Bleach. Where do I even start?
We first saw these guys play 25 years ago. Their Self-titled “Couch Album” was recently released, but I wasn’t super familiar with them. Didn’t even own any of their CDs yet. I’m not going to get deep into my personal history of music development. That’s for another time. But I will say, I was sheltered. I lived in a very small bubble, and it was time for that fragile bubble to burst.
In order to keep this short, I’ll just say that this first show led to a Couch Album purchase, which led to hours of listening on repeat, and then to going to any Bleach show Melanie and I could make it to. Then the next album released and it was repeating all of that all over and over again… until Bleach retired in 2004.
I think we probably saw them close to 20 times in that 4 year period.
What was amazing is that most of these shows that Melanie and I attended were really small and very inexpensive. And I have very mixed feelings about that. There’s the part of me that loves the fact that I was able to see my favorite band in some of the most intimate venues for about $15 a show on average. It was never more money than I could afford, and it almost always felt like seeing friends play in a garage for THEIR small group of friends. Best of all, there was always enough time to hang out before or after the shows and just talk about life.
But the flip side of all of that is, Bleach deserved so much more. In my humble opinion, Bleach should have been known by everyone. They should have toured with Mainstream bands. Their shows should have been sold out. They shouldn’t have had to Tour non-stop for years just to make ends meet. But making art while trying to make a living is…difficult. And these dudes never compromised themselves just to make an extra buck.
Here’s the weirdest thing. And this is the best kind of weird. As frustrating as it must have been for these guys to work as hard as they did, I never felt like they weren’t giving 100% to the audience every time I saw them. And they proved it. Because after every show, I’d get a chance to talk with them. EVERYONE got a chance to talk with them. And I never once got the sense that they were in rush to get away. We were seen. We were heard. We were known.
Known as friends.
Fast forward 25 years and we are still going to Bleach shows. Yes, Bleach has retired. And yes, Bleach is alive and kicking. And what’s even more, we’re all still friends who love to get together and catch up on life.
Words will never be able to express all that Bleach means to Melanie and I.
Through their music, they’ve brought us through some of the hardest things that this broken life has thrown at us. Through their friendship, they’ve made us feel loved. So if you asked me “Who is Bleach?” I would have to say, “Family. Bleach is family.” That’s the only way to sum it all up.
