Discovering Au/Ra - A path of many obstacles
It's June 10th, I've left my house just after midnight with a backpack slung over my shoulders and the understanding that I wont see this place again for 9 days. Me, the month of June, and concerts go hand in hand like the white chocolate and cookies on the new Magnum ice creams (They're not sponsoring me but damnit they're tasty). I've gone concert crazy the last few June's running, but this year would be something well beyond the realms of previous achievement. I catch my late coach to Dublin airport full of excitement and contemplation of the events that are set to unfold. Fast forward a few hours and the sun hovers low in the sky as I take my first steps off the plane that has just transported me to Paris. I've never been to Paris before. Why am I in Paris...?

It's November 27th, 2018. I'm sitting on the 5PM coach to Dublin, I'm tired after working a full shift in Cork, but above that I'm excited. I'm gonna see one of my favourite artists EDEN play in the Olympia Theatre again, that's twice this year now. I'm curious about the new discovery I'm gonna make with his support act. I like her name, Au/Ra, and a quick glance to her profile has my curiosity piqued big time, she looks fucking cool. What's she gonna sound like, I wonder to myself. Sure, I've got my earphones on me, it's just a click away. But I'm not about to break my rule. I'm a sucker for live discovery of music, if I know I'm already going to see someone live then I explicitly do not listen to their music in advance, I love that moment of it all unveiling right there before me from the stage. I'm gonna be in Dublin for 8 O Clock, if I'm quick on my feet I'll barely even miss her first song. That annoys me, but I'll settle for it as I had to go to work.

It's 8 O Clock. Why aren't we rolling through Dublin City center right now? We don't even seem to be remotely near there. We come up to Dublin Airport, every passenger on the coach aghast. The bus is not meant to be here. Only one person on this entire bus is even going to the airport, the driver has messed up big time here and there's outrage. He's gone the wrong way on a 2 stop bus route, putting us all out by a 30 minute delay. I'm stressed all the way to Dublin after we leave the airport again. The bus barely stops at the curb and I'm off, running to the Olympia. I race through the streets and enter the venue quick time. There's Au/Ra on stage, the unmissable green hair... As she says goodbye to the crowd and thanks everyone, her set over. You have goooot to be kidding me.

The concert is over, I'm on a bus straight back to Cork for work again in the morning, exhausted, elated, EDEN just put on an incredible show. I gotta see what that Au/Ra one was like though, so it's earphones in and Spotify up. I didn't think I could hate that bus driver any more than I already did. It's apparent after just one listen through of what Au/Ra has online that, yes, I absolutely could hate that driver more. He kept me from hearing this live, this music that I am actively falling in love with from the first moment I'm exposed to it. And so, mission improbable is now in effect: See Au/Ra live, ASAP. Should be a piece of cake right, I mean she only lives in Antigua in the Caribbean Islands, so touring in this part of the world is tooootally gonna be a regular thing, round the corner as it is (/sarcasm).

It's early 2019, and I get the notification I've been dying to see. Au/Ra has a mini tour of Europe coming up! Yes! It... doesn't include Ireland. Bugger. But it's in June, that's when my holiday time from work is due. I narrow down the options to 2 possibilities, Paris or Berlin. It comes down to the flip of a coin pretty much, and I settle on Paris, I've always wanted to get to France eventually. Flights booked, ticket bought, the world aint stopping me this time!