Friday night

Before the show I was asked by a fellow photographer if I had ear plugs for the show as they were told by the Halo Bar staff that the sound check was extremely loud. Of course I did not have any as I have not been to a show that could probably cause hearing damage since the days of attending shows at Mississippi Nights. Boy could I have used some. Dinosaur Jr. are probably one of the loudest bands that I have had the privilege of seeing. J Mascis has not one but three full Marshall stacks right behind him. I read an article in Guitar World that he said “Live, I still use the Marshall and Hiwatt stacks. I’ve not had my hearing tested lately, but I definitely have tinnitus; I’ve always worn earplugs, though. I just like the feeling of the guitar kind of hitting you in the back.” For the first three songs of the night ‘The Lung’, “I Ain’t’, and ‘Garden’ I could not hear the vocals. Once I moved out of the pit though everything became clear.

Ryley Walker