DANGER
After an interesting night, I return to the hotel and flop on my bed. Picking up my cell, I dial Ryan’s number.
Surprisingly, he answers quickly, “Fuck, dude! You haven’t called in over a month. I thought you might have died or something.”
I roll onto my back and sigh. “No, not dead. Drunk…a lot.But not dead.”
There’s a short pause, and I wonder if he’s hung up before he speaks again, “How are you? Are you drunk now?”
“Slightly. I was totaled earlier, but I met a biker, and believe it or not, he fed me coffee.”
“You met a biker, and he gave you coffee?” he states incredulously. “You sure you’re not completely wasted?”
I start laughing. “I know it sounds weird, but I swear, it happened. His name’s Steel, and I got talking to him… he offered us something.”
There is a deafening silence when he pauses again. He inhales deeply, then murmurs, “Us?”
“Yes, the band—”
“There isnoband, Danger. I thought I made that perfectly clear. You fucked us over,remember?”
“I know, and I’m trying to fix it. Give me a damn break.” Sighing, I roll on my side. “You know how you always wanted to see Australia? Well, now you can. Get Matt and Nate and fly over here. Steel has given us the chance we need. He told me we can play in their clubs, and his friend will attempt to set us up in the Aussie music scene.”
Ryan groans loudly. “Why would we uproot our lives and come to Australia? If, and I mean,ifwe were entertaining the idea of getting the band back together, why wouldn’t we do it here in the States and play to a larger crowd?”
Well fuck! I need to think of something and fast. Obviously, Ryan’s been talking to the boys about the band if he’s considering it.
“Simple! We tried the States. We tried the UK. We’ve got a break here, and now we need to regroup and try a different target audience. Steel says his friend, Techie, knows people and can help us. If we can get a helping hand and try a new scene, shouldn’t we take the shot? I mean, think about it, look at the Australian bands who’ve made it… INXS, ACDC, Jet, Powderfinger, Silverchair, Bee Gees, need me to keep going?” I sit up taller on the edge of the bed, hoping my argument is working.
A loud huff echoes down the line. “Yeah, yeah, so? Some Australian bands have made it big, but we’re not Australian. We’re Americans. There’s a big difference, Danger. Australians accept homegrown talent far better than some hot-blooded Americans, who think they can break into the Australian music scene.”
Shit!
“Ryan, I understand your doubts. But I know you’re aching to get the band together again. If you’re anything like me, music’s in your veins, and I know you’re like me because we’re like brothers. You’ve been my best friend for a long damn time. Music floods your soul and encapsulates every damn molecule in your body like it does mine. Sure, I had two years off and lived my life, but Ryan, I wasn’t living. I had my girl and had my nine-to-five, but I wasn’t playing in packed-out stadiums and rocking to the beats of our best songs. We make great fucking music together… you, me, Matt, and Nate. And man… we fucking rockat it. Recoilneedsto be reformed, and weneedto make new music. I may be intoxicated, yes… but I am seeing perfectly clear. Ryan, weneedthis. Music is in our blood, it’s our life, and I’m not living…” I pause before finishing with,“… are you?”
There’s a long break, the tension almost too much to bear. My chest rises and falls rapidly, hoping I’ve been convincing enough. Everything I’ve said is the truth. Sure, I worked in the music industry, but that’s not the same as making, producing, and performing your own sound. I live for that, and fuck, I’ve missed it.
Ineedthis.
IneedRecoil.
And I know Ryan does too.
“You can tell you’re a songwriter, you fucking poetic douchebag,” Ryan quips.
“Shut up, dickhead, you love my lyrical genius.”
“Yeah, I fucking do. What do you say, boys?” he yells out.
What the hell!
“He’s pretty fucking convincing,” Matt’s voice comes over the phone.
“Matt?” I murmur.
“Yeah, I’m convinced too,” Nate chimes in.
A broad smile swipes over my face with genuine happiness I haven’t felt for a while.
