BY JASON CORLISS

Look me in the eye
And tell me that I’m satisfied
Were you satisfied?
Look me in the eye
Then, tell me I’m satisfied
And now are you satisfied?

A quick midweek reflection on the trip to DC this past Sunday. 

It was a dark and stormy night…  and, the Red Bulls exhibited as much effort and creativity on the pitch as I did dredging up that most tired and lazy of opening lines.  The +/- 200 of us who rolled down to a cold rain-soaked DC on Sunday afternoon showed more vitality partying and singing on the 4-hour bus rides, in the parking lot and in the seats, than the team did in 90 minutes against DC.  In a word, the result left us (as put so succinctly by Paul Westerberg of The Replacements) Unsatisfied. 

The Replacements, formed in Minneapolis in the late ‘70s, would’ve felt right at home on our bus trip to DC.  Notoriously, they were banned from ‘Saturday Night Live’ for performing sloppy drunk, and had a well-earned reputation for intoxication.  But, bad behavior aside, The Replacements’ brand of raw energy and Westerberg’s even raw-er storytelling influenced a slew of (influential-in-their-own-right) bands, and bridged the gap between punk and “college rock” in the mid ‘80s.  Whereas The Velvet Underground inspired “uncool” kids to form their bands, Westerberg and the Replacements made personal songwriting both punk and cool simultaneously, all the while spitting out music that mirrored the frenetic sparks of a downed power line.

For the record, we were treated very well by the operations and security folks in DC, and there were no incidents between rival fans, despite years of bad blood.  Perhaps that was aided by the fact that we were greatly outnumbered by empty seats, and/or that the DC fans were wary of the prospect of chunks of RFK’s artifactual debris falling down on them, as we were located under an overhang, but either way, we made our voices heard for 89 strong minutes (only pausing for a minute of silence, out of respect, to honor a fallen DC supporter).  The contrast between RBNY’s play and the commitment shown by the supporters couldn’t have been more stark.  We brought it, as we always do.  The team?  Not in the slightest.

And if it’s just a game
Then we’ll break down just in case
Then again, I’ll tell you what we could do
You be me for a while
You be me for a while
And I’ll be you

Although I don’t think we’re quite yet to the point of demanding the team’s shirts off their backs, like this recent scene in Genoa , I do expect the team to show as much energy on Saturday against New England as the +/- 200 supporters did last Sunday in DC, and do every single week.  Westerberg and the boys had it dead right in their song ‘I’ll Be You’, we’d be more than happy to trade places with players on the pitch any day.  As I’ve written in these pages before, supporting the team isn‘t about quid pro quo.

And I could purge my soul perhaps
For the imminent collapse
Oh yeah (oh yeah) I’ll tell you what we could do
You be me for a while
I’ll be you

We don’t do it because we expect anything in return, especially since we know that disappointments outstrip triumph.  We do it because it’s in us…it’s not a choice, it’s who we are.  We sing for the shirts on the pitch, no matter who’s wearing them.  But, we’ll sing even louder for the hearts in those shirts, as long as they beat as hard as ours do.

Looking into the future a bit, if you’d like to join us on our next trip, be prepared to disappoint your mother.  We’re heading down to visit the Bimbos on Sunday, 5/13…Mother’s Day, at 12:30pm.  Don’t worry, I’m sure you’ve disappointed your mom plenty of times in the past.  At least this time, it’ll be for a good reason. We’re likely to get a big turnout for this trip, and reduced price tickets (for bus + game, as well as game-only) are on sale now.  Get. On. The. Bus(es)!