Guest Post: Polly Benzing

What would it be like to hang out with your favorite band? My friend Polly recently found out. Here’s her story…

I Won the Indie Rock Lottery

So around 3:30pm on the day of the Belle and Sebastian show, I was in my office and was supposed to be paying attention to a conference call when on the other side of the office, my phone kept ringing. I glanced at the caller ID, and on it was an extraordinarily long phone number. This person had left a message and then continued to call, so I had to break away and find out who it was. Alas! It was my dear friend, Rachel (a Louisville native living in Scotland). Her message said she needed a favor from me and she “thought I’d be into it.” Well, Miss Rachel is the hippest girl I know and she works in the music biz and is friends with members of B&S. I knew this favor would be good.

So she rings up again and said, “Polly, Chris Geddes just called me and said he’s bored in Louisville. Could you please go pick up the band and show them around?” Well… let’s see. Shall I continue listening to the drone of the conference call containing information I’m already well aware of or should I run my ass outta here and wash my hair and pick up my favorite band? It was a tough call but my hair really was greasy so I decided to head home.

On my way home, as I tried to calm down, I thought to myself, “now, who exactly is in Belle & Sebastian besides Stuart Murdoch?” And how will I recognize these darlings? I knew there were lots of them but I’m not one to read up on the members of bands I like too much so I really wasn’t sure. I resolved to drive the minivan to get them just in case.

My husband, Dustin and I rolled up to the Brown Theater and saw some random people standing around –none of whom looked like B&S. One guy caught my eye and I told D I thought that was one of them and he said, “no way.” I walked up anyway and said, “Uh… I was sent by Rachel?” Responding in a strong Scottish accent, he replied something to the effect of, “Oh, yes! Brilliant. Happy to meet you.” It was Chris Geddes and Sarah Wilson (touring with them, playing cello). Chris was wearing a Life Pursuit sweatshirt so why we were questioning their identity, I don’t know. They said they wanted to go eat somewhere so we took them to Lynn’s Paradise Café, a super wacky, must-see-if-you’re-visiting-Louisville restaurant.

Lynn’s has a little store in the front with crazy items for sale. Chris immediately noticed Angry Scotsman Chewing Gum, and cracking up, resolved to buy several packs. Apparently, they don’t sell that in Scotland. Perhaps they sell Angry American Chewing Gum?

So we sat down and the vibe was really comfortable. Chris is a vegetarian so he ordered a Portobello mushroom sandwich and Sarah ordered the salmon. My husband just drank Fall’s City –no doubt to calm his nerves. I was thrilled to the gills and didn’t want to calm my nerves.

I wasn’t sure if I should ask them band-related, interview-like questions or if they would rather I just treat them as our new friends. I decided to mix it up a bit. We talked about Rachel and how she’s promoting some Scottish DJ duo called, Optimo, and we talked about how Rachel and Chris first met and how I met Rachel, originally. I tried to explain my job to them –I work in Human Resources, and they seemed pretty confused so I just dropped it. I asked them if they had a favorite song and Sarah said hers was “Fox in the Snow” for the longest time but now both of their favs was “We are the Sleepyheads.” Dusty and I never thought a whole lot of that song but since that conversation, we have newfound respect for it.

After dinner, we piled back in the van and drove them back to the theater. They hadn’t taken showers yet and needed to get ready for the stage. They said we could choose whatever we wanted from the merch table and have it for free. They asked if we could stick around for a drink after the show and with our babysitter’s permission (incidentally, Rachel’s Mom), we said, “Sure.”

We had front row seats because we had waited in line early the day they went on sale. We’d made friends with several people in line that morning and of course, we were all sitting together at the show. One guy was excited to tell me that he had just seen Stuart eating at the next table from him at a Mediterranean restaurant an hour earlier. Oh, how sweet, I thought. Well, guess what I did, buddy? Just kidding, I didn’t gloat but my story was pretty damn impressive –as you can attest to after reading this awesome recap.

The show was lovely and Chris and Sarah waved to us from the stage a couple times. When it was over, Chris came up and handed us wristbands that would get us backstage. Rachel had her sister put on the guest list and she ended up sitting next to us at the show and going backstage with us, as well.

Backstage, there were crackers and cheese and beer and wine. Sarah saw us and said, “There you are. We were looking for you –you’re like old friends now.” What a sweetheart. They were so genuinely grateful for having someone show them a bit of Louisville, when actually, we were infinitely grateful for the opportunity. I never had a doubt that these people would be as precious as their music.

So then the big cheese came in –Stuart. I had to talk to old Stuart so I went up and introduced myself. He was very nice and blushed a little. At first, I don’t even know what we talked about –it was a little awkward getting started. After a short while, he and Andrea (Rachel’s sister) and I were sitting around chatting about this and that, comfortably. When we talked about jobs, I asked him if he thought of his music as a job (that was my reporter question). He said that all of it is like a job except when they get on stage –that’s the reward.

He told us that his girlfriend is American but her Mom is Cuban and her Dad is Sicilian. What a combo. He said he has to watch himself or as he put it, “there will be a horse head in my bed.” Stuart was the most clever of the bunch –very intelligent conversationalist, with some whimsical humor thrown in –much like his songwriting.

We talked with everyone a bit and had drinks and took pictures. We hugged Chris and Sarah goodbye –they’re the ones I’m most endeared to –and not just because of the dinner; they were just the most endearing. Next, Dusty and I were headed back home to our little ones. One day, they’ll be really impressed with this story; they both incubated to the sounds of Belle & Sebastian, you know.

A few days later, I opened my email and there was a message from Chris. I hadn’t given him my email address so he must have gotten it from Rachel. It was a thank you to me and Dusty for keeping them company in town where they would have “otherwise been strangers.” He asked for our address so he could send us some things in the post when he got back home. I, in turn am going to send him a Kentucky T-shirt. Incidentally, I asked Sarah what the impression of Kentucky was back in Scotland and she said that when she saw it on the tour schedule, she said, “Where the hell is that?” Well, maybe if I send t-shirts, old KY will get a bit more exposure.

And now I end this story with a pun I’ve been saving: Meeting Belle and Sebastian –another Life Pursuit realized!

March 30th, 2006