LOS ANGELES, CA- This show was a little hard for me put thoughts together for. I had already written down some really glowing things to say about Dream Wife’s performance at The Echo. After all, Rakel Mjöll (lead vocals), Alice Go (guitar, vocals) and Bella Podpadec (bass, vocals) are quite simply a trio of bad ass bitches who play some kick ass, terrifically empowering, aggressive post-punk jams.
But the next day, Dream Wife posted on their Instagram a friend’s account of being roofied at the show. I was floored. After all, that kind of stuff wasn’t supposed to happen at a Dream Wife show, right? To think that some punk ass had the nerve to roofie anybody when Rakel sings about female empowerment or rape culture just blows my mind.
After seeing the post above, I was pissed. I was pissed that there was someone in the crowd who possessed that kind of evil in them. I was pissed that there was someone in the crowd who wanted to steal away another person’s joy. I was pissed that there was someone in the crowd who was there and had no regard for the music and the messages that were being espoused that evening. I was pissed that I didn’t catch that someone in the act so that I could punch him/her right straight in the fucking nose.
After an evening that overflowed with feminist power, and had my hetero-male self head-banging in time with the room to the band’s uninhibited energy, positivity and optimism, the thought of someone wanting to take that experience away from another made my blood boil. We’re living in a #MeToo world. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you should know fucking better. Even if you had the shittiest parents in the universe, you should know fucking better.
Obviously, however, there are some who just don’t know fucking better.
And it’s going to take more time and more voices to call this shit out when it happens. We’ve got be selfless and use just a little bit of effort to watch each other’s back, or call each other out, to make sure that our cherished music venues … or any venue for that matter … become and remain safe spaces where we can just have a good fucking time without having to worry about someone trying to take advantage of us; both men and women.
I loved Dream Wife’s performance at The Echo, but all I can think about is how their friend was robbed of that experience. Next time the band is in town, after I’m done with my cameras, I may just roam the room with an eye out for any human trash trying to ruin a good time. It’s been a while since I’ve punched someone in the fucking nose.
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