{"id":18445,"date":"2015-02-02T14:00:36","date_gmt":"2015-02-02T19:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.toiletovhell.com\/?p=18445"},"modified":"2015-02-02T11:09:41","modified_gmt":"2015-02-02T16:09:41","slug":"socioheavyology-pt-2-why-dont-we-dance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/toiletovhell.com\/socioheavyology-pt-2-why-dont-we-dance\/","title":{"rendered":"SocioHeavyology Pt. 2 – Why Don’t We Dance?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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In my previous entry<\/a> of\u00a0this hard-hitting\u00a0pesudo-intellectual\u00a0series on the behavior of\u00a0audience members\u00a0at live musical performances, I discussed how I believe that people (especially metal fans)\u00a0need to learn to appreciate a piece of music in silence<\/a>. In this piece, I will discuss my contrasting opinion, which is that people at metal shows need to stop being such fucking squares and learn how to shake their ass once in a while.<\/p>\n

So that the source of my frustration can be clearly\u00a0illustrated, I’d like to share an experience that a\u00a0very talented and sharp musician friend<\/a> of mine relayed to me recently.<\/p>\n

My friend is a Watain<\/strong> fan and went to see them play in Minneapolis a few years ago. Like most others in attendance, he had long hair, boots, and wore mostly black. Probably had a band shirt on. Point is, he was clearly not an outsider.\u00a0At the show, he was captivated and vibing with\u00a0the energy that Watain<\/strong>\u00a0puts out when they perform. They started playing a song he particularly enjoyed, and when it got to his favorite part he was moved emotionally. This led him to begin to move physically. Then, just as he\u00a0was starting to really let loose and express himself, a heavy hand laid on his shoulder. He turned around to find this oppressive\u00a0grip attached to a towering, grim figure who said to him pointedly, “No, dude; this is a black metal<\/em> show.”<\/p>\n

\"watain\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This man’s\u00a0statement is confounding. They were watching Watain<\/strong>, for fuck’s sake.\u00a0Watain<\/strong> are theistic Satanists who perform surrounded by severed, bloody\u00a0pig heads and haven’t ever <\/em>washed the foul smelling outfits they perform in every night because they consider their shows to be genuine rituals in tribute to the Southern Lord.\u00a0Watain<\/strong>‘s performance was thoroughly\u00a0fulfilling\u00a0the founding\u00a0spiritual motivation of the early black metal scene, a giant “FUCK YOU” to all of society’s rules and expectations. Meanwhile, their\u00a0audience stood absolutely still during songs, sipped on beer, and politely clapped when they were done.\u00a0After the show, most people in attendance probably got in nice cars, went home, put on some comfy pajamas, and went to bed. At least they didn’t have the audacity\u00a0to dance in Satan’s hall, though. Way to\u00a0stay grim, y’all.<\/p>\n

In some cultures, listening to music, singing, and dancing are barely distinct elements of the same experience. Everyone participates in the sound and movement. Hardcore shows have some elements of this spirit, and it’s exhilarating. If you want to kick the air as the music gets heavy, it’s welcomed. If you know the words, you can grab the mic to yell\u00a0your favorite line. If you want to add to the chaos in the room, you can get on the stage and leap\u00a0atop of\u00a0the crowd. If the appeal of hardcore has always been lost on you, see a live show sometime and see how much fun the crowd is having. It’s intended\u00a0to exist as a live entity, and that’s where the energy of the music thrives.<\/p>\n

\"http:\/\/www.danwitz.com\/\"<\/a>

Artist credit: http:\/\/www.danwitz.com\/<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

From backwards in time as I’m writing this, I can hear you some of you readers yelling at your computer screen, “Okay,\u00a0so no one moves at black metal or doom shows, but what about thrash and death metal? People mosh at those shows all the time, and that’s how we metalheads dance!”<\/p>\n

During super-fast thrash riffs, circle pits are fun as hell. A good chaotic mosh can be intoxicating, but really, it’s a pretty mundane form of self-expression. My perspective is this; if music makes you move, it stands to reason that aggressive music would make you move aggressively. If you so happen to bump into other people and trade\u00a0kinetic energy while you bang your head and move your body, so be it.\u00a0However, it strikes me as inauthentically\u00a0aggressive\u00a0to simply\u00a0function based on the thought\u00a0“Oh, it’s a fast part! Who should I push first? Ok, now who should I push?” and so forth. It’s cathartic, but it’s not expressive.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\"serj-dance-war-o\"<\/a><\/p>\n

So what to\u00a0do\u00a0then, if not moshing? When I see my favorite thrash bands play, I convulse my head\u00a0erratically. Powerful d-beats make me do a full-torso snake dance that I’m pretty sure I stole from\u00a0Serj Tankian<\/strong>\u00a0(see above). When an especially\u00a0heavy Gojira<\/strong> riff<\/a> hits, I stomp and stomp and stomp in a futile\u00a0effort to\u00a0break the floor beneath me. Skronky math-core makes me flail mindlessly and spastically all around the venue. Or at least, I try to do these things, until I’m interrupted by some knuckle-dragger that sees any form of movement in the crowd and goes “Oh sweet, a mosh! I’m gonna push that guy!” To be clear, I also enjoy pushing people around a bit. If you see me moving aggressively, and part of your genuine expression of self is to\u00a0shove me in response, I accept that and usually find it fun. However, I suspect that if you really moved in the way your body wanted to, there would be a lot more nuance to your interaction with me than to\u00a0simply prove that Newton’s second law of motion\u00a0still works.<\/p>\n