Battle Of The Bands
God, we have to win. I don't think I'll ever live it down if that idiot Light Yagami and his stupid band beats us tonight. We've won the battle of the bands every year that we've entered but this time things have been different.
Sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's try some introductions first. I'm Mello, lead guitarist for the greatest band to come out of Wammy High. Yes it's the one and only 'L and the Justice Kids'. We worship at the high altar of rock and roll.
Every year we've cleaned up at battle of the bands. The competition just lies down in front of us, well, except for Matsuda's band but everyone knows they're already going nowhere. We had Matt on drums who can keep a beat with anything, Wedy the hot chic factor on keyboard, this weird kid called Near who whatever else I might say knows how to play, and of course the legendary L on vocals.
L was headed for the big stuff and everyone knew that. He didn't look like much, just a skinny kid with too much hair and way too much eyeliner. He was actually a bit of a stuck-up ass when it came to music. Full of elitist stuff.
Damn, he could sing. He really just got what the music was all about and he would blast the crowd with his low grimy lyrics. No one could beat us.
That is, until Light Yagami showed up.
Light is a complete idiot He thinks he's so perfect and smart, it makes me sick. He wouldn't know a real musician in a million years. Unfortunately he just happens to be extremely talented. Somehow this year he decided to pull this band out of nowhere to compete with us. We wanted to check them out so the whole band went down to see the gig they were playing.
They're just calling their band Kira, which is a terrible name by the way. This kid called Teru Mikami is drumming for them, which is making Matt turn nearly purple with righteous indignation.
They also have possibly the two hottest girls in the whole school playing bass and rhythm guitar, which is making Wedy turn respectively purple. Misa Amane and Kiyome Takada are like these miraculous goddesses of sex that represent every virginal high school boy's dreams. Light has been playing this 'off and on' game with both of them for years now.
The most revered Light Yagami himself is playing lead guitar. He sings too, if you can call it that. Let's describe the bands first set here.
Light was standing center stage; somehow making an entire crowded club go silent just by looking at them. The rest of the band stands like statues behind him. They're wearing their school uniforms for some reason and all I could think about was how pompous that was.
Finally they start, a plucky little melody and Light singing gently in a bright tenor. I couldn't resist a snort of laughter, they didn't have a chance. They were almost as bad as Matsuda's little group.
Of course the universe had to prove me wrong.
Out of nowhere Light just goes crazy. He's making this amazing feral scream that is pure undiluted awesome and the rest of the band has suddenly starts tearing into this super speed power chord thing.
Everyone is practically blown out of their seat. Light has torn off his coat and Misa and Takada's shirts have magically unbuttoned to a dangerously low point. It's school kids gone bad, no more like school kids gone absolutely insane. They're like animals up there and Light's voice is soaring higher above the deranged chords Misa and Takada are playing while Mikami, who looked like such a quiet and polite guy, looks like he's trying to smash his way through the drum kit.
Naturally everyone loves it. Light's gotten the whole club dancing to his stupid music, screaming their heads off.
We get up and leave. In the alley outside L breaks the news.
"I'm leaving." He snarls running a hand through his mop of hair. "We don't have a chance against Yagami. It's exactly what people here want, something new to dirty up their suburban lives."
Before L gets started on his usual 'no one here knows real music' rant, the message of what he said finally sinks in.
"You can't leave!" Matt gasps in horror.
"You're the heart and soul of the band! What are we going to do?" I yell but he ignores it.
"Give it up. We don't have a chance." L stalks off into the night.
"If L says so, then we really don't have a chance." Adds Wedy pulling out a cigarette. "I'm out."
Two in one night, that is a heavy blow and Light Yagami knows it. He grins at me the next day at school and asks if I'd seen the show. I just told him I'd lost my virginity to his little sister, which shut him up pretty quick.
We auditioned desperately for new people. We finally found a girl named Halle Lidner to take Wedy's place on the keyboard. She wasn't bad, just a little pop-y as a rule. But we had no luck for singers.
I volunteered to do vocals, I'm not bad really but I'm a little lower than L. Of course then Near asked if he could try and he's quite good, if a little higher than L.
So here we are, one week before the competition, still no singer. Near and I have nearly split the band again and Matt is pretty much the only thing that's keeping us together.
The only consolation I have is that Ukita quit Matsuda's group of trained baboons and Aizawa is thinking about it. If they walk on to stage with just Mogi doing some little beat on drums and Matsuda doing is pseudo-hardcore singing they're going to get laughed off in a minute.
I talked to Roger about it; he's pretty cool for an old guy. Used to work for some big label when he was young and saw a lot of young bands like ours. He told me that I should try singing with Near but it will never work. We can't blend, we can't get along, but at this point I'm willing to try anything.
Our salvation. Near and I sound perfect together. It's just the right amount of contrast and if we harmonize we're as smooth as L singing alone. I could even say we sound better than L.
We updated our sound a bit to compete with Light's crappy inferno. Added a little bubble gum to our rock. No girl in the world is going to be able to resist dancing to this, or at least bobbing her head.
We're walking onto stage now, right after the Kiras have gone. I can't resist giving Light a bit of smug grin. It's making him uneasy, good.
We start playing and after a few moments to adjust the crowd is loving us. The greatest satisfaction is seeing Light's horrified face as he shouts at Misa who can't have done anything to deserve it. I'm feeling so great now I'm thinking about asking her out after we win.
You don't mess with The Justice Kids Light Yagami.
I don't even stick around to hear Matsuda's train wreck play. I go out and celebrate a little with the band before they announce us as victorious. I'm looking forward to rubbing this in Yagami's pretty face.
"And now the moment you've all bee waiting for, the winner of this years battle of the bands."
I'm poised in my seat, Matt is grinning like a kid in a candy store.
"The winner is…"
Halle unexpectedly kisses me full on the mouth. I'm a little shocked but not necessarily upset. I suspected an ulterior motive for her joining the band. What can I say? I'm a pretty cool guy.
"The Task Force!"
What?
That had to be a mistake; Matsuda's band hasn't won anything in its entire existence! Light's face is flushed as he storms out, the devoted Mikami following. Somehow it isn't as satisfying seeing as reality has broken and Matsuda is leading his band up onto the stage for a triumphant encore. They've gotten Ide to replace Ukita.
Then they start to play and I groan. Indy techno. No girl can resist it. Matsuda has finally figured out how to use his lovable dorky-ness to make it in the world. Even Misa and Takada are dancing to it, swooning when Matsuda bends down and sings some quirky sweet little line.
I suddenly feel extremely lucky that Halle seems resistant to its power and is still holding my hand.
Slowly, we all start laughing.
"Alright guys, let's go back to my place." Says Matt with a grin. "Matsuda, god damn it."
"Yeah, there's always next year." Says Near with a shrug.
"Looks like the Kiras have gone home crying, aw." Sniggers Halle and I feel amazed that I had never noticed how great she was before.
As it turned out, Matsuda started dating Misa within the week. Takada hooked up with Mogi. Wedy even started dating Matt. L finally voiced his affection to Naomi Misora who dumped Raye for him. To the shock of all Mikami started dating Light who seemed vastly improved by it. Halle and I are thinking about going to college together next year.
I guess it all turned out okay. Thank god for rock and roll!