I'm slightly vexed
Why do people insist on going to concerts and just talking while artists are performing?
Every show I go to these days is filled with people just having full blown conversations while artists are actively performing. If you can’t be respectful and pause your conversations for 30 minutes don’t bother showing up! I know you might only be there for the headliner but supports deserve respect too!
This video is from a show the other night seeing one of my favourite new artists supporting someone else and people just talked all the way through her set.
And I know people are already going to complain about me recording the show but I was only recording a bit for an HQ page and to show how bad it’s gotten.
EDIT: since a few people have mentioned the guitar playing she has a guitarist on stage with her playing the main parts of the song she plays parts and her main guitar parts are after I stopped recording.
Its awful, people have lost all sense of etiquette for most things. Concerts, movie theaters, whatever. Like I paid good money to enjoy this, not to listen to you yap all night.
It's fucking true unfortunately. I went to Costco the other day and ran into at least 5 groups of people shopping who had their cart parked in the middle of the busy main center lanes just yapping and blocking everyone from getting around them. They didn't seem to notice that they were causing a ton of people to swerve around them or wait for them. Completely clueless that they were in a shared space and being an inconvenience.
It’s anecdotal but in my experience at least, Covid did a fucking number on peoples ability to behave like a human. Ever since then every gathering of people to watch something that I’ve been to has had at least one, but often several absolute fuckwits with zero ability to care about everyone else’s experience.
Saw NIN in February and he opened up with some quiet piano songs with just himself. The arena got damn quiet, except for a few people who would shout stuff like "I love you Trent". It was sporadic but you could hear a pin drop otherwise
Then someone yelled "shut the fuck up" and it all stopped. It was great
i went to orville peck for my birthday, guys in front of us like 6'3 on the barricade shifting their arms around to move anyone else away from them. Friend asked if they could move to the side so the smaller people [me, them, small group we met in the crowd] could see. got the average "well you should have got here sooner. why should we care?"] managed to find a little gap, these guys constantly elbowing/stepping on me to move away. while orville was changing over guitars, in complete silence the guy in front of me went "mr. peck we care about you." and somehow the silence got...heavier. idk if it was the MR peck or the fact it was said after he went "yeah i struggled after rehab thinking i didnt need to be there." or the fact that you could tell that they were agressively reaching over the barricade to try and hand something to him while making secuirty hand drinks OVER them.
anyway. i got wonderful pictures AND his guitar pick and they stole my fan...
I actually never mind a crazy "I love you Trent!" or whatever. It clearly comes from people who appreciate the band on stage and are otherwise listening attentively. Like everyone else in this thread, it's the yapping I can't deal with.
I wouldn't go that far. I have met plenty of people that do not fit your description and are just big fans. It's just a way for some to deal with the excitement.
Disagree. I saw Castle Rat last week. These two douchebags behind me were having a screaming conversation at each other. Mostly talking shit about the crowd. If things got louder, they scream louder at eachother.
But as a fellow metal fan myself, not everyone enjoys loud rock/metal. I also enjoy plenty of softer artists on top of my regular bands. It’s called shut the fuck up and enjoy the show you choose to come to. I can’t imagine what would be so important that you’d hold a conversation while an artist is preforming on stage. It’s just rude go home if you wanna talk
good quality earplugs will help filter out people who talk, but really the only solution is to tap the loud mfers on the shoulder and tell them the bar is in the back for them to continue their conversation, because you didn't pay to listen to them.
I remember 16 years ago being that kind of person when I went to my first gig. Took my phone out and recorded everything. Realised afterwards that I didnt give a shit about terrible video. Every concert or gig I went to after that my phone stayed in my pocket and I just listened. If people just put their phones away, stopped trying to record things and actually tried to enjoy the music they'd realise it is so much better.
The dead allowed for people to live record their sets for personal use and there are so many tapes out there of the dead they all have different versions of songs and different little additions to the set every now and then. I'm not big into the dead but I always thought that was neat.
