CHAPTER 1: where it all began

CHAPTER 1: where it all began

thinking back to where it all began it seems like so long ago,
months, years, decades. it was infact no more than a year and a half ago.


well i guess the story really rooted back to spring 2007.
my obsession as always lay within music.
music had been my comfort blanket and my life line for so long
it had even saved my life on more than a few occasions.
but the faces of those i adored were merely on the posters on my walls


that was until i descovered a certain band.
a brand new band named the hoosiers.

as soon as i heard them i fell completely in love
they were completely different to anything i had ever heard before
yet i couldn't get enough of their quirky sounds.

they were just starting out then. didn't even have an album
yet still famous enough for me to believe they would never waste
thier time getting to know a nobody like me
how nieve i was

it was the start of something beautiful when i learnt of thier competiton
they were giving their fans, old and new and opertunity to win the chance
for them to play in their hometown so hopeful as anyone i entered my reasons
as to why it should be me

i decided since the band were so obviously humourous they would appreciate
a somewhat silly entry
therefore i typed in their blog that the monster under my bed would eat me
if they didn't come to my hometown to play.
i pressed send, smiled to myself and thought nothing else of it for a few days.

three or four days later i logged onto my myspace. there was a message waiting for me
curiously i clicked onto my inbox and my heart skipped a beat as i read the notifactation
an unread email from the hoosiers

it was a simple email. it plainly said "watch out for that monster arrrg -- al"
but that was enough for me. i walked around the rest of the day with a smile on my face
but that wasn't it, far from it. it was only the begining.

i didn't win that competiton, or any of the ones that followed
but i wasn't bothered by that
because from that day i recieved many more messages from each member
and within time they knew my name.

of course this added to my excitement when i finally got to see them in
november.
i awoke early and took the hours journey to newcastle to wait for my online friends
martin, irwin and of course, alphonso.

it was a day i would remember for the rest of my life
a moment i hold dearly in my heart
the very moment irwin, the cheerful singer who every female fan had seemed
to fall for turned to me and said "oh yeah you're lor aren't you, l.o.r?"
i was so proud. a rising star. an idol of mine. and he knew me.

i called them my friends after that day and the one thing that kept me
hanging on was the thought of thier next gig on febuary 25th 2008.
but my dreams were shattered when i learnt that the tickets were sold out.

when the day arrived i sat in the cold student library with tears in my eyes
less than an hour away my friends, idols and favourite band were playing that very night
and i couldn't go
something clicked
pure determination forced me to get up.
i HAD to see them, had to at least say hello
so i jumped on the metro train and hoped and prayed i wouldn't get fined.

i got to the venue without being caught. sighing with relief i made my way to
the stage door to wait for my good friends.
after a long wait the doors swung open and irwin stepped out.
i smiled widely. i was just so happy to see him once more.
promptly i walked over and hugged him
"irwin i'm so sorry" i said sadly "i didn't have money to buy a ticket
and they sold out but i just wanted to come and say hi"

he looked back at me suprised and replied
"oh don't worry lor we'll put you on the guestlist!"
i think i hugged him half to death. i sobbed with tears of joy as i told
my mam over the phone.
i had never been so happy before, never felt so important in my life
i, lor, a regular 21 year old from a tiny north eastern town was a guest of
what was now a huge band, the hoosiers.

i had the best time of my life that night. i was front row, made loads of friends
and descovered two new bands. a rising band named the script and the other support
called i am finn. i fell in love with both.

the day after the concert i recieved my student loan.
i felt as if i owed the hoosiers for such a kind act.
besides, i needed to get way from the stressful life of being on
the wrong course and since it was mothers day that sunday i got in touch
with a girl who no longer could attend thier gig, booked 2 seats on the coach
and the following tuesday me and my mam took off to london.

i knew it would be another great day. another time with the hoosiers i would
never ever forget
but what awaited me there was far beyond what i could have imagined
for that night was when the real story began.

of course, i had waited outside the venue all afternoon for the hoosiers
to arrive.
i also learnt it was irwin's birthday so his spirits were up more than usual.
after speaking to him i walked back to the hotel to get my mam.
we went out to lunch to the pub next door to the venue.

it was then i first saw them.

as we passed the venue a group of men stood outside.
one of them, a man with brown quiffed hair and stubble turned and
smiled at me. i smiled back and walked on, never dreaming that he would become
one of the four most important people in my life.

