Editor’s Pick #296: Old Ra Ra Riot

Editor’s Pick #296: Old Ra Ra Riot by tjwell01

March 30, 2010, 12:54 pm
Filed under: Editor Picks | Tags: Dying is Fine, John Pike, Ra Ra Riot, Rhumb Line

An old track of Ra Ra Riot's "Dying is Fine" took me way back.

PREVIEW: Ra Ra Riot’s MySpace

LISTEN: Re-mastered version of “Dying is Fine” by Ra Ra Riot on Rhumb Line

LISTEN: Old track of “Dying is Fine” by Ra Ra Riot (different lyrics)

A friend of mine (let’s call her Erin) passed along a really old recording of Ra Ra Riot’s “Dying is Fine,” which must have spawned from the John Pike days as the drummer. It was completely surreal hearing this track on so many levels: 1) How far this Syracuse band has come 2) How long it’s been since John Pike tragically died years ago and 3) It reminded me how resilient these guys are.The old track is really low-rent to the current mastered version, and if you listen to the lyrics it’s actually pretty funny.

It’s just weird how so many Ra Ra Riot messages hit me all at once. Last night, I got an email from a friend in London who told me she read an old story I wrote, interpreting the dramatic scene of John Pike’s death. After recalling the story, I had a serious flash-back of Ra Ra Riot when they were still a post-college band just trying to catch a break when they set up for a show off campus at Syracuse University in a basement (three years ago when I was a freshman). It was the first official Syracuse show they performed since John Pike died and it was a really emotional scene. Pike’s sister stood next to the band crying during the set–had to be the most emotional-musical experience of my life.

Finding this old track just punctuates the amazing journey of Ra Ra Riot, and I can’t wait to hear the new album they’ve been working on.

R.I.P., John.

–Jett Wells

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