Where is My Mind?

I was first introduced to the Pixies in the late 80's/early 90's by my sister and I was instantly hooked by their sound. I mean, let's face it. These guys were part of what I feel was a golden era of Alternative music; they were, after all, playing right alongside the likes of Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Jane's Addiction, Sonic Youth, and more. Ok, yeah; me saying that is probably a bit of a generational thing, but there'll be plenty of time for discussion about which era is better in another story. Regardless, the Pixies were definitely on high rotation on my stereo; many hours were, (and still are) spent playing them full blast with me laying on the floor; arms crossed over my eyes in a meditative state.

For those who don't know them, think of a mix of the classic surf sound and punk rock - their albums 'Surfer Rosa' and 'Dolittle' probably being their most well known:

Over the years, I've been lucky to see these guys play multiple times and I swear to you that they sound just as good now as they ever did - yes, even without Kim; but she was the original and the best. Not gonna lie there...

But why this photo? I mean, the Pixies have come to Australia too many times for me to count. They're practically Aussies! They've been here so many times and in fact, they're coming back again this year (I must remember to look into tickets).

The photo I've chosen was taken nearly 5 years ago now on the 10th March, 2020. Do we all remember 2020? I'm pretty certain that we all do.

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***Before I carry on, I just want to remind everyone that I'm talking about my own experience with this***

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Anyway...

March 2020 was when the dreaded COVID19 virus started to pick up here in Australia. Up until that point, it was just a big news item that everyone was paying attention to, but we were all still living freely. Don't get me wrong, it was worrying. I personally would get teary at the thought of what could happen. I have one hell of a medical history and it was incredibly scary for me to think of getting sick with it, not to mention what could happen if any of my friends or family did. For the record, when it came to the virus, I was one of the incredibly lucky ones. I never got sick with it, I was still able to work, I never ran out of toilet paper (I don't remember about anywhere else, but it was a thing here), and once we were put into however many lockdowns we ended up having (I do believe Melbourne was the most locked down in the world, but let's not talk about that), I was (mostly) AOK with that as well. As an introvert, I was (mostly) happy as a clam staying in.

So the Pixies were on tour here and I'm pretty sure they were nearly finished. They had our show in Melbourne and then they were heading to Sydney for their final show, that is until announcements were made about potential travel restrictions occurring in the very near future - maybe even days.

But of course, we audience members watching the show that night had no clue about any of that just yet. We were too busy digging the music, getting right into it, singing and dancing along like anyone would at a gig like that - and they were awesome. Having said that, I do recall having a moment at the show thinking about how close we were all standing together and "what if I caught it?" Aside from that it was just another great live gig that I could add to my list of many live music shows.

I seem to recall that they finished off the show with one of their most popular songs, 'Where is my Mind?' and again - awesome!

It wasn't until the next day that we heard that the Pixies cancelled the Sydney show so that they could make it home before any restrictions were put in place. They made the right call because not long after was when things really started to change.

For me and from my perspective, attending that gig on 10th March, 2020 marked the turning point of what we were all about to face for the next two years and I won't ever forget it.