Fucking people are unbelievable

I will never forget the first time I had a beer. It was a chilly-feeling night. Stars were out. We were in between vans. Cops were out, so we had to be wary. There was a girl hanging out, so I had to be extra cool. I was surrounded by guys I loved, guys I respected - I couldn't choke. I handled the Miller Lite like it had been my destiny, and choked not as I choked it down. It tasted like hell, but the last thing I wanted was for the guys I idolized to laugh at me or call me faggot.

It was hard for me. I felt like I was in the presence of royalty. I had been destined to see Upper Cut the night Violent Society was set to play with Eight Dollar Experiment and the UK Subs. They bailed, like half the bands on the line up. It was right after 9/11, so cast your judgement accordingly. They played at Jaxx shortly after, and it was like hearing the pop band my generation had been waiting for. We all loved Plan 15 and the Daycare Swindlers. Loving anything remotely punk in Springfield Virginia is easy as hell. What's not so easy is being some dumb as hell teenager and finding your pop god and genuinely feeling it.

I was a dumb kid. I am a dumb kid in a lot of ways. The expectations are so lowered that it's almost too frank to admit that you've met your own Dee Dee Ramone or Ray Davis. The first time I heard Upper Cut, I had plastered a sticker across my forehead from the first. I couldn't believe that the people who'd written "Round Meadow Days" and "Better Day" were really in my presence, and were willing to talk to me.

So there I was. My itchy, neurotic self, holding a recently popped beer. All the guys were there being such. I couldn't be a pansy in front of the people whose approval I desperately sought. I was the odd duck out. So I forced Miller Lite down my throat and smiled. No one noticed, which was my ultimate goal. So there I was. Everyone in the band, the would-be management, and the eager fans. I swallowed beer and didn't make a face. It was an achievement for me.

That's my ideal memory as a roadie. I had a rare chance to be near one of the best pop groups of anyone's time. I miss them and everyone else should. Being 17 and sitting there in the bar and listening to the most rousing bar pop you've ever heard has got to be a moment worth you fuckers giving a shit about.

I miss these guys. I really did think they were going to be the thing that replaces River Cuomo's overrated ass. Tell me what you think.

You're Gonna Lose - http://www.mediafire.com/?bmzwg2uhy2y

Empty - http://www.mediafire.com/?ezwmn4zkzik

Round Meadow Days - http://www.mediafire.com/?gt4o2gdo3gz

Solution - http://www.mediafire.com/?w2yzzvmenda

Better Day - http://www.mediafire.com/?lezfjjnnl13