I love when artists play the song I want to record early in the set, so I can get my one chorus or bridge recorded, snap a couple of photos, and then put it away for the set.
I'm guilty of doing that when I was younger too. I don't think i've ever watched anything back. I typically now just record some of my favourite songs and take a few nice photos.
No one wants to see 2 hours of half blurry videos with your singing in the background, inclusion yourself
I feel like that's fine as a little memento. Nothing wrong with recording one song, especially if its your favourite. It just irks me when everyone has their phone out for the entire duration.
The last time I took my phone out at a concert was for the encore, with beautiful harmonies. The twit in front of me drowned everything out with his really off- key singing. That was it.
"Most of us would have rather money than tangible wealth. And a great occasion is somehow spoiled for us unless photographed. And to read about it the next day in the newspaper is oddly more fun for us than the original event. This is a disaster..."
This has always been true, you just can't slap a mofo anymore when it would help the situation. Cameras everywhere, you'll end up all over the internet. So it doesn't happen.
This is why I'm glad that dubstep is comparatively still pretty niche compared to a lot of pop, AND its often way too loud for anyone to even try talking lol
Its sad, I've discovered so many incredible artists when they've opened for other acts. Or sometimes the opener was the artist that I bought the ticket for.
Jesus, earlier this year went to a concert SPECIFICALLY for the opener and it was endless chatter, laughter, and people moving around without paying attention to the stage. Didn't have any idea who the headliner was and even told the smaller artist when I got to meet him outside as he was signing what little autographs people were asking for. He seemed genuinely touched and maybe even slightly overwhelmed that a small crowd of us were there solely for him. After congratulating him for his first U.S. tour, went back inside for the one song I knew (lmao it was Mareux, The Perfect Girl) and EVERYONE had their phones up, not even bothering to vibe with the song (except for the one goth couple getting freaky in the corner)
Edit for clarity: I was actually against the furthest back wall of the room, The only place that I was getting hit by AC, so I wasn't in the way when taking photos of everyone else
This really infuriates me too. It seems indicative of a trend that didn't start post-pandemic, but has certainly become more noticeable since 2020.
Many people, both younger and older (but I do notice it more among people in their 20s in the UK), view live entertainment as background to their night out. A gig is just music to complement their night, as opposed to a moment to listen to the artist performing.
Stand up comedians have also noticed a shift in audience behaviour. People are ruder, heckles are dumber and more frequent.
I think there are a couple of things happening here (all of which are massive generalisations by me):
A more egotistical culture where people see themselves as the main character. The performer is not the most important person in the room; I am. We could blame the vanity of social media, late stage capitalism, influencer culture, whatever you like, but it is noticeable.
Creative arts being devalued and seen as lesser by a mix of too much choice online and, to a lesser degree, the ability to create vast amounts of music cheaply with technological tools. Comedy and music have become commodities. We used to see musician as craftspeople with talent who deserve our respect (I'm talking 1950s-2000s); now some see them as hospitality workers providing a service that they are lucky to be paid peanuts for.
Terrible attention spans. We are getting worse at shutting up and paying attention. The ability to not look at your phone, or need attention from the people around you is diminishing. Technology and the way it holds our attention is partly to blame.
I don't mind it at festivals, not at all. That's a party vibe, people are there in groups to have a good time. But if we've all paid £30 for a ticket to see this one band this evening, why are you talking during their set?
For gigs there's also the unfortunate truth that people are there to see the main act and couldn't care less about the support act. It's still disrespectful but I'm not sure what's worse, an empty crowd for the support or a noisy rude crowd.
I also think Covid meant we skipped a generation of older folks showing younger folks how to go to shows and not be obnoxious.
It was older folks who taught me the ropes , expectations and etiquette of how to go to clubs and shows. I think some younger folks didn’t get that and now they’re making up new rules as they go without realizing that they’re making the experience worse for everyone by acting like the main character. A club or concert is supposed to be a communal experience so you have to have some awareness of how your behavior impacts others to get the most out of it.
