Two Worlds, One State

I was fortunate enough this summer to witness two separate Fourth of July celebrations, one in Madison and one in my hometown, a small, conservative town up nort'. The two could not have been more different, and it was a real wake-up call to what the holiday means for people.

In Madison we have Rythm & Booms, a half-hour fireworks display over Lake Mendota set to music that is played over a city-wide radio station. Most people go to Warner Park or the Union Terrace to view, so people are mainly free to do their own thing. The pyrotechnics are standard, but the music choices are...unique. I was totally pumped to hear a song from Slumdog Millionare as the intro, but the soundtrack quickly turned into a slow jam, disco, Phantom of the Opera, mishmash with one patriotic song thrown in at the end. Not even a Michael Jackson tribute!

I was more confused than anything throughout the show, but I think I've figured it out. I think the sound designers were trying to immitate the city of Madison through its music selection - a little bit of everything, trying to please everyone and be cutting edge, but mainly ending up a hot mess. Yes, everything was different and unique, but it didn't quite flow.

The show and environment at home, however, were an entirely different story. The whole town sets up a "Freedom Fest" to celebrate the holiday with food, a live band, games and a truckload of beer. People showed up early just to camp out and drink, listen to the band (who played not only classic rock covers AND Katy Perry, very progressive for them), and bullshit in general. Standard, non-edgy fare.

The actual fireworks show is set to all patriotic songs, especially those of the country-western persuasion. Instead of hearing the "oohs" and "aaahs" that I remember from my youth, I heard people softly singing along to Toby Kieth, rising and falling in enthusiasm to the machismo chorus.

People in Madison would never sing along to a country song, let alone one that epitomized America as the Justice Cowboy of the world. Surreal.

However weird that experience was though, the whole time I pretty much felt like I was with extended family, like an actual community. I almost felt that even though I no longer fit in due to my liberal leanings and questioning patriotism, the people there would still accept me because they really do believe we are the greatest nation and the best people on earth. No matter how much I've built a community in Madison and can try to stand out on my own, I don't know that I quite fit in. Maybe it's due to Madison's self-important nature, or my own reservations or personality, but the community here is such a mishmash that it can be hard to find just the right place.

That does not mean I'm heading back up Nort'. It just means I need to keep moving on to find the musical melange that fits. One that has Ben Kweller and the Beastie Boys in the mix.