17.04.2022 | “Before You Go Out Searching, Don’t Decide What You Will Find…”

Lyrics: Be More Kind – Frank Turner, 2018

When I sat down with my (first) coffee and my journal – because my head was all over the place once again – and tried to give words to some of the thoughts and emotions, I felt like I was starting to figure out something. Maybe… Or not figuring out as much as at least noticing something. I spend quite a lot of time overthinking things. Which is nothing new. But in this particular case it became so apparent. Tomorrow I’ll get in my car and drive to Bremen to see Frank Turner & the Sleeping Souls play the first show of the Europe tour at Aladin Music Hall. It’s going to be my first proper gig – indoors anyway – since February 2020. It will be the 55th time I see Frank play a show. The first time took place at the same venue in September 2013. So I’m proper emotional about it all already.

The emotions go two ways, three ways maybe even. Emotions might be the wrong word, maybe it’s more my expectations – the hopeful ones and the anxious ones. Which often seem to go hand in hand. The “daydreaming” hopefully picturing bit: how awesome it will be and how great it will feel to be back there. The anxious bit: that it might not live up to all that hype I’m building it up to be in my head. That I will come back a bit let down, because I’m going to expect too much of it.

For fucks sake, why can’t I just go to a gig and let it happen as it happens? Why do I have to enter everything with a preset and also a fall back set of expectations of how it will be and how it will make me feel? Why can’t I just be there and enjoy it for what it will turn out to be…?

I’m not sure this makes a lot of sense to anyone. Sorry. Less than 36 hours to go and here is another of my favourite Frank on stage photos. From Bremen in fact, but a different venue…

Frank Turner, Bremen, January 2016
Frank Turner, Bremen, January 2016

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