Anyone who knows me knows I love heavy metal. All those times you had to be nice for political reasons, all those traffic jams that we get used to as part of modern life, getting there a day late and a dollar short- something what an evening of scream therapy can do. So much of modern life shoves our regular animal instincts and drives into a box of rules and regulations and protocol. The necessity to defend ourselves and fight or flight, regular social instincts and energy. We just can't do whats natural anymore~ But, there is a place for it, the mighty metal concert where ancient instinct meets present technology.
I think its par for course for an adrenaline junkie~ the bass hits you in your chest, moves your clothes even if you're standing still. Then the excitement of the beat and being in unison with thousands of others where you can lose your identity, self consciousness and gain sensation of the moment all at the same time. Runners high happens after you've been pumping fists into the air for an hour or so :) Lights blaring and changing puts you into a world where day and night mix freely.
Not to mention the competitive sport of it! Being snug against the rail is the goal~ something akin to defending a goal or blocking the opposing team. Make no mistakes, as much as I love *love* I will elbow an intruder if necessary 0:) Its a metal concert, its expected. They know it, I know it, we signed up for it... but all in the same breath, we make new friends and find humor and concensus, too. Only rarely do the elbows have to come out. You get intimate with the folks to your left and right enough to realize what kind of antiperspirant they wore- or didn't (eeeewww- in which case, defending the rail isn't such a priority).
Tina and Robyn, her little sister, got to go with Stephen and I. We're veterans, but this was their first metal concert: SLIPKNOT!!!! And we were in the PIT! Whoo hoo!
First, let me tell you a 9 member band is both loud and entertaining. Someone is always making noise and someone can take a break. But what Slipknot has learned from the footsteps of others is to look and behave larger than life by use of physical differences~ instead of the makeup like Kiss, they use masks. The masks serve a few purposes, its a transformation of self into an alter ego to express what the original ego can't. Its permission you can put on your head. Second, its an experiment in mirroring- people react to you differently with a mask on than they would with your bare face: the bare face is human and relatable, the mask is something different and something you can project more onto, much like a doll. The mirroring the crowd offers will be different- I bet a slipknot concert is a bit more aggressive than any other- except Gwar, maybe (lol).
OK, so while the music is going, we see #3 walk right next to us! We're right to the left of the stage, so he's been near us the whole concert long, but he's walking out and about... he disappeared for a while and we went back to screaming, singing and fist waving.
Then the security guard in front of us brushes us to our right. I look over and there he is again! But right next to us! I reached out and grabbed his bicep and gave it a couple of squeezes ;) Stephen told me to grab his nose when he went by, LOL!!! Part of me wanted to, but part of me didn't out of respect. It was a funny thought, tho.
So, we go back to enjoying the concert and then a weird guy in a clown mask looks at us, me, Robyn and Tina in particular and hollered at us... after I saw the video camera, it dawned on me it was CLOWN! #6, Shawn Crahan! While he reached out to grab Robyn's coke, I reached in and grabbed his nose and tweaked it twice, LOL!! I got to grab #6's nose! What a rush, ha ha...
So, he grabbed Robyn's coke and squeezed it, then poured it onto Robyn's head! Ha ha ha! I grabbed her and shoved her at him, ha ha ha, yelling Get her, its her first metal concert, get her! What an initiation. He shook the rest of the drink on me and Tina and Stephen, all of this is getting recorded, btw... hopefully it will go into some recording we can buy. I love it because Tina's x boyfriend was supposed to go with us, but he's too busy being a cheat and a liar.
Look what you missed! nanny nanny boo boo
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