The Friendship Bowl | Green Room Antics with Vale of Pnath

It's not often I really express my gratitude for bands, apart from people like Kjetil in Order and Niuvis; but last night, I had the honor and privilege of getting to hang with Vale of Pnath.

To give you a brief backstory on how I came to befriend these fantastic lads, I initially was hired to model their clothes by my friend Christina, who owns Creeping Death Designs. I was selected to model their clothes specifically, and come to find out, Vale was pretty happy about it. I'll be honest, I hadn't really given Vale that much of listen, and prior to me modeling their merch, I had, well, never really heard of them. I felt like an asshole for not knowing who they were, as they were most grateful for me just putting a shirt on.

So, time passed, Vale befriended me, and so began the beginnings of another band friendship.

Time went on, and I received a buzz from Vance (the guitarist) about him being interested in me being in a Vale music video. Well, how could I say no, and why would I ever pass up on this opportunity? Initially, I was pretty hesitant because I quit doing model-type stuff, and I did not want to be in video where the focus was my body or face. I didn't voice my concern about it to him, but I realized pretty quickly I didn't need to. Vance expressed his interest in me as an artist, and that what I did he felt was the best he's seen. Scott Hansen, the director I'm shooting with, gave Vance a choice of actresses to choose from, and Vance turned them all down, exclaiming that he wanted me in the role period.

Well, rewind a couple months back before the video and I was having major doubts about my work, my career, and the usual self-sabotage that seems to follow any creative. Vance placed me, him, and Scott in group chat, and from there, we figured out the ideas for the video.

Needless to say, I had the opportunity to do what I do best: scare the shit out of people, evoke the spirit of Paimon, and devour anything I get my large and in charge mouth on. I'm sure you all saw the BTS I did of the video. If you didn't it's on here somewhere, I forgot where lol.

Fast forward to last night, and I FINALLY had the opportunity to see Vale in person, and meet all the awesome band members that have given me an opportunity. As you all know, I'm not a fan of some of the people here in the local "scene." A part of me would love to name names, but I'm a professional and honestly, I'm a firm believer in karma getting their sweet and sour chicken ass when they least expect it. Anyways, I was dreading last night like the plague, I'm not going to lie to you all. I was severely depressed all day long at work and not looking forward to seeing all the shitty people that have screwed me over and my friends. I left work, put my best face on and let Vance know I had arrived. He was standing outside the venue in a black Anaal Naakrath battle vest, and gave me and Jim a big hug. From there, we went to a side door and upstairs to the green room of the venue. Me in Jim, in a green room? Hell, I would have just accepted the fact that I had to see all those sour puss faces and suck it up, but oddly enough...I didn't have to.

Vance invited Jim and I upstairs to sit with the band until their set. They were all quiet, humble fellas. Ken was hilarious, Bryce was something of the tech/intellectual guy, Andy was just your usual guy standing next to a wall, and Vance was the mastermind behind it all. We sat on the couch, gave them one of my shirts and some local beer from Barrel of Monks, and shared some Tulladew. It was truly hard for me to believe that I had deserved to be up there with those guys. What's more than that, it was a breath of fresh air to know that my partner was accepted and respected like he was I; and when you respect Jim, you respect me. We listened to the local bands downstairs play and shared many a shit jokes. It was nice knowing that these guys not only had my back, but they didn't care about local drama that most of the people downstairs swathed themselves in. They just wanted to play, and being exhausted from a long tour, they were extremely tired.

We made our way downstairs and hung with the band at their merch table. Upon entering the venue, I saw all those faces that stabbed me in the back and scoffed at me for what I did look on in bewilderment.

“Why are they with them? She doesn't play in a band, why is she there?"

Those were the assumed thoughts running through their heads, I'm sure, as the cliques that run here are only ever supportive of anyone that plays a guitar and has a history in cheating on their partners, lying, and backstabbing. It's something that I greatly do not tolerate anymore, and a huge part of the reason they look at me with disdain is because I tell the truth about them, and the truth is something they hate.

At any rate, Jim being his usual sweet self, bought the band, myself, and Niuvis some beer. We chatted and waited for them to go onto the stage. The locals being the locals congregated in their groups and engaged in llama drama, and Vale stood there just waiting to play. The time came when they took the stage, and believe me when I say, their presence commanded attention. Their set was out of this world outstanding, and Jim, myself, and Niuvis enjoyed every minute of it. The shit-talkers, gossip mongers, and attention-seekers faded into obscurity as our smiles grew larger. I realized in those moments that life is hard, and no career worth pursing comes easy, but we are tested to follow through with strength.

The band descended off the stage. We congratulated them with a complimentary beer, some hugs, and were invited out to Bradley's for some after drinks and food. We walked down Clematis Street with Bryce and Vance and recanted stories of our childhood and the fact that we were getting older, and it was okay. We arrived, had our fun, and rescinded any negative, hateful energy that transpired out of the sea of snakes.

Jim and I left that night and felt like we were stars. I know realistically it may not be much, but when you come across a group that could give a fuck less about looks, fucking for clout, and screwing people over, it makes you realize that being a professional, after all, is what counts in the end. And I guess that's what I realized last night. It's all okay. It's all going to be okay, and that sometimes, I just need to remember to let go and trust. And that's such a HARD thing to do, my friends, but you really do just have to let go.

And I'll always remember sharing that "Friendship Bowl" with Jim, Vance, and Bryce.

Cheers.