Meeting Vixen

June 6, 2006 seemed like any normal day. My husband and I had tickets for that night to a concert at a small local venue that we hadn't been to except for when it was a movie theater. The concert that night was for the rock groups Enuff Z' Nuff and Vixen. These two groups were popular mostly in the 1980's. This would be my first time seeing either of them in concert. My husband had seen Enuff Z' Nuff before. Vixen was promoting an upcoming cd with an almost entirely new lineup. The only remaining original member was Jan Kuehnemund, the founder and lead guitarist.

When we arrived about an hour before the start of the concert, we were surprised that there were only about 25 people there. Having been to many concerts in the past this was quite unusual. We figured that people would show up closer to showtime. When one of the two opening acts came onstage, there was about a hundred people there by then. The group was from a town twenty miles away, and their name is Dry. We had never heard their material before, and were pleasantly surprised. After they played for about half an hour, really rocking and getting people into their music, after a short break the second opening act came on. Their name is Supermercado. Based out of Chicago, we had not heard of them. They were a very harsh heavy metal thrash type of group. They had a few decent songs but for the most part I just wanted to cover my ears. I have spent many a concert right in front of speakers so not being able to tolerate the harshness of this group was quite an experience. Enuff Z' Nuff finally took the stage after yet another intermission. My husband and I love a song of their's titled "Fly High Michelle", but aside from that song I hadn't heard any of their other material. My husband had seen them once before in the 80's and said they weren't too bad live. I am not sure if it was their ages, not being in practice, or something else, but my husband and I were extremely disappointed in their performance. We were both beginning to wonder if we should even stay for Vixen, since we hadn't been really enjoying anything prior to their taking the stage. We both knew several of their older songs, and knew that they were beautiful women. However, with the new lineup, we didn't know anything about them other than the way they looked and their names. There wasn't any new material available from their upcoming cd to "brush up" on before the concert. We decided to stay, and to our disbelief, there was less people there for Vixen than for the other groups. We decided at the end of the night it was their big loss.

The women of Vixen took the stage with force and grace. It was non stop rock from the beginning. They played with perfection and were completely in synch with each other. They sang older songs and introduced us to some of their new ones. My husband and I were close enough to the stage to touch Jan if she'd have reached for us. I have been close before, but there was something about these ladies that was so mesmerizing. I was completely infatuated. To watch Jan make love to her guitar with her fingers was so seductive, yet very energizing. The lead singer, Jenna, hit her notes with perfection, and her glowing hair and smile seemed to capture everyone. Lynn, the bassist, with her long flowing blonde hair and powerful moves was very entrancing to watch. Kat on her drums, kept perfect beat and emitted an energy of her own right along with the beats from her drums.

As Jenna, Jan, Lynn and Kat bid farewell to the small but enthusiastic audience, I felt myself wishing that they'd go on singing forever. Not wanting the night to end, I walked over to Paul, the man who owned the building and had booked the concert. I asked him if there would be an autograph signing. I was thrilled when he told me that the group would come to the bar soon to meet everyone and sign autographs. I immediately purchased one of their cd's for sale at the concert so I would have something for them to sign.

My husband and I had met up with two friends of ours at the concert, so the four of us went to the bar to wait anxiously. I have met two performers before, being Marie Osmond and Bryan White, but there was something about these women that made you feel like they were your friends, even without having ever met them personally. After about an hour of waiting, I saw Jan making her way toward the door of the bar adjoining the concert venue. Not wanting to seem over anxious, I let another couple go and talk to them first. As Jan finished talking to them and signing what they had for her, she caught my eye, and I meekly made my way toward her and the rest of the band. My husband and our friends Andy and Yvonne followed behind me. As I approached Jan, I knew in my mind what I wanted to say to her, which was "You're a guitar Goddess." Feeling as though my mouth was full of cotton, I wasn't certain I would be able to even open my mouth as I held the cd out to her, she smiling back at me. As she took the cd from my hands, a radiant smile on her face, I managed to tell her what I had wanted to. As I heard the words coming out of my mouth, I thought "Oh God, she's going to think I'm a nut!" Instead she smiled and somewhat blushed, at least I thought, and thanked me for my comment. Then she suggested we all go find a table to sit at. Feeling like a puppy, I followed behind the four of them, as my husband and our two friends followed me. The ladies sat down at a table and as one of them took the insert out of the cd case, we all made small talk. All four of them signed their names and handed the cd case back to me. Then Andy and Yvonne had a camera and asked if we could get our pictures with them. Being very obliging, they posed with me and my husband first. My husband didn't want to be in the picture but we all coaxed him into it. Andy was kind enough to take the photo. The most amazing part of the night for me was when, I believe it was Jan, mentioned that they have a website and wanted me to come and post a message to them and stay in touch. I did that as soon as we got home. Since then, I have received a few personal emails from Jan, and all of the ladies have a page for the group and themselves at Myspace.com. Jan, Jenna and Lynn have been great about keeping in touch with me through Myspace. I haven't heard anything from Kat but I send her the occasional "hello" at her Myspace page.

Vixen as a rock group has a lot going for them and a lot more to offer into the future. I am looking foward to seeing them on this year's tour for their newly released cd called "Live and Learn". These four women are very loyal to their fans. For anyone who has ever liked them, or for anyone who just loves some good rock and roll and high energy, if you get a chance to see them on tour, it will be worth every penny. The word Vixen for the group may mean "Fox" but to me it means "Unbelievably talented, down to earth, beautiful and passionate women."