Ireland here , back in the 90s music festivals would announce the acts prior to ticket sales ..somewhere in the late 00s that swapped , so that tickets sell out before the lineup was announced .. because people by then were more interested in the hanging out at a festival than the music .. I think that has worked its way into gigs , where people go more to hang out than listen to the music ( possibly they know one song by the artist , or one person who like the act goes , and their friends come along to hang out)
Remove the first word of your post and I 1000% agree
I'm a gm of a music venue and the amount of complaints we get about people talking is astronomical and we can't do anything about it
But it's everywhere not just concerts it's movies it's waiting in line to check out and someone is on speaker phone it's watching videos or playing music without headphones
This is true, it’s not discussed much, but it feels like we’ve hit some critical population metric, the more people there are, the more anonymity there is, the more anonymous people feel, the worse they tend to act.
It's either that or not being able to see past the wall of screens.
That being said. I'll take a low murmur of conversation over the manic screeching you get a big pop gigs. I remember being front row for Avril when the Jonas brothers supported her. Immediately fucked off to another spot because of the screeching girls.
Or screaming the whole time. Not singing, just screeching like banshees for over an hour. Shut up. If you don't know the lyrics, no problem, but let me hear the band/singers.
I went to a show last month and this woman behind us was howling through the whole show. If you're old enough, do you remember "Lassie" from Porky's? It was just like that.
She's an opening act, right? 90% of the people there didn't buy their tickets to see her, so they're using this time to socialize. I'd guess most people stopped chatting when the headliner came on.
It's rude, it's not right, but it's the way it is.,
dude i had the same experience this past weekend seeing Jack Johnson. The lady behind us talked for 3 hours non stop during opening band and headliner. I had people standing in the aisle next to us chatting, people all over just talking. I go to shows to watch the bands and listen to the music. If I wanted to chat and have music playing I would stay home.
a couple days ago people were talking through a concert i paid $180 to attend (face value - resale was nuts). not saying the value of ticket directly correlates to how much or little people should talk, but to spend a significant amount of money to see an artist and gab the whole time is just beyond me
People just can’t shut up anymore. They aren’t being told to be quiet as kids like parents used to teach. Parents will stop another adult mid sentence to hear what their kid wants to tell them immediately. Then at school it carries over and the teacher can only do so much within their power to curtail a behavior that is reinforced at home. Went to my kid’s orchestra concert and the talking right through his performance was insane. We are becoming uncivilized. Zero discipline. Go to a cafe if you want to just chat away.
This drives me up the wall. I usually try to get right up front at shows, because typically the people up at the front are more into it. But so often the people right next to me will be holding full-on conversations. It's so rude.
I don't go to stadium shows anymore unless it's someone I really want to see, because you're often stuck in an assigned seat next to some asshole yapping the whole time.
I've only ever done small chit chat to the person i'm with. Just keep it quick and then watch who you enjoy in the first place. Im not gossiping during something i payed al ot of money for.
You should listen to some Nick Drake and Elliott Smith. They play incredibly tough parts while singing. But then again that music isn't popslop like this.
Nick Drake famously tuned his guitar to open G because it's incredibly easy to strum and play light melodies. He did this because while singing it's hard to do intricate guitar work.
It's generous to call this "managing a guitar". She's really doing nothing with it... And it's quite distracting to people wondering what exactly she is doing and why she's holding it.
There is some trickery at the higher levels of performance though honestly. Backing tracks, extra guitarists playing from behind the stage, autotune, etc.
Many of them are not really doing all that you think they are. Hell, by their last album Nirvana had hired a separate lead guitarist for live performances because Kurt just couldn’t do everything without fucking up. At least they were honest about it though
She's not playing the main song, she's just barely creating an audible note every 2-3 seconds paired with about 4+ movements on the fret that have no impact at all
I dont think shes very good or has just started playing maybe.
