I TRIED POSTING THE ACTUAL VIDEO BUT MAYBE IT’S TOO LONG. I’LL FIGURE IT OUT LATER. BED TIME.

When I got on the train around mid day today, these guys were just about done with their set. They completed it then moved to the next car, almost missing the closing doors. One of them held the doors for the others toting their drums and stools, slaloming in between other commuters exiting and entering the cars. Had I followed them the first time, I would have missed the closing doors to the next car. I waited for the next stop and caught them in the adjacent car still. I moved with them once more after recording this clip, so I saw a little over two sets – the one recorded and the one after, in addition to the tail end at the outset.

The sets I saw were better than the one I recorded, but upon realizing that, I didn’t want to make a spectacle by continuing to record and being a creep running out of one car and into the next. There is hardly anything more unbecoming than being a groupie, especially for random dudes beating drums on a train. Nevertheless, following them like that to two cars gave me a new respect for their effort. They are drumming nonstop then running in between carrying things. It’s a work out for the arms, then legs, and cardio throughout.

Whenever I see train performers my guard generally goes up, because they are often so bad and try so little to camouflage their lack of talent that I am almost inclined to pay them to go away. Naturally, I don’t because I value money and refuse to let them win, but it almost always occurs to me as I risk deafening myself by turning up the volume on my favorite white noise app. Occasionally, a performer is good, and these guys were. They even dropped the tempo when announcements came on by the train engineer.

This video might be more enjoyable with a pair of headphones than just computer speakers. I tried to capture the contrast between their enthusiasm and the nonchalance of the riders. Many of the riders do in fact, enjoy the entertainment. They often even applaud, but when the hat comes out, even before the appeal as the performers wind down, the riders’ eyelids shade greedy consumption and consciences from view. Outstretched palms darken before they can properly even come in to focus. For the record, I asked them if I could record, and told them I’d give them a couple of bucks to do so, which I did. They were cool about it, happy in fact. It was a nice pick me up to get the day going.