I’m going to pick up where I left off.
Atlanta- We were all very jazzed about not being dead, so this show was especially fun. The catering even included a special vegan stir-fry for me. While the clothing (or lack thereof) of the bartenders was lacking (hardy har har), the venue itself was awesome. The barrier between the stage and the crowd was small, but raised, which was awesome because it means that I could jump down in to the barrier gap to tickle people’s chins. I’m a simple man with simple desires, what can I say? After the show we stayed at Brent’s cousins house. When we walked in, there was a shirtless dude on a futon drinking a gallon of chocolate milk and watching Amadeus. He definitely plays in a ska band.
The next day was in Lake Buena Vista, which was the infamous House of Blues show that Disney wouldn’t let us play. We decided to go ahead and head out to the show to hang out with the guys. We had a little trouble getting around at first, because we didn’t have the proper credentials that had been handed out earlier in the day, but after we got it all handled things rolled smoothly. This show was honestly one of the best of the tour. Bummer we couldn’t play, but the other bands tore it up. Almost every guy on the tour was rocking a Famine shirt, and telling kids about us, which was very heartwarming. Let’s call it a bittersweet evening.
St. Petersburg- This was the greatest night of my life. I don’t remember much about the show, but let me tell you what I do remember. Early on in the evening, I discovered that Dark Lotus, a Psychopathic Records supergroup featuring ICP, Twiztid, and Blaze Ya Dead Homie, were playing up the street. For those of you who live under a rock, anything having to do with ICP and/or Juggalos, is the most hilarious thing on this planet. I vowed at this moment, around three in the afternoon, to be in attendance, and I started formulating my plan. After we played, I walked about five blocks to the show, where I flashed my tour laminate and walked right through security. Ladies and gentlemen, I was in the belly of the clown.
The only way that I can attempt to explain what I saw is through a disturbing simile. Much like a veteran will tell you that the only way to understand war is to experience battle, I have to say that the only way to understand what happens at a Juggalo festival is by plunging into one headlong. The only difference is that this was awesome. So awesome that I needed someone with which to share my experience. I walked back to the show and got Brent, and we breezed through security again to get back in to the show. Keep in mind that I did not stop laughing at any point during this entire encounter. We proceeded to watch the entire show in a state of pure bliss. After the show ended, Brent took a picture of one of several of my hangout sessions with Juggalos, which can be found a few posts below this one. This picture is now my myspace default, the background on my computer, the background on my phone, the background on Brent’s phone, the background on Brent’s room mate’s computer, and the absolute most amazing thing of all time. After the novelty of the picture wears off, look very closely at the face of the dude on the left to begin the laughter cycle anew.
My name is Nick Nowell, and I love Juggalos. I’ll post concerning the rest of the shows later.
Love,
-Nick
