Concert attendees must prepare for what may come their way. Having experienced gigs in venues that range from the likes of The Barfly to Wembley Stadium, I can safely trust my own opinion on how crowds will work in different situations and environments. Here are some tips on what you may come across at concerts, some bad situations and some good situations, and what to do should they arise:
1) Tolerate the support act
Everyone is bored and waiting for the main attraction, but you need to get in the mood right? I have seen some shoddy support acts in my time, but thankfully never one that has had to withstand a barrage of negative vibes thrown their way. The support band have dreamed about this for a while, and all they want to do is impress you. If you waste your beer by throwing it at them, not only have you wasted your money and now have to deal with four disgruntled indie kids onstage, but your thirst remains unquenched. Patience is a virtue, and it'll make it all the more worth it once the main act steps onstage.
2) Camera etiquette
We all want to retrieve as many memories as we can of a fantastic night of live music, but seriously, do you have to film every single song? If you are holding up a camera for the whole 2 hours of a gig then I salute your arm strength, but think of the poor souls behind you whose visions are impaired by your flailing limbs. Fair enough, take the odd photo and film your favourite song, but enjoy the gig through your own eyes once in a while. Even for me at 6'5, I struggle to see sometimes. It also disrupts the energy of the audience. Come on, they're playing a loud and jumpy rock song, where's your pogo at?!
3) Don't hate on the tall guy
I speak from the heart on this matter. I ate my vegetables and I grew tall, and now I have the ability to see a little bit more of the stage. Thankfully it's rare I come across people who get really aggro about me standing in front of them, but I will always offer them the chance to go in front. I remember one gig back in 2007 at The Carling Academy in Birmingham, I was standing near the front and during the support act there was plenty of alcohol chucked towards the stage (mostly because it was Lethal Bizzle and he was supporting The Enemy), however I took the brunt of it and ended up being soaked in what I hoped was beer. The long and short of it is don't hate the tall guy in the crowd because he is tall. If he has a kind bone in his body he'll move for you, but if he doesn't, don't hate him because he's tall, hate him because he's a prick.
4) If you can't hack the pushing and shoving, don't stand near the front
I've stood relatively near the front for many gigs; I go there to jump about and dance. There are some people though who bitch and moan when they can't keep up with the movement; they're only near the front because "OMG I'm so close to Jared Leto and I can't wait to tell my chums that he is about 20 feet from me". Look you lippy bitch, if you can't handle the heat, stay out of the kitchen, it wouldn't make a difference to your life were you 20 ft or 40 ft from Gerard Way. Don't shout at me to stop falling into you when I have the force of about 5,000 Kasabian fans pushing from one side to the other. Also, don't moan because a crowd surfer landed on you; God you suck so much.
5) Moshpits
I saw Lostprophets (I wept as I typed that) back in 2009, and a big moshpit had opened up from the front. Now, in relation to point number 4, if you don't like the energy of the crowd, stay at the back or to the sides. When a circle pit opens up and people start running, don't clench your fist and hold out your arm on the edge of the pit in a bid to clothesline anyone who comes within four feet of you. This happened at that gig courtesy of a man who looked like he was in his 40's with the kind of face that only a mother could love. I understand that people don't want to get hurt, but the point of moshpits is not to get hurt, it's to let out energy; if someone falls, you pick them up. Pits do more good than you think: imagine people bashing you from side to side in a really tight and confined space, you wouldn't want that would you? That's why the moshpit exists, and you must learn to appreciate it. It is a place of camaraderie and a community that has 'gaining some battle wounds' high on its agenda.
