Observations from the floor of a metal show
Last Saturday night I saw Disturbed play with Lacuna Coil, Killswitch Engage, and Chimaira at the Portland Civic Center. This is my second Disturbed show - the first was at the outdoor Tweeter Center with Slipknot, Dragonforce, Machinehead, Five Finger Death punch, and others. I don't believe I blogged about that experience, so this post will offer insight and advice aggregated from those shows and other metal shows I've attended.
Metal music is high energy, and the proper way to show ones appreciation of such music is to MOVE to it. If you aren't moving, you should leave and go to the symphony. And you will be told so by the singers of these bands. Moreover, you must welcome the feeling of having a hand on your ass, an elbow in your back, a foot on your head, and all the accompanying sweat and stench of the cramped crowd around you. These things must not be viewed as an inconvenience, but rather as an integral part of the show.
The further up the floor you move, the more cramped it becomes. This can become frightening, but if you REALLY want to enjoy the show, you MUST force your way front and center, no farther than 15 "rows" back. You can employ the brute force method and shoulder your way through, or you can take a more tactical approach, using the initial rush forward of the crowd to push up, and engaging in further pushes as exhausted front liners retreat, and in the collapse of mosh pits.
Here's an example from last weekends show. Exhausted after having pushed to approxmiately ten rows back for Lacuna Coil and Chimaira, Grant, Donovan and I retreated during the break to get some water and cool down. The show was entirely general admission, which meant a large proportion of the crowd ended up on the floor. It was the most crowded floor I had ever seen - packed like sardines to behind the sound board. We returned to the floor after Killswitch had begun performing. Grant took the lead and inched us up to a few rows in front of the sound board. We hung out here for a bit, waiting for a good opportunity to push back up to prime viewing and listening range. Killswitch sounded fantastic (although Lacuna Coil was the real highlight for me). The singer called for a Wall of Death - a parting of the crowd down the center into two opposing factions, who then face one another and rush in for "battle" on cue. And here was our shot - we ran down the center of the newly formed gap and up to about 8 "rows" back, very close indeed. Then, adrenalin pumping, we turned to the left and rushed into the Wall of Death. I saw, in the aftermath, blood streaming from the mouth of one kid. A girl, being dragged by her boyfriend, screamed "HOW DO WE GET OUT OF HERE!" I leaned to her, smiled, and told her it would be OK, but I don't think it helped.
No one is immune to some measure of claustrophobic fear at being so tightly packed in that you can lift your legs and not fall down. Or worry over getting a broken nose by some overexuberant mosher. If you find these concerns overwhelming, move to the back. If you can conquer these fears, to the point of even embracing the chaos around you, while focusing on the music, you may attain a kind of ecstasy that is most satisfying.
Take some time to determine the nature of the people around you. Keep an eye out for the assholes and feel free to throw elbows at them when the opportunity arises. Forge alliances. Protect the weak. When the crowd pushes you in one direction, push back HARD. Do not be a puppet of the crowd, but rather its master. The constant grinding motion of the crowd is your dance partner.
If you are not sore in every muscle of your body, dripping with sweat, and utterly dehydrated by the end of the show, then you will need to try harder next time.