I was excited to see your band: We are peers in the scene and wanted to show some support for fellow musicians on the rare weekend I’m not playing, too. I was feeling stoked: until your guitar player revealed himself as the most ungrateful sad boy prick goin’.
Let’s set the scene: The band sounds great. People are subdued, but happy.Vibes are good. Stage right, the most looking boring dude in the world is playing guitar: Baseball cap, ill fitting pants, starchy ass white dress shirt with his friggin’ cheeseburger locker hanging out past bottom buttons. He looks like he is in pain even being there. There is a 10-foot invisible fan barrier between band and audience and no one is really moving: Except one guy. He is not being disrespectful to the people around him, in fact, people were watching him with smiles on their faces. At one point he was doing the Carlton. This guy was just dancing…having fun. To be honest, he was kind of awesome. Your band finished a song, someone comments on his dancing and you straight up started rapidly shit talk the guy, being super catty and called him “fucking stupid” all into the microphone. Things get awkward. He looks like he’s gonna cry and walks off into the shadows of the audience. Weird choice, meatball. Another song ends: your bandmate comments on how you scared their only fan away and you approach the microphone again and say “FUCK THAT GUY.” Again, I watched him wince from further back in the crowd. In their defence, even your band seemed embarrassed by you. What is your problem, sad boy? Did your favourite sports team lose? You’re screwing your own scene directly. Here’s why:
The most glaring difference between the audiences here and other cities/countries/continents I’ve played is people are afraid to let loose, especially at early shows. No one wants to be that person everyone’s looking at (scornfully, like you) so, no one dances. You completely shattered that dude and reinstated the age old tale that Halifax audiences are too cool to interact with the band or each other. It’s a reputation that precedes this city. If you want to stand there, motionless, like you’re in a full body cast, that’s your prerogative but don’t throw a hissyfit when someone else is enjoying themselves. Enjoying YOUR music. I can’t decide if you’re a bully or just a GIANT fucking baby but you definitely don’t deserve the support that guy was showing by being the only person in that room, in the audience or onstage, moving a friggin’ muscle. Show a little respect for the people that offer you the privilege of playing music or go get a desk job, asshole. —Loves Active Members
This article appears in Jun 1-7, 2017.
Yay!
You may make a fair point but it all falls apart when you start body shaming for no reason.
Hey!
I was up front at this show right next to the audience member and guitar player mentioned. From my point of view, the audience member wasn’t just a happy, harmless, dancing friend.
He sat on the stage when the band was starting up looking like he was wasted to the point of near passing out in front of us all. When the guitar player approached him (in a non-threatening, checking on him sort of fashion) the dancer yelled, “Hit me with it! Hit me with your diiiiick” among other idiotic things repeatedly. He then started dancing mockingly and belligerently making people uncomfortable and yelling at the band. Security came to the front, but the screamy dancer left in the other direction and tried to steal my friend’s jacket on the way out as a cherry on top.
Maybe the reaction into the microphone was over the top and unnecessary, and you’re absolutely right – Halifax audiences have been known for a stoic stature, so people free enough to get down are appreciated, but this dancing man was making a lot of folks uncomfortable and something had to be done.