So Friday night we finally make a point of going out on the town. Our friend's band was playing a show at Cake Shop, one of the only worthwhile venues left in the East Village/LES. Due to my foggy brain, I didn't quite make the connection, but this was indeed a CMJ performance. There are times when I think CMJ is a good thing, it helps bands reach wider audiences, some even get the all-important Record Deal. But after 5 seconds in the band room, I took it all back: CMJ still sucks.

The room was packed even though it was still relatively early. I know it's not a big club, but most of the shows I attend there don't fill the place up quite in this way. It would be one thing if the room was packed with the band's most ardent fans, all locked in on the music radiating from the back corner of the room. That might be okay. But who were these people? Everybody seemed to be there solely to push their way to the front, then push their way to the back, making sure to spill beer and talk on their cellphones while doing so. Those who weren't burrowing in out of the throng were babbling at each other. Why do they want to do this in such a small space? The Cake Shop has an upper floor (which, okay, was also crowded). But at least move to the back if you're not even interested in the music.

I think it's good that every band in CMJ gets all-access passes to go to pretty much any other show going on that week, but maybe people should have to work at it a little harder. I didn't even bother getting a drink while we were there; I knew I wouldn't want to hang around any longer than the set lasted. When it was over, we went to the only bar in the area we could think of that wouldn't be overrun, the former Meow Mix bar, Vasmay.

This bar has been pretty reliable for a while, it's never super crowded and it has a good jukebox. But recently they installed a new sound system and now the jukebox is deafeningly loud. Jeannie put her earplugs in just to bear sitting there, and I spied at least one other guy with earplugs in against the din. I would have paid any price for whiskey at that point, but the prices seemed to vary from 5 to 8 bucks depending on the bartenders whim. 8 dollars for a whiskey! Thank god I don't go out much.

So I guess this is how it begins, my turning into a grumpy ol' coot. I guess I should have known better about the CMJ show, and I've been to Vasmay before since they installed the Ear-Bleeder Stereo System, so I guess I have no excuse. Now I think we should have gone to the Parkside Lounge, that's usually safe, if a bit of a haul from Ludlow Street. But now I'm almost afraid to go there, for fear it too has become uninhabitable.