April 25 2006: John Vanderslice, Wooden Wand – Downstairs Café, Bennington College, Bennington VT

Had a couple of days without responsibility so I figured I’d hitchhike up to Bennington and catch me some live JV action. I’d never heard of Bennington College before and so it didn’t even cross my mind to wonder if it might literally be the most expensive institution of higher learning in the United States, which it in fact is. The things you learn while hiding out from security in men’s room stalls. Here, then, is a brief recap of my adventures from about 4pm (when I arrived on campus) to 9pm (when the Downstairs Café opened up and I was able to take refuge in its dark corners):

Upon arriving on campus I was a little hungry so I figured I’d give it a go at the all-you-can-eat-so-long-as-you’re-a-rich-white-student buffet. I failed. I was asked if I was checked in with security. I said of course I was. I was then asked to present my “campus pass.” I poorly lied, “Um, it’s back at the, um, place.” I was told I’d better get to the security desk right away because “I’m calling them to tell them about you right now.” So I went to the bathroom to hide out for a half hour until the initial heat died down (I could hear security outside asking people if they’d seen anyone matching my description), and then hid my backpack in the cupboard under a sink and went to lay low in the library until showtime.

The bands, I later learned, were stalled outside the gate by security for no less than two hours until it could be verified that they were in fact contracted to play a concert that night. And other fans who had come to campus to see the show had their IDs held by security until they left. Pretty crazy.

But! On the plus side it was a free show and Peter Hughes was there! The priceless moment of the show occurred when JV said, “We’d like to thank Peter Hughes for working the merch table for us tonight. Peter plays in my favorite band, the Mountain Goats” – and there is dead silence in the room for about five pregnant seconds, broken only by Peter giving a great big “WOOOOOOOOO!” from the back. And five songs from “Time Travel is Lonely” were played! I’d never seen “Do You Remember” played before, and hadn’t heard “My Old Flame” in over five years. Shit yeah!