1. The First Day
Okay, so I'd heard on a radio station that Metric were gonna do a free show down at Sugar Beach in Toronto, so I sent the link to my cousin, who just so we're clear is a super hardcore Metric fan, even more-so then I. We said we'd try and meet up down there sometime before it started, which was 8pm. Well I got there at around 6:30, and it was packed! I must still have the mindset that nobody knows who Metric is so that I'll be the first one there and get the best spot. Well, I may not have gotten the best spot, but when they were calling out to who one prizes, I won a copy of their new album Synthetica(on vinyl!!) when it wasn't even out in stores yet. So at around 8pm, having gotten lost, my cousins(her and her sister) both showed up(they found me on top of a water fountain trying to get a better view). Metric came on, and while I'd like to say it was a amazing show, I don't really remember too too much about what they actually played because we spent most of the time milling around trying to find a better spot. All I remember was after we found a good spot, they played "Monster Hospital" and then left after what must've been only 40 minutes. I was a bit disappointed by this, but hey, if it's free you can't really complain. Also it had been raining most of the day, and only after they left did it finally stop. Thank's for that Metric.
2. The Second Day
After a quick sleep, I was back the next day in Toronto. For this show, I had won tickets on Metric's Facebook page in a first come first serve kind of thing. This concert wasn't really planned in advance, only a weeks notice to arrange everything(not that that was too much, mind you) and I was even amazed I won them at all. So we got to this venue, the Opera House at about 5:45pm and there were about 20 people lined up already. We waited for about 2 hours in line before we were let in, and then the craziest thing happened: they were giving away free drinks at the door. I'm not joking. FREE DRINKS!! And from what I could see, only like the first 50 people got them, so lucky us. We had a spot next to a set of stairs that meant not only could we lean on a railing, we could see just over the heads of everyone, perfect spots. While we were waiting, we caught a glimpse of a few elderly ladies(instead of the usual old women) sitting in these reserved seats, and my cousin wondered "Is that their parents over there?" I though it might be, but wasn't too sure(they were about 4 feet or 1.3 meters away from us).
The concert started at about 9:15 and they played through the first 3 or 4 songs from the new album in a row before Emily Haines talked to the audience, and then they went into (I think, as I'm too lazy to look up the actual set list) "Hustle Rose", which I really got into, more then I've gotten into any song at any concert I've ever been to. This went into Empty, which once again I was jumping and dancing to this as well, like so many others around us. They then went into 2 or 3 more songs from the new album, in between playing "Dead Disco", which I'm ashamed to say I didn't recognize when I first heard it. After this, the concert kept getting better and better playing, in this order "Gold Girls Guns, Stadium Love(then coming out for the encore)Help I'm Alive, Monster Hospital" and finally finishing with a emotional acoustic rendition of their "maximum fucking hit" "Gimme Sympathy". By this point I was covered in sweat, having head banged to all these songs(well, except the last one), jumped around like crazy and really got into it, and before you ask, no I wasn't drunk or anything. It was probably the best time I'd ever had at a concert and the way they ended it, leaving the audience wanting more, is exactly how bands should be, always leaving you wanting more.
Well, believe it or not this wasn't the end of the night. We found out that indeed the people near us were Emily Haines's parents. So we were waiting for our ride, still inside the venue when all these people start having a party. It was a VIP thing I think, so we were kinda gatecrashing, but not really. So we go back to where the stage is, and all of a sudden we can see members of the band talking to family members and friends. We saw who must've been Emily's sister and mother(her sister looks just like her) hugging Emily and we were like 3 feet(or 1 meter) away! We were so excited, but we didn't want to disturb them cause we weren't invited after all and they were meeting with family and friends. But then, we saw Metric's bass player Joshua Winstead walking over in our general direction and my cousin grabbed his arm and just said thank you to him and we probably spent 5 minutes talking to us, thanking us for coming out, shaking our hands many times, talking about how important fans are and he didn't seem like he was in any rush to leave, it was actually my cousin that let him get back to whatever he was up to. After that, we ran outside, jumping with with, skipping down the street so happy that we met somebody from Metric. It was so unreal and it was very nice of him to talk to us. Big bands lose this connection with their fans, so it's quite a change to see someone from the band not only shaking your hand, but having a 5 minute conversation with you.
3. The Morning After.
At the time of this writing, it's 9:17am, almost 12 hours since they came onstage. This concert is one of the happiest moments of my life not only by the band themselves, but for who I went to the concert with; the cousin I went with was the very same cousin who I mentioned in my Beaver Reflections article, the one who put me back onto the right path with my depression. It's been almost 2 years since that day and I've always been thinking in the back of my mind of someway to repay her for her kindness, something that it in itself is impossible to do, but the way I feel right now is a feeling that I never want to go away. I was in the train station afterwards, all alone listening to "Stadium Love", knowing that I would always think of this night when I hear it and that I never want this night to end. This is my happy moment, the brightest moment inside me right now. Coming home at 2am, you couldn't wipe the smile I still had on my face. I've never been so happy that I've cried tears of joy, as I did in the station last night. Nothing will ever replace last night and that's alright by me. The combination of two things that I care/love so much is just beyond words. I still feel it right now as I'm writing this. Moments like this are once in a lifetime and are the moments you will be able to look back on and smile at 5, 10, 15 years from now. I've had the time of my life and the moments just keep replaying and replaying over and over.
And for those of you who still doubt how happy I was, just picture me dancing and jumping in front of a mirror in a train station, headphones blasting as I "sing" Stadium Love to myself. Yes, I did.
So I want to thank my cousin once again for coming with me last night. You were so much fun to be with, you made great moments even greater, and you've once again made me feel so so happy. Hopefully we can do something like this again, I wouldn't miss it for the world. I'm still smiling writing this(also, I still haven't eaten)
You and I have stadium love!
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