Loud is How I Love You by Mercy Brown

Author:Mercy Brown
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2015-12-20T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Ten

“You can do this,” I say to Julia Time.

It’s Friday night and we’re downstairs in the gear room of the Court Tavern, a dimly lit, unused corner of the bar with a low ceiling and band stickers and graffiti plastering one wall. It’s just before Circle Time’s set, and I’m with Millie and Dan, Circle Time’s drummer, giving Julia a pep talk while Matt is I don’t know where and I don’t care. Probably upstairs drinking with people from out of town since everybody around here is still pissed off at him. We’re all adults and we know shit happens and not all couples last forever, but cheating on your girlfriend of five years with Hanna Octane, or anyone, really, is just a shitty thing to do. Hanna hasn’t been seen or heard from in a week and there’s no small concern the girl ended up back on the psych ward after all this shit broke.

Julia was shaky when she got here tonight, but she was doing okay. Now that she’s about to go on she’s having a little bit of a crisis, and who can blame her? It’s a lot to get on stage with someone who’s so thoroughly and publicly fucked you over. But it’s not just that. This week, Circle Time got a call from spinART Records and some guy from the label is here tonight to scope them out.

“Fuck Matt,” I say. “You’re a pro, and he’s not going to get in the way of you doing what you want to do. You guys totally deserve to be on spinART.”

“Thanks, Emmy,” Julia says, but she doesn’t look at all convinced.

“Drink this,” Millie says, handing her a shot of Stoli. “For courage.”

She downs it and grimaces as her eyes water. She’s ready.

We follow her to the stage and Dan takes his place behind the drums. Julia picks up her bass from the stand and straps it on and she looks good. She looks pissed, but she looks strong and like she’s not about to take any shit from anyone. Ever again. Matt appears and there’s an obvious murmur throughout the audience, but he ignores it. Matt and Julia don’t even look at each other and the tension up there is almost unbearable. But when they start to play, they both seem to get deep inside the sound, and while the band’s happy songs now have a poignant lilt to them, they still work. From here it looks like Circle Time will survive this betrayal, and those of us who love their music appreciate that. If they land a record deal, this is a band that will get somewhere, we’re sure of it. Their sound is really hot right now. Their mostly clean but slightly dirty guitar tone and hooky bass lines throughout their set are right in there with bands like the Breeders or Throwing Muses.

The spinART guy is sitting on the bleachers digging it, and I’m standing in the thick of the crowd watching the band with Joey when Travis arrives downstairs with Cole right behind him.

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