Column: So Maybe I am a Hipster

By Scott Jeffrey

Myself and I’m sure others like myself have probably experienced the issue of what happens when one of your favorite bands of whom you followed since their inception finally “makes it”.

This is not something to be bitter about it simply stands to reason that people have finally followed your advice and taken a shine to that indie band that once was. The unfortunate side effect of this popularity is it becomes exponentially more expensive to share live moment with these performers as it has been in the past.

Now I’m all for a band getting some radio play. I’m all for a band getting enough radio play to kill the single for me before the album has come out. Hell, I’m all for seeing an indie band from my hometown, or even some gents that I grew up with, gracing the cover of Rolling Stone. 

What really sours my apple is when the cost to go and see a show, which I’m sure has improved dramatically from the garage or dive bar in which I saw the band in originally, rises nearly tenfold.

I’ll admit it, I am a thrifty concertgoer it’s rare that I’ll spend over $60 on a ticket unless I know that the band will guarantee results. Even in some cases if I do know I will hum and haw my way out of buying that ticket just to save my pocketbook.

Recently I’ve been placed in this humming and hawing position for a Black Keys and Shins concert. Now I love both bands and I can attest The Black Keys are quite a live spectacle. The problem I’m having is the first time I went to see The Black Keys, I spent a grand total of $20 with a beer included. Now, The Black Keys are touring in large stadiums, they were up for a Grammy this year and they’re actually taking the press a bit seriously for once. Because of these factors and more, the ticket price for the cheap seats has risen to over 4 times what I originally paid.

I will say this, I am guaranteed an excellent concert. An excellent view, maybe not.

Part of me is truly kicking myself for not going to see The Black Keys, at least one more time before the album “Brothers” dropped. This is when ticket prices remained in my “no thinking” zone. I would also like to support both artists. I’ve been a fan of The Shins for quite some time and never had the pleasure of seeing them live.

Something inside of me still takes some gradual convincing to actually go out and purchase the ticket. Not in a been there done that sense, but in a way where I feel that the mysticism I’ve associated with the act, and the special connection that I forged in a small club environment, will be somehow tarnished by seeing them in the 500 section and paying top dollar to do so.

Maybe I’m cheap. Maybe I’m bitter. Or maybe, just maybe, there is a bit of dirty, flannel wearing, Pabst blue ribbon swishing, hipster inside of me, that I just can’t seem to silence. 

Only in the days to follow, as the date of the ticket sale grows closer, we shall see if I can at least quiet it long enough to hit a purchase button.