Familia Chepesent

Is the scene still alive?
by Tao Lin

I went to the old scene spot
And saw the same scene faces
A few years older
Still wearing stupid clothes
Still looking proud

Is the scene still alive?

Was I the one who was alive?
Or was I just naive
feelings of youth, hope, a better tomorrow
manifesting itself in my arbitrary cultural immersion

But the scene still looks the same
The scene children are still around
They are still talking about things tangentially related to the commercial arts

Have you heard the band?
Have u heard the album?
Have you seen the popular television show?
Did u see the movie film?
Are you going to the opening? I believe there is an open bar
Are you going to the regional music festival?
It has the same lineup as the regional music festival
on the opposite side of the country.

Did the scene ever exist?
Why did we invent the scene in our minds
It was nothing
It was everything

Is the scene still alive?
There are people still alive in the scene? Are they ALIVE?
Was I ever ALIVE?

They still seem like they honor the scene
So maybe it is still alive
Maybe they are still alive

They still seem to take it seriously.
It still seems to define them.
Are they holding on to something that doesn't exist any more?
Are they holding on to themselves?
Did I lose myself?

Is the scene still alive?