The Vindys brought special guests and good vibes to their hometown show at the Youngstown Foundation Amphitheater, followed by an after party show at Cedars West End featuring Demos Papadimas and Larry Elefante on Saturday, June 4th 2022.
I have a love/hate relationship with Youngstown, which I think only those who were born and raised here can understand that feeling. In so many ways, it will always be home and you'll never be lonely, but in a lot of ways, that can lead to codependency and fear of the unknown... or, the way many of us feel, staying here can mean we're settling. Many of us are restless because our dreams are as big as our hearts but our feet can't catch up with all the ideas and aspirations we have. Many of us feel if we stay in one place, we're living a very narrow life and we want to grow wider and stretch ourselves beyond physical boundaries. I've found my presence in Youngstown has simultaneously left me feeling surrounded but alone for most of the time. This was one of the rare nights I don't feel that way.
Every corner I turned that night, I found myself running into another familiar face. The kindest words fell from their lips on my behalf, which that verbal reassurance is something that I rarely receive as an artist. I think we all are guilty of overlooking the little things, completely unaware that they're actually not so little. But then we're met with moments such as one I encountered prior to The Vindys' performance: I was approached by a fella who told me that seeing my work makes him happy. Throughout the night, I spent time with friends that I don't see often because they're all in different bands and I unfortunately can only be in one place at one time (being a teenage witch would come in really handy right about now).
Immediately after The Vindys show ended, I headed to Cedars where I was greeted by more familiar faces, including the ones on stage: Demos Papadimas, Ralph Rich, Michael Rutushin, Kari Ann Rutushin, and Patrick Majernik. I haven't been to a show at Cedars since around 2018, so I couldn't not steal a few moments from the evening. My time in Youngstown is far and few, which makes nights like these that much more sweet. All I know is, I hope that as I continue my journey as a photographer, I can find familiar faces in every place I go, no matter how far from home I may roam.