{"id":685,"date":"2013-03-18T23:20:22","date_gmt":"2013-03-19T03:20:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hippiegrrlexplainsitall.com\/wordpress\/?p=685"},"modified":"2014-11-07T11:27:30","modified_gmt":"2014-11-07T16:27:30","slug":"the-scene-that-was","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hippiegrrlexplainsitall.com\/?p=685","title":{"rendered":"The Scene That Was"},"content":{"rendered":"

“Through the fear of being real, through the fear of being really you…” \u00a0Tones on Tail – Go!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

When I was in college (the first time around, in the 90’s) I spent most of my time doing only a few things. \u00a0Singing, drinking coffee, working a crap job or two in the customer service industry, and going to bars. \u00a0Since then, not much has changed, but the frequency at which I do these things has. \u00a0I am a once every couple weeks bar attendee now. \u00a0My 38 year old body cannot handle the drinking that my 20 year old body could. \u00a0It takes me several days to recover from a really crazy night, and now that I have more important goals, it depresses me to no end when I am distracted from work because of this kind of stupid sickness. \u00a0That is why last night was such a big deal.<\/p>\n

“When the world is too much with me. \u00a0Please leave, just go away. Now nothing’s sacred anymore. When the demons breaking down your door. You’re still staring down at the floor.” The Chameleons UK – Swamp Thing<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The club was packed. \u00a0Wall to wall people after only a short time open and they mostly stuck it out until the end. \u00a0I knew it would be well attended, but I had no idea it would be THIS full. \u00a0This, was the Continental Reunion at the Town Ballroom. \u00a0Ides of March be damned, we came to party! \u00a0It struck me instantly upon walking in, as “Head Like A Hole” blared from the room that was deemed “upstairs” that this would be a great night. \u00a0If all the people that were in attendance at this reunion were all at the continental together, at the same time, Jessie would have had to start making people wait in a rope line. \u00a0Not even half of the people there would have fit inside the continental. \u00a0Although it was good to have such a large venue to hold the event, one always wishes they could be in the original building. \u00a0Alas, the building is gone, but the memories live on.<\/p>\n

“Hear the crushing steel, feel the steering wheel…” The Normal – Warm Leatherette<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The screens were playing videos with neon swooshes over them, just like they used to. \u00a0After spending a bit of time dancing in the “upstairs” room (Nitzer Ebb, Ministry, Sisters of Mercy) we made our way back through the crowd to the concert venue. \u00a0As we walked through the doors and up the small staircase the first sight was the sign from the stage. \u00a0Bud must have kept it and there it was in all it’s glory – THE CONTINENTAL – we are back.<\/p>\n

“The world. The world turns around. \u00a0And the world and the world, yeah. The world drags me down.” The Cult – She Sells Sanctuary<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Continental was not just a bar and we honestly do not need the space to bring the scene back to life. \u00a0Yes, the place itself is missed, but the memories and the people that still persist are all we need to have a proper Continental in 2013. \u00a0Last night was proof. \u00a0The smell of clove cigarettes, incense, sweat, and pizza that hit you when you walk through the doors was EXACTLY the same as 1995 or 1985. \u00a0The people dancing with themselves on the\u00a0dance floor\u00a0(even without mirrors and lighted ceiling) paint a picture of the original place. \u00a0The music blaring from the speakers in all the areas of the club, bring back a flood of late nights spent traipsing up and down the staircase, from the concert downstairs and the favourite bartender to the dance floor upstairs with the excellent dj to the elevated patio that could disassemble and send us plunging to our deaths at any moment. \u00a0The music persists. \u00a0The senses take in all that was and still is, through the people that lived it and continue on.<\/p>\n

“This is the only time I really feel alive.” \u00a0nine inch nails – the only time<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

If we could do this every year, it would do us all good. \u00a0The generations that attended the Continental are now ranging in age from late 30’s to early 60’s (with a sprinkling of younger and older for good measure) and we cannot keep up the outings to a club the way we used to. \u00a0Sure, maybe happy hour on Fridays, but 4 or 5 nights a week until 4am? \u00a0Not gonna happen. \u00a0But one weekend in March every year, that is totally doable. \u00a0One weekend to bring back the music, the dancing, the drinking, the community. \u00a0In the end that is what it is really all about. \u00a0Community. \u00a0We still have it, we just do not have a space like the Continental to gather. \u00a0Technology has changed the ways in which we interact and that is why Generation x was the last to really enjoy venues like the Continental. \u00a0We still liked to gather and interact with each other in the real world. \u00a0That meant everything to us. \u00a0To feel a connection with another person, or with a song, or with a place. \u00a0Not just a computer.<\/p>\n

“No party she’d not attend. No invitation she wouldn’t send. Transfixed by the inner sound of your promise to be found.” Siouxsie and the Banshees – Kiss Them For Me<\/strong>
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

Don’t get me wrong – I love the internet as much as anyone, maybe even more, but I also love to gather in public with other humans. \u00a0Sounds trivial, but true. \u00a0To be in public, having a discourse, sharing a meal, sharing a glass of wine, sharing our lives – this is what gathering is about. \u00a0Chatting online and on mobile phones is convenient, but nothing replaces in person communication. \u00a0Nothing replaces dancing on a floor that is jam packed. \u00a0Nothing replaces that feeling of oneness when everyone moves in unison to that one specific part of the song – “so what!”. \u00a0Nothing replaces screaming the lyrics out at the top of your lungs with every other person around you. \u00a0Nothing replaces interaction, reaction. \u00a0Nothing. \u00a0And it never will. \u00a0So – where is the next Continental? \u00a0Where is that place that those of us who are not that young anymore can gather to really feel alive and as one? \u00a0I don’t have an answer for you now, but I hope to find it soon. \u00a0Otherwise, the writer and I might be hightailing it out of Buffalo once we get our ultimate degrees. \u00a0Move to a place that feels like we can be a part of the community. \u00a0We want for that place to be Buffalo and after last night there is a glimmer of hope. \u00a0Keep the dream alive.<\/p>\n

“Why can’t I live a life for me? Why should I take the abuse that’s served? Why can’t they see they’re just like me? It’s the same, it’s the same in the whole wide world.” Every Day Is Halloween – Ministry<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Peace,<\/p>\n

Chantale<\/p>\n

If you like this post, please click below. \u00a0Sharing is fun!<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“Through the fear of being real, through the fear of being really you…” \u00a0Tones on Tail – Go! When I was in college (the first time around, in the 90’s) I spent most of my time doing only a few things. \u00a0Singing, drinking coffee, working a crap job or two in the customer service industry, … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “The Scene That Was”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[42],"tags":[27,16,28],"class_list":["post-685","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-love","tag-goth","tag-music","tag-nostalgia"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2XCO6-b3","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2394,"url":"https:\/\/hippiegrrlexplainsitall.com\/?p=2394","url_meta":{"origin":685,"position":0},"title":"Becoming an Antiracist","author":"chantale","date":"13 February 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Introduction Since last summer, we have heard a lot about being antiracist. 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