King Gizzard and the Meetup Greetup
A little over a year ago, Kathryn and I saw Geese at the Cat's Cradle. While in line, we met Izzy and Jess, two fellow Geese fans who are just as passionate as us when it comes to attending local concerts (actually, probably more so). We had a lot of fun getting to know them before the show began, and it was even more fun to enjoy Geese with them since they matched our hype. Alas, we hadn't seen them anytime after the show, despite our apparent overlap in much of our music taste. We were thankfully able to change that yesterday when Izzy hosted a King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard fan meetup.
King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard (KGLW) hails from Australia and is well known in the rock scene for their extensive and eclectic discography. Kathryn and I had seen them in concert in 2024; that was actually our first time seeing Geese as well, as they were KGLW's opening act. They have since removed their music from Spotify as a boycott to the company's shady investment practices, but I highly recommend checking them out on other streaming platforms (or even better, vinyl). My personal favorite record of theirs is 2024's Flight b741, which is an homage to American classic rock. However, other favorites include 2016's adrenaline rush Nonagon Infinity and 2023's mellower Butterfly 3000.
These are just three of 28 studio albums released since 2012. As you can perhaps tell, there is much to discuss when it comes to their discography - yet, often, no one else to discuss it with before today. We met our fellow Geese friends at the meetup before introducing ourselves to other like-eared individuals. The conversation naturally begins on KGLW: concerts, albums, etc. Then, it becomes apparent that KGLW fans have more in common than not: most notably, other niche musical acts and our relationship with mental illnesses. Kathryn and I spent hours on a couch with strangers discussing our favorite acts, sharing thoughts on artists we love, and getting to know each other on a personal level. We actually stayed out so late that we had to cancel our plans to cook dinner and instead pick up food on the way home. If that doesn't speak to the intimacy of the music community, then what else does?