Grapes, Guapdad, Thundercat
August 2021
The brown, 70’s patterned shirt I had put on for this occasion did not suit me well. It hung a bit too low, and the collar had been flattened by the pressure amounted from the sheer number of white tees in my closet. I was in a rush and the pattern looked good, maybe I’d get spotted from the crowd if I wore it. My Green and white new balances in no way complimented my shirt, but their trendiness completed what I thought was a look. I felt like an uncle at a barbecue who never took off his new balances even on the most astute of evenings. The feelings of excitement and manic euphoria masked the anxiety and sullen feelings that had plagued me for the past week. However these thoughts could not pervade my excitement for the concert.
I was picked up in a small Honda hatchback by one of my closest friends. There was no way to connect any devices to the speaker system, so we had to endure the radio. Our drive was narrated by philosophy talk radio and scored by Latin pop hits. We ricocheted from stop sign to streetlight eastward into wine country. We were early at the venue, parking in a grassy lot down the hill from the amphitheater. We somehow accidentally slipped by the parking attendant, learning later we had to pay to park.
We walked quickly, attempting to be as classy as possible (this was a winery of course). Our course was set directly to the bar. Flies to honey. The line was long, but we made it to the front and proceeded to purchase a bottle of the gewurztraminer, and a small package of assorted nuts. We figured one bottle would be enough. This was an egregious miscalculation.
With our first trip to the bar complete, we had our tickets scanned, and found a spot upon the grassy knoll that was in front of a small stage. Not too close, but not too far. Close enough to see the nimble pulls of a bass string, but far away enough to gaze at the sunset that would serve as a backdrop.
The opener came onto stage. Guapdad4000, a name I had heard before, but a catalogue I had not delved into. He played a mix of song from his most recent album as well as charting songs that featured the likes of Chance the Rapper and Tory Lanez. His story-based interlude into the track Gucci Pajamas Ft. Chance the Rapper was my favorite part as he discussed how a foursome gone wrong resulted in his prized Gucci pajamas being stolen, a tragedy of Shakespearean proportions. Most of the crowd was sitting, which at first seemed out of place with the music that Guapdad was playing. But only a few songs into his set he had a mostly aging crowd moving. He later made a tweet referencing this after he got off stage.
I am proud to say, I was a part of that crowd.
We were having so much fun, that Guapdad noticed us in the crowd and gave us a salutatory point midway through his performance. After he left the stage, I was able to meet him and tell him how much I enjoyed the performance. He mentioned that he could tell that my friend and I were enjoying it by the way we were moving. I got a picture with him before he retreated behind the stage. However, I will not share the image due to the aforementioned shirt looking terrible on me as I posed with Guap. It also did not help that the concertgoer who took the picture for me was most likely on acid.
Before returning to my seat, I waltzed to the bar to purchase a final bottle of gewurztraminer to prepare for the performance that I had been waiting for, Thundercat. I sat down on my blanket less plot of knoll next to my friend and looked up to see Thundercat. The sun was setting behind him, turning the sky orange and pink before the moon had arrived. Thundercat’s album It Is What It Is served as therapy during quarantine, I was euphoric on that grassy knoll.
Each song flowed into one another, infrequently broken by the titular performer interluding with stories of his friends and thanks to his inspirations. He played a slower rendition of Dragonball Durag that I found especially enjoyable. Songs were extended and performed in new and interesting ways. The intro was captivating as the songs performed were the first two songs from his recent album. They were longer and had intermissions of quick improvised bass grooves. He played a tribute to jazz musician Chick Corea, an artist that greatly influenced Thundercat’s style. Warm tones warbled and reverberated through the amphitheater.
Jazzy piano progressions and drums coupled and complimented Thundercat’s falsetto and bass musings. As songs continued, I found myself getting closer and closer to the stage. By the final song the crowd had all pushed forward towards the stage which was guarded by several bales of hay. I was only a few feet away when watching the final few songs. Everyone in the crowd was moving in a chaotic union.
I can say with certainty that it was one of the best concerts I had ever been to, and doubled as one of the best nights I had ever had. The bottle of wine tasted great throughout the concert, especially when drank straight out of the bottle, standing amongst a few hundred strangers.