The scene unfolds: Great Scott, a hip bar/indie music venue in Allston. Dom, Worcesterian breakouts, are the musical guests of Friday night mainstay DJs The Pill (spinners of “Britpop and Modern Indie,” as their posters put it). The crowd is young and tight-pantsed, SLR cameras dangling from their necks as they adjust their pashminas and sip economically from their tallboys of Pabst. Meanwhile, in the women’s restroom, the following conversation transpires:
Girl #1: So, I came! The music is, like…kinda weird, but whatever. I mean, people are dancing.
Girl #2: You look super-cute.
Girl #1: Thanks! I didn’t really, like go along with the ‘wardrobe suggestions’ you gave me, but…
Girl #2: No, no! It’s fine. You look really hipstery.
Girl #1: Seriously? Cool. I just bought all this stuff at Urban Outfitters. I wanted to go to American Apparel too, but I didn’t have time.
Girl #2: No, hon, Urban Outfitters is just as good for this stuff. I mean, maybe a little more expensive.
Girl #1 (under breath): That’s why I’ve got Billy’s credit card. (Both laugh uproariously.) So, what’s this band called again?
Girl #2: Dom. I don’t know, like anything about them, other than that they’re cute and supposed to be, like, the next Passion Pit.
Girl #1: Oh, cool. (Pause.) I’ve never really, like, actually listened to Passion Pit. Everyone always talks about how great they are, though. What are they like? I mean, rock but…
Girl #2: I’ve never really listened to them either, honestly. But they’re really super cool right now. If they come back to town, we definitely need to go see them.
Girl #1: Alright, yeah!
Girl #2: OK, let’s get back out there. Chris just texted me and said they got us some PBRs.
Girl #1: PBRs?
Girl #2: Pabst. Y’know, the beer?
Girl #1: Ohhh, I didn’t know they were getting drinks. I wanted an Ultra, honestly…
Girl #2: Oh, honey, you have so much to learn. Hipsters drink PBRs! (Laughs.) Didn’t you see everyone else out there drinking them?
Girl #1: Yeah, I just figured that was because it’s, like, cheap.
Girl #2: That’s part of it. You’ve got to play up that you’re poor, too.
Girl #1: This is so weird…but if you think it’s cool right now, then whatever. (Both exit.)
* * * * * * * * *
I wish I was making this up. But alas; I am not. And I suppose this is why I’m not friends with any of the people that go to these shows.
EDIT, 7/27. See also:
1) http://turquoisetongs.wordpress.com/2010/07/26/in-re-overheard-in-an-allston-ladies-room/
2) http://turquoisetongs.wordpress.com/2010/07/27/myths-of-the-near-future/
Unreal.
Quite.
scary
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Chriss Coniglio, Great Scott, David Oliva, mark q, Dave Spak and others. Dave Spak said: This is why I can't move to Allston. Good god.. RT @GreatScottROCK Overheard in an Allston ladies’ room « Tongs http://ow.ly/2gDT6 [...]
Hey, how’s the bathroom talk going? I got some PBRs 4 U 2. -Chris
O hai. Pass that shit over here; my skinny jean-n’-pashmina getup just won’t look right until I’ve got my AmAppy approved tallboy in tow.
You guys will never be REAL hipsters!
[...] Overheard in an Allston ladies’ room [...]
Best blog post I’ve ever read. Thank you.
Fucking delicious. But seriously, stop reading music blogs – you’re giving us all a bad name
HA! amazing… isn’t it great when real life is more entertaining than anything you could write yourself??
[...] in an Allston ladies’ room” Jump to Comments So, a bajillion people have found the post I wrote about the conversation I heard while waiting for a stall at Great Scott’s [...]
There are some great bands that play there, and then there are fashion shows with guitars. Similar things could be said about any scene.
It’s at least a big improvement over what Great Scott was when I lived there in the mid 1990′s and when The Pill and The Plan were held elsewhere.
At least hipsters listen to music
ripped offinspired from better bands.This convo will definitely help me explain to people what hipsters are, so hilarious. Don’t worry girl #2, the hipsters only pretend to be poor.
This makes me so glad that I wear/listen to whatever the hell I want without trying to impress people or fit a stereotype.
Exactly. Exactly. Dude, I’m so glad some people “get it” – you should see the replies to this post on http://sceneinboston.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=6187!
THIS IS HILARIOUS! Their assumptions about you are all wrong… completely wrong… just wow… wow.
Reason #2,038,099 on why I will not miss Boston.
This was the only good comment on that sad board, “Is no one going to comment on the musical stylings of Dom? I’m patiently waiting to see if it’s okay to like them or not.”
And yeah, I have heard conversations like this, they exist, guys just don’t know it because they don’t witness them. Obviously it’s not exactly what they said, but any intelligent person could figure it out.
Oh and I went to a hipster show, am I a hipster now? I listened to Vampire Weekend, obviously I must be a hipster and buy cool hipster clothes and pretend to be poor and drink shit beer. Oh and if I make fun of a sad pathetic girl who happens to be “hot” I must be ugly and jealous, that’s just how it works you know.
[...] been a strange day for me. (For those of you late to the party, see my previous post and the now-practically-viral conversation that started this whole [...]
This is a story about sluts, not hipsters.
I’d still probably hit it.
I just read this morning that Animal Collective and My Morning Jacket are jam bands? I like both of those bands, so am I a hipster or hippie? To further muddy the waters, I also dig Sonic Youth, Pavement, Phish and the Dead.
Forget pigeon-holing yourselfs Allston girls, wear what you want, listen to what you want, be yourselves.
But yeah, I’d probably hit it, too.
I’ve learned from living in a city that everyone is just like everyone else (for the most part). This post should just motivate people to talk to whomever they want without feeling intimidated.
Power to the Pretentious!
P.S. I fucking hate Urban Outfitters.
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Peter Jurmu, Ady Bee. Ady Bee said: So, I used to live in Allston, and I'm not proud of it. http://tongsmusic.com/2010/07/10/overheard-in-an-allston-ladies-room/ #BostonBlows [...]
Gag…
situations like that be making my hands sore all the time from slapping bitches in they mouth. get a life. make a difference. also/urban outfitters, besides being lame hipster sheep apparel/ceo is homo hating republican trash. fyi. effing hipsters.
[...] on the subject of this blog, which is apparently more famous than I’d guessed (via the damn “Allston ladies’ room” post). It was pretty legit. I hope my off-the-market status doesn’t preclude hanging out with [...]
[...] so I’m going to steal an idea from Pitchfork (cue the eye-rolling, all y’all “Allston ladies’ room” flakes) and write a 5-10-15-20 article about yours truly. If you have absolutely no idea [...]