entirety of my memory of the most important show of my music career fits in a small paragraph. Good going, brain.
Once the set was finished, I scrambled to get everything off stage as fast as possible. Felt like everyone was looking at me, judging me. More than likely they were just looking at the person they were talking to. I always forget I’m not the most interesting thing in the room. But I threw everything back stage and ran into a very tired looking Street Fever. He’d just gotten off a plane 1 hour earlier. Made it just in time for his set. That’s commitment.
After I got my stuff cleaned up I hung out behind the merch booth and got to meet a bunch of very cool people. Many new faces, a few people I knew from Twitter that I got to meet for the first time. To my surprise, two people approached me about playing more shows. One was the Media Relations Manager for Dragon*Con (One of the largest pop-culture conventions in the world) who told me I needed to play the Con. Well, don’t mind if I do!
Carpenter Brut play an amazing set, looking like a synth god up there on his keyboards. I was deeply inspired and pretty much decided right then that VSD live needed to happen a lot more than once.
Later, after everyone had left, we’d gotten all packed up, and the place was closing down, I ran into Señor Brut himself. I wanted to say thanks for the music, you inspired VSD into existence, etc. But at the same time, I didn’t want to sound like an insane person. Instead, I just sorta stood there and made noises from my face. None of them words, mind you. I looked like a frustrated man who’d just realized he doesn’t speak any languages at all. I stopped. Apologized, and said “Thanks, you’re the reason Vampire Step-Dad exists. I’ll leave you alone now.” He gave me an awkward thumbs up.
You know, I hate celebrity culture and all that, but I am a total insane person when it comes to meeting anyone remotely known. I’m not saying I jump up and down squealing. No, I’m more of the guy who will float around the edges, trying not to make eye contact, while being completely aware of where the person is located at all times.
I am an idiot, in short.
But that’s OK. I may have made a fool of myself in front of someone I respect deeply, but evidently I came off well in front of a few hundred people, and I got to share my music with them and grow the family.
So that’s my story. One of the biggest nights of my life. Not really sure how to wrap that up.
If you’re enjoying the newsletter, the video, anything of mine, consider dropping by my website and picking up some music, or a sticker, or a t-shirt, if you’re truly dedicated. It helps me pull off these sorts of crazy things. I really appreciate it.
Thanks for helping me get here.
Vlad, your Vampire Step-Dad
