Gig Etiquette - Politeness Forgone

Gigs are rough n tumble kinda places to hang out. The volume is too high for genial chatting, there's not enough room for elaborate dancing and personal space is a precious commodity. That's okay though, because in general gigs are enjoyable experiences. There's something almost tribal about how we all crowd together, absorb body warmth, embrace physical contact and grin widely at each other when a crowd surfer topples to the ground or and incredible chorus breaks out across the entire room.

Unfortunately, and this is certainly not a new thing as veterens will know, there is almost always a cause to get a little angry or jaded with people attending such gatherings. The whole issue of manners and respect seem to be accepted as optional. Last night's No Age and Gentle Friendly gig at Scala was exceptional. A lot of flailing crowd surfers, a couple of 'rebellious' stage divers and a lot of brilliant indie head nodding and dancing. In these situations, with No Age's fierce, and occasionally soothing, assault bellowing across the faces of 700 odd people, you excuse a lot of accidental shoves, beer showers and other minor misdemeanours. WE'RE HAVING A GOOD TIME, YEAH?!

However, bar etiquette doesn't need to go out of the window. If I'm not sure if I was first, I'll offer it to others ahead of me. If I'm standing behind someone, then spread out along the bar before they are served, I make sure they go first. I do not simply request my single pint, avoiding the confused gaze of the person who had been waiting longer than me. Neither do I, when waiting for the band to play, attempt to walk THROUGH someone's physical being to get to somewhere else in the venue and not say sorry, or attempt to be excused so that person has time to step out of the way for me in the first place. If someone steps aside for me, I will say thanks. If someone holds the door for me, I also say thanks. If I accidentally hit someone in the face during the gig, I will make sure they're ok. These are simple enough things to remember to make the whole experience better for everyone involved, right?

Maybe it's just me.

Oh and Adam & Joe of course!



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzadXCsY9fo