I tell this story often, so I think I'll just write down the time I saw Phoebe Bridgers for the first time.
Back in 2017, I got really into Phoebe Bridgers off of her song "Funeral". When her debut album finally released, I was obsessed. She was depressed in the suburban kind of way that my peers and I could embarrassingly relate to. In any case, if she was going on tour then I told myself that my ass would be in that audience no matter what.
A little thing about me is that I buy at least one extra ticket for every concert I go to (e.g. 2 tickets if I plan to go alone, 3 tickets if I'm planning on going with a friend, etc.) just in case I have a friend who wouldn't swing a ticket or if I introduce someone to an artists music and they're like oh hey I like this then I can invite them along for a cute friend bonding. [side note: some venues these days won't even allow you to buy single tickets like??? ok rude]
Because all of my pharb (phoebe fans) friends were unable to make it before I even bought the tickets, I planned on going alone and bought a second ticket just in case their schedules freed up.
So it's the day before the concert, and I still can't find anybody to go with me. I don't feel like selling the ticket because the money doesn't matter; I just want it to someone who'll definitely enjoy the show. So I take my happy-go-lucky ass to Twitter send this tweet to Phoebe, and she retweets.
Everyone who DMs me is giving off big "stranger danger" vibes, so I actually decide to not invite any of them. Here's an example of one message I got.
That being said, I end up inviting my older sister April to come with me. She tells me that she reallys like The Bottom Of The Hill (the venue). I've never been, but I'm pretty juiced because she also said it's pretty small and I think Stranger In The Alps would sound great in a more intimate setting.
Now anyone who knows my sister April will tell you that she's a punk rocking, hot-headed girl. This isn't her type of show. I even remember on our drive into the city, she turned to me from the passenger seat and said "I've never been to this kind of show before... You know-- like... slow music?"
I don't know why I was surprised, giving my sisters rockabilly & punk band history full of headbanging with fast and fat lines on her bass guitar.
We finally get to the venue and the opener, Lomelda, is on. She was cute and cracked jokes about being booked by Phoebe Bridgers because it's like you're seeing her twice (their music was similarly somber at time). I vividly remember her pandering to the crowd by saying "I heard this works here... *cough*.. 'WARR-I-ORS!'" and honestly it did! The crowd was hype lmao. The second opener was Harrison Whitford, and I didn't really care for him (sorry Scarrison ily) so I go to the concession window and order some chicken tenders.
After I order, my sister asks me if I want to smoke outside. One of the reasons April liked The Bottom Of The Hill is because it has this pretty little fairy-lit patio. She was a huge stoner, so the open air is a definite plus on top of trying to get in the mood to listen to an artist you've never heard of for music you probably don't care for. Listen-- I know I said earlier that I buy extra tickets so somebody who can really enjoy them can have a chance to go, but I thought this would be a good opportunity to bond with my sister, whose life was on the up a couple years after incarceration from a toxic relationship.
We smoke outside in the patio behind the stage window and get a decent high going. After a few minutes, I remember that I ordered chicken tenders from the concession.
As a guy who barely smokes, I'm pretty much a one hit wonder. I stumble back into the venue, and the crowd is significantly denser and fuller since Harrison was the final opener before Phoebe. So I push through bodies in order to get to the concession window, which is directly stage right. I think the joint April had was an indica-heavy hybrid because my gait was definitely feeling loosey goosey on the way to my chicken tendies; so much so that I accidentally stumble and trip someone on the way to my tenders.
"Sorry... my food is ready 😓🤭" I say in embarrassment, until I realize the person I tripped was Phoebe Bridgers herself watching Harrison's set. Now, for some people, this would make them apologize even more profusely due to being starstruck, but I was high couldn't really give a bother, so instead I said "Heyyy!! Thanks for retweeting me yesterday!"
"No prob! Did you find anybody to go with you?" she asks.
"No... everyone was kinda creepy.. so I just took my sister with me," I reply.
Phoebe then turns to my sister, holds her hand out, and says "Oh hi! I'm Phoebe," to which my sister replies with
A confused look on both of their faces.
"This is her sold out show," I whisper to my sister. Her fog of confusion visibly clears up with a "OH! I'm April!" and her hand meets Phoebe's in a handshake.
"Nice to meet you!" Phoebe says.
I tell Phoebe that we're excited to see her set and we're gonna head to the merch table and shuffle away.
[In hindsight, I feel really bad bc I know phoebe doesn't like smoking weed and she could have probably smelled it on me]
She eventually goes onstage and does her set, which was undoubtedly good. I even think my sister enjoyed her time.
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