They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Looking at this picture I would safely say that this one is worth even more because of the feeling of hope, unity and encouragement it “delivers’. I am a man who has lived most of his life in a metropolis and continues to work in such environments so seeing something like this strikes me and encourages me to drop down a few thoughts…. but let’s start from the beginning so that we all understand the meaning of this picture: A band from Llano, Texas, entered the Emergenza festival where they were scheduled to play in Austin (the closest city where it’s held) at club Momo’s last Thursday the 28th. The band described themselves as a cross between Korn and System of a down (bless those politically charged fellows) and being together for just under 3 years. So far so good…..but how far did they think they could go competing with the big boys in a city like Austin? Well, to be perfectly honest they actually won and took first spot thanks to the support of the Llano town nutcases (metaphorically speaking in the nicest and coolest way) that had, not only the courage, but honesty to support their local heroes all the way to the big city. You see, this picture truly represents what David Lynch has been trying for years to tell his own fellow Americans that provincial, small town America is where the birth of practically “everything” is. Support, hope, encouragement and integrity is the vital part of everyday life in these thousands of towns spread all over the great country that is the U.S.A. but the big city always takes the cake. Business, image, trends and fashions, these are the “values” that us citizens of the big cities go by in our daily existence. So let’s all learn from these people. Let’s support music, whichever it may be. Let’s go out and prove that a social conscience and a love for music is all it takes to get the ever so badly treated live music scene back on its feet. Only with this kind of mentality and resilience can anything such as this happen. We need more live music…..we need more people watching live music. Let’s demolish the manufactured music “standard practices” that produce and sells Paris Hilton or bimbos that are there simply because they have “aspirations” (or blow someone for it). We want to claim live rock music back. We need pictures like this to encourage us and remind us of why we like music so much. Why we go to sweaty little clubs to watch live music. It’s not only the passion but the feeling of community that makes us put our fists up in the air and shout “fuck yeah! Rock and roll!” So thank you Llano for showing me what real support means. Thank You Texas. Thank you America for teaching me. Keep it up.