we joined the queue about 15 minutes before opening time.
it was great listening to the pure excitement of the fans
it was even better bragging a little about knowing them.
it was then a girl asked me to sign a mailing list for thier support
i asked happily if it was i am finn but she shook her head
they had finished two days before and now there was a brand new band on.

she attempted to impress me by explaining they had won channel fours
mobile act unsigned competition but still i shook my head.
i told her i'd wait until i had heard them.........
i was upset i am finn had finished.
wasn't too willing to give this new band a chance
but i soon learned i had no choice.

as the lights went down the crowd errupted. i took my place at front row
and awaited this new band
as soon as the singer walked on i recognised him
it was the man i had smiled at earlier.
he was a very hansome man as were the rest of the band
and the bassist had cool shoes, although i can't remember now wether they
were red or pink...
even if their music wasn't too good, at least i had something to look at.

however, from the moment they began something happened to me.
i fell in love all over again.
they were quite similar to my friends the hoosiers yet still diferent
enough to be original
they were amazing
but one member of the band amazed me more than the others
at the back of the stage, behind a drumkit sat a blonde blue eyed
guy in a wastecoat and tie. i watched spellbound as he twirled his sticks
and drummed better than anyone i'd ever seen before.

i didnt know his name, didn't even know what band they were
but i was already fascinated with him.

after the show i grabbed my mam and we rushed round to the stage door to
congratulate the hoosiers on another amazing show. however since it was
irwin's birthday they had arranged to have a few drinks back stage and the
wait was longer than usual.

as the door swung open i looked over excitedly hoping it was irwin.
but instead i turned bright red as there in the door way stood the blonde haired
blue eyed drummer.

i told him he was amazing and hugged him as he smiled the cutest smile.
my mam fussed over him too and as he thanked us and walked away
i realised maybe, just maybe he would come to mean the world to me.

five minutes later the door swung open once more.
yet again no sign of irwin but instead stood the brown haired singer.
i told him he was great and struck up a conversation with him.

i learnt he was infact called ali and the band was called envy & other sins.
after a couple of minutes i turned misceviously and asked "can i keep your
drummer?"
he smiled amused and replied with
"who, jim? please take him! he's a pain!"
i laughed and we continued the conversation which developed into a whole
plot to keep jim in my wardrobe
it was something i would never live down.

that night i fell asleep smiling to myself. not only because irwin had, when
he finaly came out, been sweet to me as always, but the thought of jim stuck
in my head. i knew there and then he, and indeed ali would become extremely
special to me.

a week later and i found myself on another journey.
i barely thought about it.
i saw the hoosiers were playing in brighton.
i had always wanted to go to brighton
and for once i had the money
so once more i booked my place on the couch and set off for
my last hoosier adventure for a while.

brighton was more amazing than i had ever imagined
it was everything i loved and so much more
and by the time i got to the venue the day after arriving
i felt so alive knowing i would see my lovely hoosiers once more.

i had almost forgot about envy & other sins. almost forgot about jim.
until he walked passed me.
not knowing what else to do i pointed and declared
"you! you're that cool drummer from that band aren't you"
he looked quite scared but all the same smiled and said hi
before he walked on and i sat back and sighed to myself.

that night all 3 bands played better than i had ever seen them play before
and as i waited at the stage door i couldn't wait to see not only the hoosiers
but the support bands too.

just like last time he appeared first. i said hi and he said hi quietly back to me
i then went on to explain i had seen him the week before and as he finally recognised
me a huge smile spread accross his face as he wrapped his arms around me and hugged me tightly
as once more, i kinda blushed.

i couldn't just leave it at that. after all it was my final goodbye to the hoosiers
for a while. i figured i needed a new band to love for a while.
and so i added both the supports i had got to know so well on myspace.

the script's singer replied to me once but as they grew bigger and bigger
each day it was hard for him to find the time to send messages.

however one band, one person was consistant in his messages. that one person
was the one i had merely said hello to after the shows, yet he was the extremely
handsome keyboard player from envy & other sins..jarvey moss.

i developed quite a good relationship with jarvey online.
even more than i ever had with any of the hoosiers.
he seemed very funny and sweet. a potential new friend in the making
if only i'd seen back then
just how much he and of course the other 3 would come to mean to me.

i knew they were playing near by me soon. april 23rd 2008 they were
booked to play a small club in a ruff area of newcastle named ouseburn.
i had previously bought their album the very day it came out,
as i told jarvey i would.
it was one of the best albums i had ever owned
and as the day got closer and closer i promised him more and more
that when the day arrived, i'd be there in the front row cheering
them on
and that is exactly what i did.......