8 EVIE
E VIE
And really, I had nothing to lose by trying for the long-shot interview with Mayluna and the elusive Carter Wills.
More importantly, I was genuinely intrigued.
The Evolution was the main act, so you’d think that would be the big story.
But when doing stories about bands who have been a success for a number of years, it could be difficult to find new things to say unless they changed direction or you managed to find a new angle.
So Mayluna was interesting to me, you see.
The secret formula seemed to be that they masterfully combined the edginess of moody, alternative rock guitar with a little more emotional depth, stirring melodies and endlessly tortured lyrics penned by their stylishly brooding and somewhat mysterious lead singer.
I thought of this as their new song began to play on the radio while I got ready for work.
It was a sleeper hit from an EP released a few months earlier.
Their first album was forthcoming, and I’d been sent an advance copy of another unreleased single and could immediately see what the buzz was about.
There was something different about them—a complete departure from the current mood of American rock—with lush, textured melodies that wrapped around your ears and made you unsure whether you wanted to cry in your bedroom or feel elated with joy.
But America didn’t always embrace these bands, and I was looking forward to seeing for myself if their music would translate well to a new audience and to meeting the personalities behind the songs.
I had more confidence back then. And I remember having a complete certainty that somehow, the stars would align in my favor to make it happen despite the odds. I’m not sure where I got that or where it went in my later years. But back then, I was kind of a force.
I lived sparsely then—owned exactly three pairs of shoes: faded white slip-on sneakers, perfectly worn-in black Doc Martens, and a pair of brown sandals.
I chose the boots and a pair of denim shorts—there’s a photo of me in this outfit somewhere—tossed a canvas messenger bag over my shoulder, located my sunglasses, and switched off the stereo.
Just as I was leaving, I reached back in the door and grabbed my lanyard off the doorknob.
The all-access passes from dozens of past shows, marking the passage of time, rattled together as I threw it around my neck and headed to work.
The most pivotal days of a person’s life often start out just like any other.
You wake up, brush your teeth, and go about your usual routines, having no idea that by the time you go to bed that night, your entire path will have changed.
When I looked back on my life, I would always think of that day as the exact pinpoint of when my world stopped, imperceptibly shifted on its axis, and started turning again at a new angle. But of course, I didn’t know that yet.
I wonder, did I always think about things this way? Or was it his influence on me? He loved talking about things like this. The mysterious intersections of timing and fate.