Photo by Stef Nunez

This experience is hard to fit into the confines of this blog & my generally vague posts about my various adventures.

This trip was far more than going out to a couple of shows. My best friend flew up from Miami see these shows with me after I dragged her to some Thank You Scientist live streams over the course of the pandemic. We watched the streams together but apart & I wanted her to have the actual experience.

We had a whole trip planned around it — I wanted to show her the pacific northwest, as she’d never been. So we went to some of my favorite campgrounds & parks (Deception Pass & Fort Ebey on Whidbey Island; & Kilchis River, Rockaway Beach, & Neskowin on the Oregon coast) & spots in the cities (mostly Portland, but we did ride the monorail in Seattle which I hadn’t done since I was 14).

I’ve also been a BTBAM fan since the old, old days. Between the Buried and Me & Protest the Hero were two bands I found going to DragonForce shows back when I was a power metal & thrash dork not yet quite old enough to drink. So when I saw a tour with both of them on the bill I was stoked.

My brother is also a big BTBAM fan & has gone to several TYS shows with me so he was in on the Seattle show; & my Portland bestie, Avery, has been going to TYS shows with me since the 2019 Dante’s days.

I ended up only really seeing BTBAM during the Seattle show & Stef bowed out of both sets. Stef & I initially bonded over our misplaced love for Dance Gavin Dance & her taste runs more toward Pierce the Veil, Sleeping with Sirens, The Used, Mayday Parade… The lighter side of emo & post-hardcore. & frankly I think she could get in on some BTBAM with the right introduction but, respectfully, it was not going to be tracks from Parallax II.

Luckily, in Seattle I had a room at the venue so she just went upstairs (The Hotel Crocodile is lit & I loved the vibe, but the people who own the parking lot they suggest are fucking bogus & will try to double charge you even when you follow all the instructions on their ridiculous app, be prepared to contest a ticket if you park there).

But in Portland, Stef & Avery agreed to stay for a few songs, but I had to use the bathroom after the first song & they let me know that they weren’t super into it & would rather play video games at Ground Kontrol (if you’re ever at a show at the Roseland, that is absolutely is where you should go before & after). I was having some anxiety issues at that point & a cider & pinball sounded great so I did that, hanging out in the balcony area while they hung back downstairs & ordered food.

Honestly, I’m scrambling a little to write the column for these shows & I’m giving myself until the end of August & help from both Stef & Nate to construct it.

I’ll say this — these were the best days of my entire year.