Life is Short. Buy the Concert Tickets | Sara Biren

 

When I started to think about the question of what I would do if I could go back to my teenage years, the answer came quickly: I'd go to more concerts. 

 Don't get me wrong. I went to a lot of concerts as a teenager, including this one time senior year that my parents were okay with me driving to First Avenue in downtown Minneapolis on a school night. But there are a few I missed and I'm still kicking myself about it. At the top of the list are The Replacements and INXS, and I continued to miss out on them over the years until it was too late. The Replacements broke up, and even though they sort of got back together a few years ago for a tour (which I also missed), I doubt they will attempt it again. And when Michael Hutchence died in in 1997, my dreams of seeing INXS live died with him. 

Music is still such an important part of my life, and seeing live bands is one of my favorite things in this life. So when Chris Cornell died in 2017, and we'd said "next time" too many times when he'd come to town, I made a new rule. Life is short. Buy the concert tickets. You may never get the chance again. 

If I could go back in time to my teenage years, I'd see The Replacements and INXS and other bands I missed. I'd tell myself to buy the concert tickets, and I'd do whatever it took to see the bands and artists I loved, and I wouldn't wait until 2017 to live by that rule. 

If you could see any band or artist live, who would it be?