Retto's Ruminations
By: Amy Sciarretto
Last updated July 29th , 2010

I spent all day on Friday of last week at the third annual Rock Star Energy Drink Mayhem Festival in Camden, New Jersey, which is a stone's throw from Philadelphia.  We are in the midst of a record heat wave – translation: miserable - where almost every day hits 90 degrees or  above. I despise the heat and would prefer a 4 degree over an 80 degree day with maximum humidity. I hate when the weatherman says, "Oh it's a beautiful day, going to hit 80 day,' assuming that that's what everyone likes and enjoys. It's very closed-minded thinking. That said, it was brutal at Mayhem and I walked the crowds, seeing lots of drunk, sweaty, overweight people there for the love of music.

I brought my 11-year-old nephew along to see the headliners, and while we were sitting on the railing, near the seating area, trying to escape the noise and heat of the amphitheater before the set started, a drunk but friendly man, approximately 40-years-old, stopped and looked at him and did a fist bump, saying, "I hope this night stays with you forever. It will. I am happy to see you here at a metal show, and not at a rap show, because while a lot of pop singers and rap acts might be cool and trendy right now, metal is with you for life. Metalheads stick together."

It was a really genuine, if intoxicated,  and rambling speech, but it was certainly heartfelt. While I am not so sure my nephew fully comprehended what this dude was saying, as he was overwhelmed, at his first rock show, and it was loud and hot, and we were pretty tired, it was still fun to see someone, even in a pretty drunk state, make a "state of the scene/culture" address. 

It makes me hope that the music and the event and the surrounding atmosphere and vibe did indeed penetrate or will eventually penetrate. It might take another show; it might not. But with me as an influence, I think the chances are pretty good.

After this drunk gentleman scurried off and was subsequently swallowed by the massive crowd congregated on the lawn seats, never to be seen or heard from again, at least by me, I thought about how incredibly uncomfortable lawn seating is...since, well, there is no seating. It's you, your ass and the hard, green and brown earth. If it's super hot, you're fucked. If it rains, you're royally fucked. You are surrounded by thousands of folks you don't know; you are far from the stage; you are subject to the elements, whether it be the sun, the wind, the rain or the critters and insects that defined summer and eat away at your skin; the hard earth isn't always the most forgiving, and if you sit down, you can often find your ass cheek being dented by a rock or a stone or something muddy and not so fun to be sitting on; there are so many empty bottles that it looks like landfill and you can't take a step without a broken plastic bottle crunching beneath your Chuck Taylors; you are vulnerable to spontaneous games of hackeysack and the break out of an unexpected, testosterone-fueled circle pit, often at the behest of the singer hundreds of yards away from you. In essence, it cannot be fun.

While these "seats" are cheap – perhaps they are viewing locations, in euphemism terms - they are the least desirable. But that doesn’t stop people from buying them and from rocking out at a distance, whatever the age and income tax bracket. I can't do it - and luckily, because of my job, don't have to since I need to be as close as possible to the actual on-stage antics in order to report effectively- but I certainly have a newfound respect for those who do go rogue on the lawn. It's real out there. It's not where the cool kids hang out, but it's certainly where the most passionate  ones do. It's almost like its own community. I am not going to as far as to compare it to the lower decks of the Titanic, where second-class citizens were the first to die in the disaster! It's certainly not the same type of event or instance, but it is a place where a certain type of camaraderie can be fostered and develop. Maybe one day the lawn will be the new orchestra pit, perhaps, in terms of mentality? It can be the venue location where everyone hopes to end up? Maybe the lawn tickets won't be what people purchase simply because of their lower cost or because they are all that's left to purchase?

It's a community and sub-sect in and of itself, and at hard rock shows, it's even more of a niche little location. 

So next time, when clamoring for a ticket to a show you are dying to see, don't be turned off by the possibility of hoofing it and roughing it on the lawn. Even if you can't bring your lawn chair or blanket or any other creature comfort to make it more tolerable, do it once, a la carte, for the experience. I've done it, and yes, doing it is in my rear view, but make the experience your own. ~ Amy Sciarretto

[Tags] Rock, Metal

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