Staring at The Cure!

Hello my lovelies! This post is going to be one which is about something that happened just over four years ago but I still maintain the belief that it was and will always be the most magical night of my life.

It all started with a tweet. The Cure’s official Twitter account caused my phone to buzz and alert me that they were to be playing two shows at the Eventim Apollo (which even now I refer to as Hammersmith Apollo) in London. My heart stopped. Tears filled my eyes. I ran down the stairs and thrust my phone into my mother’s face. She smiled and replied with a simple ‘Okay.’

Along came booking day. The tickets were to be put on sale at 8am and I had to be at college for 8.15 so it was a very suspense filled experience. I got up at 6.30am and got ready for the day before seating at my desk, eating my breakfast and listening to The Head On The Door. 7.58am. I opened Safari and tapped away until I found page which would hold the destiny of whether I was to be seeing my idols live or not. 7.59am. My hands became clammy and my heartbeat was erratic. I stared at the little clock in the corner of my Mac and waited for it to flip to the next minute. 8.00am. I must admit now, I don’t believe that my fingers have ever moved as fast yet carefully as they did at that precise moment. I clicked away and chose my date: Sunday 21st December 2014. I selected two floor tickets, checked the bill and entered my card number. ‘Thankyou!’, the screen read. That was it. I was going to see my spiky-haired, red-lipped idol in the flesh!

Time passed and I had by this point booked everything else that I would need to make my way up to Hammersmith. I had booked my train tickets for myself and my friend, who was accompanying me. The hotel room was booked a short walk from the Apollo and was 5*. Looking back now, I see that my mum couldn’t really justify any of this trip but knowing how much it would mean to me, she went without to give me this wondrous experience.

The day arrived. At 7.30am, my father knocked at my front door and picked me up. He drove me and my friend to the train station and we grabbed a coffee and a snack before boarding the train. We had a three and a half hour journey which was immensely enjoyable for me. I slipped my Beats on and listened to The Cure on Spotify, whilst tapping away at an essay I had to write for my Science class. Soon, the train came to a halt and we were in Paddington station. A little disorientated, I popped into the Paddington Bear shop and bought a postcard to send home to my Mother and into Sainsburys to pick up a bottle of water and some snacks to munch on whilst I got ready. We boarded the Tube and headed to Hammersmith. After a while, we finally checked in at our hotel. The room was lovely and I unpacked my outfit for the evening. Connecting my Spotify to the TV in our room, I shuffled The Cure’s page and bopped along as I got ready. I spiked my hair up slightly and smothered black eyeshadow around my eyes, in true Cure style. Grabbing my small bag, I popped my phone, my lipstick and a Sharpie which I had purchased in case I happened to meet any of the band in my bag as well as my tickets.

We went to the Nandos in Hammersmith and I ordered a large Coke and some chips because, at this point, the excitement had caused me to start to feel quite anxious and I didn’t think I could manage to eat much. I munched through my chips and took in my surroundings. There was a large table next to me where a dozen Cure fans were nattering away before the concert. I went into the toilets just before we were leaving to head to the Apollo and that is when the reality of the situation kicked in. I started to cry slightly and my stomach tied itself in knots.

When we eventually arrived at Hammersmith Apollo, we were relatively close to the front of the line. I took a few pictures of the sign which displayed the band’s name in lights. After about an hour, the large doors opened and people started to file in. We had our tickets checked and I spied the doors leading to the arena open. Now, I am not someone who enjoys exercise in any form. But I ran. I ran faster than I knew I even could, all the way through the crowds gathering at the bar, the merch stand and the toilets. I finally, after what seemed like an eternity, reached the barrier. I found a nice position where I could see the whole of the stage from a nicely discreet angle where my photos and videos wouldn’t be interrupted my drunken men. I needed to be able to document this for the rest of my life. I waited anxiously in this spot for the rest of the audience to pack in. The security guard stood just in front of me and we chatted about the night before the support band came on. The house lights dimmed and And Also The Trees entered the stage. They were fantastic! Throughout their set, my heart started to thump in my chest so heavily that if I were in a cartoon, it would be depicted as bursting through my clothes and dangling in the air.

And Also The Trees left the stage and about fifteen minutes later, the house lights dimmed once again and blue lights illuminated the stage. ‘Introshake’ music started to play and after a minute, familiar figures filled the stage. Firstly, Jason Cooper entered and I cheered as he took his seat behind the drums. Next, Reeves Gabrels came on to the stage and I cheered again as he picked up his guitar. Next, Roger O’Donnell entered and took his place behind his keyboard, which was right in front of me. I wailed as Simon Gallup bounced on to the stage and picked up his bass. And, finally, the figure which graced my bedroom walls wandered on to the stage,the light flickering through his backcombed, bird’s nest hair. I wept as Robert James Smith became present. My face was now aching from smiling as I realized that my dreams were finally coming true. ‘Ha, ha,ha!’ Robert’s voice echoed throughout the room and filled my heart with joy as the band burst into ‘Shake Dog Shake’. 

The rest of the night was outstanding. Three and a quarter hours of pure ecstasy. During one song (which one, I cannot recall) Roger O’Donnell waved at me and shortly after, due to myself screaming his name and waving like a madwoman, Simon Gallup nodded and winked at me. I also believe (much to my friend’s uncertainty) that Robert Smith smiled at me when I screamed ‘I love you Robert!’ at him in between songs. The night drew to a close with the wonderful ‘Hey You!’ and Robert wished us all a happy Christmas before exiting the stage in true Robert Smith, shoegaze fashion. I clutched onto the barrier and took several deep breaths to check that everything that had just occurred was not just a dream.

‘Do you want a little something extra to remember the night with?’ one of the friendly security guards said to me before instructing me to wait there before dashing off backstage. He returned a few minutes later with a small orange thing in his hand. ‘Here,’ he beamed, ‘you can have this! It belongs to Simon.’ he handed me a guitar pick which I had noticed Simon using during the show. I burst into tears and thanked him immensely before heading towards the doors. My friend queued at the merch stand to get me a shirt and I leant against a wall to try to come back to Earth. That wasn’t going to happen. At that exact moment, Roger O’Donnell walked past me. I couldn’t stop myself from shouting, ‘Roger, follow me on Twitter!’ to which he turned and laughed (I would like to add that he did follow me a few days later!) I smiled as he walked away and was tapped on the shoulder. I saw the other security guard who had been standing near me during the concert. ‘I was looking for you because I thought that you might want this!’ He handed me a setlist from the evening and I thanked him. We then walked around Hammersmith for an hour so I could just take in everything that had gone on and then back to our hotel room where I called my mother and told her all about the evening.

Now, next to my bed, I have a display of all of my photos of that evening and my setlist and guitar pick so that every morning, I wake up smiling.

Wow! That was so long! Thank you if you managed to read all of that and I hope that you enjoyed it! Until next time,

Chantelle xx