music and lives

Few days ago Depeche Mode had a show in our city. 

I do not wish to speak ill of something I haven't attended, so I'll leave judging to those who paid enormous money to be present there. Still, Youtube vids speak for themselves...

Ok, ok, performance quality aside, Depeche Mode and discussion why I didn't go (firstly, why should I? I can name only 1 or 2 of their songs) made me recall why I don't attend lives anymore - and my relationship with music in general.

Let me tell you, that now I cannot imagine what would make me pay money to attend a live in fan zone. I just don't find it fun or exciting to mix with reckless crowd that has no regard for safety or public order. I don't fancy having my feet crushed by someone who 'has' to dance or jump the whole show, and better yet - wearing high heels (yes, a lot of 'girls' still wear them to lives). I don't fancy all the pickpocketing that happens (hm, where would I put my car keys?). I don't fancy being splashed with beer and other alcohol people must buy to entertain themselves. I don't fancy fights in the audience.

And I plain hate people who record everything that happens on the stage with their not-so-professional-as-they-think camera on the phone, making it hard to see anything. I have no sympathy for men that let their girlfriends ride their necks so they can have a better view of the stage or just for 'fun' - that means you'll see even less. 

Another reason lives have become such a disappointment for me is sound quality. People forgot what sound check is for. Or, rather, since stage equipment and sound setup can provide good sound only to a portion of audience, stage management makes a decision to favor certain areas. Which usually results in horrible sound everywhere except vip central areas and dreaded fan zone. There's another aspect, though... typically I attend live performance to hear ARTIST sing live - not my pals from audience singing and screaming verses (even if they know them). Sadly, in most cases 'singing' of the audience makes it almost impossible to get any satisfaction from artist's vocals.

Bottom line is, what's left? You pay big money - and the amount seems even bigger if you compare wages and prices in this forsaken country - to get what? 

I'll support artists by buying their digital music, thank you very much.