After about two months away from each other, I would’ve done almost anything to spend time with my sister while I was home for fall break. The two of us have never been very similar and the types of music we listen to definitely contribute to our list of differences. Nevertheless, as a country fan who listens to songs about beer, trucks, and boys, I decided to go on an outing to NYC to listen to some punk rock at Webster Hall. Yes, of course, the songs were different and different wardrobes were presented on stage but I noticed a lot about the crowd and setting and various things were running through my mind while standing in an old bar rather than sitting outside on a lawn blanket.
1. “Crazy Arms” flying around and hitting you cannot be fun
(Ray Price)
Before the first band came on there was a fair amount of space between people but as soon as the music started everyone pushed forward obviously wanting to get closer to the stage. But I was very surprised when we then starting stumbling backwards due to an outbreak of a mosh pit in the middle of the crowd. My reaction to this was apparently quite clear to the people around me. Quoting my sister, “I have ever seen you so scared in your life.” Why a “pit” of people shoving and hitting each other is enjoyable at a concert is beyond me, but y’all do you.
2. “Blond Hair and Blue Eyes” is NOT what I’m seeing
(Ray Smith)
As I watched my sister get into this kind of music, I saw various hair colors walking around our house. However, never had I ever, until that night, seen green hair that wasn’t from spray paint on Halloween. It wasn’t exactly a dark green that could have been occasionally mistaken for brown but more like the color of leaves on a tree during the summer. I’m far from judging the colors of “abnormal” hair colors, but Blake Shelton and many other country artists sing about girls with all of the colors you’ll see at their concerts- brunettes, blonds and red heads.
3. I am “Born to Fly”, but y’all better catch me
(Sara Evans)
The crowd surfing, I knew would be happening, turned into more of people diving. I was, of course, expecting many people to be going over my head, but not at the rate that they were. Instead of being lifted, they were thrown head first and were some how caught. They would make it all the way to the front of the crowd, be helped down by security and run around the gates to do it again. I, was not staying on my toes while all of these people were flying towards me therefore ducked many times throughout the night to keep the flailing limbs from my head.
4. “I Don’t Dance”, I jump
(Lee Brice)
Most country concerts don’t have much line dancing anymore and the last one most people did was instructed in the Miley Cyrus Movie to “Hoedown Throwdown.” These days there is a little movement in your hips or swaying of your arms. Instead, at a punk concert there’s a four step process everyone follows. 1) make the “I Love You” sign language sign with your hand. 2) Put your thumb over your two fingers that are down in the middle. 3) Raise this hand above your head. 4) Jump.
5. “Holes in the Floor of Heaven”
(Steve Wariner)
Due to the jumping mentioned above, even if your feet don’t leave the floor, it still looks like they are. With over three hundred people landing on the floor at the same time, the floor bends and moves with the people giving your standing self (me) the feeling of a trampoline. And with no effort at all, you look like you’re participating.
6. “Smoke Rings in the Dark” on steroids
(Gary Allan)
With vaping becoming so popular, many people are now bringing it to concerts, especially because there’s nothing anyone can do about it. But the smoke tricks people do like blowing rings, etc. create a plume over the crowd. No twinkling lights are above you, just a shell of the bubble of smoke.
7. “Kiss My Country Ass”
(Blake Shelton)
I am far from complaining about my experience. It’s definitely something new but, I’m still happy I went. However, I’ll stick to my songs about beer, guys/ girls and trucks and the concerts that consist of people showing off their cow boy boots.