The tenth annual US Air Guitar tournament has culminated with a new National Champion and the former title holder going on to bring a fourth Air Guitar World Championship crown back to America. Only Finland boasts more wins with five total since 1996.
****ROCK****
Appearing with a bevy of 2012 USAG finalists at the Bluebird Theater in Denver this past July was none other than Flying Finn (nee Andrew), who last season had nearly won representation for the city of Chicago but this year earned special bragging rights in Minnesota as its prodigal son of air guitar. Being the hometown hero intensified an already building cloud of airness but those mighty Finns bore it as a badge of rock 'n roll; the struts, windmills and kicks delivered many artistic flourishes properly balanced by a honed edge in this rousing display:
In addition to spending time to raise an awesome family, Finn puts his other technical skills into creating digital tributes of various members from the air guitar community.
Behold...
While Finn cuts an imposing figure in real life and much more so on stage, this man is well-versed in embracing this curious fellowship amongst air guitarists and fostering a greater kinship with anyone who shares the same sense of humor.
Awoooooo~
"To err is human, but to air guitar...divine." - Bjorn Turoque
The Thrash Prince of Hell Air, G. Tso Money, debuted on the US Air Guitar circuit two years ago and has since gained much more recognition within the community - from raucous jeers to thunderous cheers, this aspiring air guitarist has heard them all and will not stop until earning a chance to represent America on the main stage at Oulu, Finland for the Annual Air Guitar World Championships.
Trials by fire in 2009 and 2010 proved that after bottoming out, the only other way was up; enthusiastic yet lackluster and forgettable performances as a budding rookie, coupled with brutally honest reactions from judging panels and discerning audiences, nearly derailed the quest for spreading a personal message of world peace by air guitar (one cannot bear arms when playing invisible strings). Upon the realization that no less than a 200% effort would suffice in attaining this goal, meticulous planning and research was then invested in preparation for the 2011 campaign.
After witnessing the US Air Guitar Nationals at Irving Plaza in New York City last summer, the next ten months involved music selection, stage choreography, costume design and attitude readjustment. In addition to repeated viewings of "Air Guitar Nation" (the 2006 documentary film chronicling both C-Diddy and Björn Türoque's emergence as world air guitar superstars), a thorough understanding of the art form's philosophy was made possible by establishing more personal connections with fellow practitioners from all over the world. Some have said that it's best not to meet one's heroes, but even those who excel under the spotlights are real people with real lives that anyone can relate to on one level or another. Most notably, the friendships with Cold Steel Renegade (San Francisco, CA) and Brock McRock (Houston, TX) was invaluable in making a total commitment to upholding the true spirit of air guitar: for the love of music, for those who love music and for the individual freedom that no one can ever take away.
In returning to the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C., on June 11th, all bets were off when a third performing slot was drawn for the Round One elimination. At a disadvantage once again by going early, there was only way to see if the training would pay off:
Twitter update from @usairguitar on 6-11-11
With such validation and regardless of the outcome, it finally became certain that everything up to this point had been a step in the right direction...
