kellita the señorita the ibby dibby dow: The Ultimate

Remember in 1990 when you wanted to go to the New Kids on the Block concert, but you weren't allowed? Or in '92 when your mom took you to see Boyz II Men at Market Square Arena, and you were so close to the action all you could talk about for weeks was how Wanye was pelvic thrusting almost in YOUR face, and that you knew it was love.

You attended well over 30 Dave Matthews Band shows in your career, trying to explain to your parents that all 3 shows were NOT the same every year, and yes it was absolutely NECESSARY that you go to all of them every year.

There was the first solo-attendance concert, Indigo Girls and Norah Jones at the Murat Ballroom. That was a little scary because you weren't really in touch with your gay-loving side. Well you were, but you didn't know how to handle same-sex come-ons, so it was awkward. And your friends' moms were working the show and kept asking you, "but why did you come alone?". Umm. Because I wanted to see the show and no one else did.

Then there were all those Damien Rice shows in New York City. Some people thought it was weird that you went to 14 shows within a one-year time period, many alone, but you knew it was all for the love of the music. And you will remember every emotion-packed moment up close and personal, forever. Crazy or not.

Music can make you crazy. It revs up emotions in your soul that make your heart sing, that make you feel. It's life changing. Bands and songs can change your life, or the way you look at it. They can save you in moments of strife. It's hard to explain the power of music. Inside that power, there is nothing better than a live music show. Particularly of a band that has had some sort of impact on your life.

Before I went to Brazil, I was searching Taringa for some Argentine music to download. I wanted to make sure I had something to listen to so I wouldn't forget my Spanish, but also that I could start getting used to the difficult Argentine accent. Enter Onda Vaga. I downloaded their album, Fuerte y Caliente, on a whim, and proceeded to spend the next 30 days inundated with it. Seriously. I listened to the album every day, sometimes multiple times per day. I was so obsessed with the possibility of losing my Spanish skills that I often sat in my hammock spot overlooking the pool with my dicionary and pen in hand, making sure I understood everything I was singing (yes singing, because there was no way I wouldn't memorize it after so much time), so I guess you could say I became obsessed with Onda Vaga. Not in the NKOTB way of my youth where I ran out and bought posters, memorized their names, birthdates, and favorite colors, but I fell in love with their music.

When I came to Buenos Aires, I found I shared that love with my friends Jacinto and Lisbeth, both of whom told me that I was in luck because they had tons of shows during the month of April. Great! But for some reason, I missed every one for some reason or another. Two weeks ago I arrived to class with Lisbeth to receive the news that Onda Vaga would make their return to BsAs after their European tour. We immediately bought tickets and waited patiently. On Wednesday night, it happened. We came, we went, we saw, up front, up close and personal, in the throngs of hundreds of Onda Vaga-hungry adolescent girls doing their best to impersonate a mosh pit. (Their best was pretty good and I gots battle wounds to prove it.)