The following is a guest post from HearYa reader DBT Chicago.
For those live-music fans in the greater Chicago area or those who have lived here in the past and enjoyed many good times and late nights, can you help me settle an internal debate I’ve been waging with myself? It’s about perceived behavior at shows and surely the conversation can extend past my personal curiosity. Does anyone know the unwritten/unspoken code in the Riviera’s balcony? I’ve been to plenty of shows there in the past, and I’ve never experienced what happened to me when I went to see the Drive-By Truckers.
I arrived about an hour before the band went on and sat somewhere in the first three rows. When Patterson Hood broke out the mandolin for “Bulldozers and Dirt,” I hopped up like my ass was on fire. Someone then immediately approached me from the upper reaches (perhaps having arrived too late for choicer seats) and asked me to sit down. I told her, as politely as I could, that this is a rock show.
Really, I was gracious and earnest about my intentions of standing (It didn’t seem right to sit down). Of course, you could say “go downstairs and stand.”‚ Well, my short girlfriend didn’t want to get crushed and I never thought anyone would actually sit down for DBT, except for a stripped-down acoustic set. I stood up for a few more songs as the heckles rained down on me. I began to feel guilty. When I sat down, a couple of folks even applauded.
As to not disrupt the experience for me and everybody else and to keep the environment civil, I stormed off downstairs without a word. To no one’s surprise, there was nowhere to go but back behind the bar.
Now the question is: Was I wrong to stand? If so, I had no idea and perhaps underestimated the energy this crowd brought to one of the best live bands going these days.
Drive-By Truckers – Bulldozers and Dirt (live, acoustic version)
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
I guess it would depend on the atmosphere around you. If everybody else is sitting around (and being boring at a ‘rock’ show of all places) I’d say it would be best to follow what everyone else is doing. I don’t want to sound like a jerk but a lot of shows that I’ve been to in the Chicago area it seems that the audience has zero reaction to whomever they’re seeing. It’s like everybody is just way too hip to move and dance a bit. I absolutely hate going to shows out there.
I’m torn on this one too. My wife is also short and we’ve done the same thing – found balcony seats so we can have a good view and relax -maybe do some ass dancing on our seats.
What would your perspective be if you and your girlfriend were two rows back and some big dude stood up right in front of her?
If I’m heading up to a balcony, I guess I just expect that I’ll be sitting. Otherwise I find a good spot on the floor.
I’m petite, not short
Oooooh…the sit/stand debate. Sometimes it really does suck, but when in a large crowd, you gotta go with the flow. Part of the “experience” of a great show is vibing with the audience surrounding you. If everyone around me was telling me to sit down or stop dancing or whatever, it would seriously kill my enjoyment of the show. I’d find a different area of the venue to listen and watch. Maybe I’m just a pussy.
That crowd vibe is why I think we all enjoy seeing a band live.
Concert DVD’s/videos give you the ability the see the band/artist and hear the audio better than you would in the club. What they
DON’T give you is the interaction with the crowd surrounding you. That super-fan going nuts during a big jam, or the guy passing joints up in front of you or the drunk asshole who keeps leaning on you because he has no control of his balance. The casual eye contact you make when you look around at your neighboring concert goers when things are just working between band and audience. THAT is what makes great concerts GREAT. You are part of a mass that is there to enjoy the performance, so therefore, I guess you have to do what works best for everyone.
Not sure if that made any sense….off to get some coffee.
Standing in the first couple of rows in the balcony is a risky move if no one else is standing. Personally, I always head upstairs to the balcony. Its less crowded and a better view. But if I feel like standing I’ll take it to the aisle between upper and lower sections of the balcony and lean against the railing.
I understand your right to stand up and jam at a “rock show” but I have to sympathize with the rest of the seated crowd. So to answer you question, yes the balcony is for sitting and the floor is for standing.
I can’t remember the last Trucker show that I went to where I saw anybody sitting. I left Chicago some 15 years ago, though, and that was always a complaint of mine, crowds always seemed more eager to be seen than anything else.
Bottom line, there really is no rhyme or reason to the ‘stand or sit’ debate. And proper etiquette is strongly dictated by the venue and the type of crowd the band draws.
But this topic is a bone of contention with me too. I see A LOT of shows and my personal opinion is it’s a concert, dammit! You have the right to stand up, get down and enjoy yourself. Acoustic shows aside, of course. I find the people that give you grief about sitting down are the casual concert-going yahoos anyway.
I just stood my ground on this very issue at The Independent in SF of all places. I have a frequent flier card at that place and always, always stand in the same spot – on the platform next to the merch table. First time ever, this group of yahoos gives me grief for standing in front of them and tried to get me to move with their relentless heckling. I was like excuse me! Have you ever been here before? Clearly not. This isn’t the Warfield. I actually grabbed a staff person walking by and had him straighten them out. Then they shut up.
So don’t give in to yahoos! Especially when you know you’re right.
I say if you wanted to rock out, you should’ve been on the floor..sorry dude
I’m always surprised at how many people are sitting a rock concert. I went to see The Police last year in Charlotte, NC and most of the crowd was sitting. My friends and I stood and danced and nobody asked us to sit down. I eventually made my way downstairs where people were having more fun. My solution now is to either get floor tickets or get tickets in the top row. That way I don’t have to worry about bothering anybody. However, if you’re going to a show in city other than where you live you can’t really go to the box office and choose your seats. In this case, I just avoid indoor shows.
I was recently at the PNC arts center and had 4 th row to see STYX/YES I was excited for weeks to finally see Tommy Shaw up close when these 2 what I call rude people stood right in front of me and my husband. Mind you we all stood when they first came on so did people behind me then we Sat as did everyone around us and then these 2 a** holes come late and stand up and block my view. Well nicely I said can you please sit I can’t see and he said why stand up and I said that would be rude to the people behind me so please I can’t see Tommy Shaw. Well never mind my husband almost knocked him into next week. I agree with go with the flow of those around you otherwise your just rude and selfish. I’m very tiny to boot . We did all stand for a little when it wad called for. I pray karma comes back to kick them in the ass cause they ruined the one and probably only time ill get to see them. So concert standers look around and be courteous of others around you.