Week 12: Barrel of Monkeys
Sounds Like A Punk Band
I’d been sleeping on Adam and Becky’s couch for about a month when they invited me to Music and Mayhem an annual three day free punk-rock music festival that was invitation only. The exact location is always a secret until only days before the event. Meaning you could only get there if you knew someone else who knew how to get there. Adam’s band would be performing the second night of the festival.
Becky had drawn the art for the promotional flyers. They were hand drawn in black and white. About fifteen band names written in different styles surrounded an intricately drawn but sinister looking pirate. He was standing atop a crumbling pile of skulls and bones and had a graphically scarred face and a decadent looking tail coat that I instantly wanted. The words “FucTup Punks Presents: Music and Mayhem 7” screamed across the top in an electrified font.
We’d left at sunrise stopping only for coffee and to buy jugs of water on the way out of town. I ride squashed in the back with Adam and Becky’s dog Gromit sitting on my lap and enjoying the scenery. I had worn a pinstriped vest with a pocket-watch, the chain threaded through the silver buttons, a pair of grey trousers cut off at the knees and my favorite felt hat with a pheasant feather and the Jack of Hearts tucked into the hat band.
“Tomb Raiders is gonna be there, “Becky says looking over the seat and tossing a granola bar at me. “They were at that last show you went to with us. Adam likes The Damned Children but I’m excited to see Barrel of Monkeys, they've been on tour and this will be their last stop before heading home.”
When we finally arrive Becky shows me where to set up my tent and then we walk down to a large open field where the main stage is. One of the bands is doing a sound check and has drawn a small crowd of people with a rainbow assortment of mohawks and dreadlocks. Everyone is wearing denim and leather vests covered in patches, studs and spikes. Becky decides to take Gromit for a walk but she tells me I should stay for the band and to meet her back at the camp later.
I get caught up in the music and when a small mosh pit starts near the stage I join in. My lungs are on fire by the end. I move to the edge of the small crowd where I left my water jug. I start to head back to camp but stop when another girl waves at me.
She has her hair in two loose braids and is wearing a zebra print miniskirt that is short enough to show the garters that are holding up torn black fishnets. Her left arm is completely covered in tattoos and she has small designs on the knuckle of each finger. There are purple shoelaces in her black Vans.
“Hi I’m Tris,” She says. “You’re an awesome dancer.”
I shrug. “Everyone can dance.”
She just smirks and points at my outfit.
“So you’re one of them steam…punks?” She asks.
I laugh, “You caught me. I like your garters.”
We walk over to tables where there are band shirts and patches and all kinds of art for sale.
Another band starts setting up and we turn to watch. I see Adam and Becky sitting on the edge of the stage.
“I know those guys,” I say pointing.
“You’re here with Beck and Adam? I love them! They are like the cutest couple man. I have like a crush on them like as a couple, you know?”
I nod. I do know.
Tris tilts her head toward the stage and we weave through the crowd. She gives hugs to Becky and Adam and their friend Steve who is camping next to us. Everyone gives Gromit a scratch behind the ears.
Once The Damned Children are hitting the climax of their performance the crowd is pressing against the stage and raising their arms in the air and banging their heads in time. I can’t take my eyes off the guitarist’s fingers flying up and down their guitars and I’m howling with the crowd at how amazing they are and how alive I feel.
Tris invites me to walk down to the river afterwards. We pick orange poppies and yellow and purple wildflowers along the way. We take our shoes off and wade into the cool water. Tris climbs onto a low tree branch and holds a hand for me to climb up.
“Tell me about this one,” I say pointing to a capital letter T with a lightning bolt tail that’s part of the sleeve of tattoos on her arm.
“Nikola Tesla man.” She says. ”Edison was a hack who tortured animals. Tesla wanted to develop free wireless energy and had to be silenced. Hey, I bet they’ve got the barbeque set up at our camp. You wanna come with?” Tris says.
I nod suddenly realizing I’ve only eaten a granola bar all day.
Tris holds a hand up to her mouth and moves her other hand as if she’s extending the antenna on an old radio. She mimes pressing a button and imitates static before saying into her hand “This is Boomer and Ace heading to basecamp.” She lowers the antenna then slides off the branch and starts walking up the hill.
I follow. After a minute I ask. “Am I Boomer or Ace?”
Tris chuckles and punches me in the shoulder; keeps walking.
She leads me through the maze of camps that’s doubled in size since the morning. We get to a semi-circle of tents set up around a blue 70’s era Westfalia with the side door open.
“Home sweet home,” Tris says leaning to pull two cans of PBR out of a cooler. She hands me one before sprawling into a plastic folding chair. “And these are my boys,” Tris motions with her beer to the four punks standing around a nearby barbeque. “Trashcan, Samwise , Ductape and Leonard.”
I raise an eyebrow. “Leonard?”
“Hey! You dissin’ my momma?” Leonard jokes.
I laugh. Leonard winks and hands me a hotdog that I gratefully accept. Tris pats me on the shoulder. “C’mon let’s find a circle making s’mores,” She says.
Tris puts the flowers we picked in her empty beer can and leaves it the floor of the van. She starts leading me back through the campsites and introducing me to people. A girl in cat eye glasses hands her a cookie. Tris breaks it in half and hands one to me. “Eat this slowly,” she says and winks at me.
“It feels weird not knowing anyone.” I say taking a small bite.
“These are really great people. Some of these guys I only get to see once or twice a year but they’re like family. And this is our giant family reunion: three days of barbeque, whiskey and musical mayhem. ” She says waving her hands for emphasis.
Since I’m hungry I eat the cookie too fast and decide I need to lie down for a while. Tris tells me there’s an 80’s dance off near her camp later that night and I should come by. I agree and am relieved to find my camp pretty quickly.
Becky offers to wake me to walk down to the Barrel of Monkeys performance.
It’s dark by the time we make our way back down the stage. The bright lights on the stage revive my excitement and my heart flutters when I spot Tris.
“Hey I scored you a patch.” She says.
It’s got a picture of one of those mechanical toys of a monkey playing a drum and says BoM in block letters on the bottom edge. I say thanks and tuck it into my pocket.
“So I told the guys I’d hang out with them during the show I'll see you after Ace.” Tris says then smiles and skips away.
Becky and Adam appear by my side as Steve comes on stage to introduce Barrel Of Monkeys and then Tris and her boys come on stage. Tris sits down at the drum-set and I laugh and shake my head and then join in on the shouting and monkey noises the crowd is making.
They quickly break into a loud and frenetic rendition of Paint It Black. By the end of the first verse Ductape is screaming the lyrics and Tris is throwing her whole into body into the movement of playing her drums. The cymbals crashing make me stomp my feet and swing my arms right along with her.
When they get to the chorus there’s a change in the tempo and it’s like a signal. Everything slows down to an almost a complete stop before speeding up and a group near the stage starts running in a circle. After a minute I take a deep breath and jump into the swirling mass of bodies. I throw my elbows out to the beat as I get swept up in the current.
Tris’s voice joins in on the next verse and my head automatically turns toward the stage but the girl in the cat eye glasses I met earlier links her arm into mine propelling me forward again.
AN: Photo is mine. Concrit welcome.