It appears as though she struggles to get the chord right when its her part to play. So she keeps up with the chord progression for the whole song so when its her turn she had the right chord
Post about people talking during concert, comment section full of incels shitting on an artist playing a packed concert because she’s lightly strumming chords during the softer dynamics of the verse of the song she ostensibly wrote.
Some real “source: I play guitar” dorks here who I’m sure are flawlessly jamming in their bedroom
I was at a show recently where my two seat neighbors were having a full blown conversation during the entire opener’s set. When they continued to talk during the first song of the first headliner I immediately got a security guard and politely complained.
The guard literally jumped into action “where are they!? Take me to them!” said something to them, I’m not sure what, and they were quiet the rest of the show.
At a punk show, I probably wouldn’t have even noticed but, it was Willie Nelson and I didn’t want my probable last time seeing him to be ruined.
Because it's their world and we're living in it....crazy. oh everything is more I.portant than what they're doing...always, getting tickets most important, getting there most important, calling friends to show pics, mas Importante....but being a decent respectful person in public, confusing and incomprehensible.....lol
Why do people hold guitars if they’re just going to pretend to play them? And not even do that well? Why does she sing like that? No wonder everyone is talking.
I play acoustic gigs at dive bars a lot and honestly it just comes with the territory. As a musician that’s just something you come to expect. It’s hard to get used to playing through it when you first start out, but after a while, it almost feels too awkward if everyone is just sitting down quiet and staring at you
Quite a few people are just automatons and go like cattle where they’re led. They’re there not to appreciate music but to show their face, snap a pic for the instagram and return to their charging stations.
These days? People have always talked at shows. Always.
Well... Okay. Maybe not always. I have no idea what it was like before my time. But I remember a Lemonheads show in the mid 90s that had my girlfriend at the time livid about how many people were talking while Evan was playing a softer song. I feel like every quiet song at every show I've been to has had talkers about. Even Radiohead.
I might be considered a bit radical for the following idea, but if I want to hear my mate Terry go on his usual rant about Bitcoin or the conspiracy theory du jour, I'll go to the pub instead of catching up with him at a concert. Call me a wacko, but when I go to a concert I kind of want to listen to the artist and not Terry.
During intermissions or between artists, sure. But when they're playing, the Terry's of the world can have a nice warm cup of shut the fuck up or get to fuck.
Saw Iron Maiden a few years ago at an outdoor event and there were a couple guys behind me talking about work. The main thing that bugged me was, why the hell would you talk about work at a concert?!
I went to see Ani DiFranco(sp?) like 20 years ago having never really heard her before. I was the only one around me not talking and actually paying attention to her.
That's what I like most about metal shows - most people are too busy to talk, even if that busy is just paying attention.
The last few gigs I have been to have had a real issue with people yapping over the quieter songs. I have been to hundreds and hundreds of gigs over the last 30 years, and played in bands in about half of them back in the early 2000's - this yapping thing has been way worse in the last few years than I have ever seen it before.
I guess it depends on the setting. Like I played for an Amsterdam Beer press release. No ome cared about the musicians, we were background noise. Same goes with lounges for example.
I've kind of come to accept that music is this thing that's supposed to be inclusive, even for people who may not experience a psychosis while listening to it. Are there people who are hardcore passionate and understand the artistic merit and the respect that comes with it? Sure, but I actually think they are in the minority. For everyone else, it's a way to fit in. When you hear people singing along to a catchy hook, it's akin to all of the people who HAVE to post that little famous tourist spot they got to visit on their social media or dating profile.
I agree with the point you’re making but this is a bad example because I’d rather hear people talking then listen to this god-awful mumble twang “music.”
One thing you absolutely need as a performer is stage presence and she just doesn't have it. You need to be able to guage the temperature of the room and command their attention.
She's behaving as if she's the background music at a restaurant and the audience are treating her as such.
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u/Technical_Carpet_180 14h ago
Its awful, people have lost all sense of etiquette for most things. Concerts, movie theaters, whatever. Like I paid good money to enjoy this, not to listen to you yap all night.