"Trouble" at gigs
Anyone here suffered much bother at gigs?
Last night I played a new venue which we hadn't played before (we are scrapping the barrel a bit because so many local places have closed) which felt very unfriendly. The drummers girlfriend and my Mrs are mates so they both came along for a natter.
About half way through the second set some drunken dickend seeing two ladies on their own starts hassling them and not taking no for an answer leaning over them, pulling their arms trying to get them to dance. Clearly they are not enjoying this very much and I'm stuck up on stage having to watch getting angrier and angrier.
As soon as the set was over I walked up and after confirming the attention was very much unwelcome said "I think you are bothering these ladies how about you go away" (being angry and hyped from the gig I probably said this quite aggressively without really meaning to) which he duly did without any backchat. However surprise surprise when I do the load out there is him and five of his mates stood in the car park and every time I go past he's insulting me to his mates so I can hear and saying "There's the guy that threatened me he's going to be sorry" and things of that ilk (but never to my face). I then have to walk my pregnant wife through them (who as you can imagine is quite upset by this). As it happened he waited until I was getting in the car before saying "Oy mate" and then when I looked at him he looked away (it must be said I am about about 6 inches taller and about 3 stone heavier than him which probably helped).
Prior to yesterday I'd only ever had 2 incidents in my 15 year gigging career one where I had an altercation with someone off his face who pulled the PA over and once when someone thought a guy carrying an amp saying "Excuse me" to someone standing in a doorway was "Disrespecting me bruv" (a bouncer threw him out)
I'm 32 years old and I'm starting to think can I be bothered to play in front of pissed up arseholes who cause you trouble.
Welcome to the club.
I've been doing it for 10 years, and I can't be bothered anymore. We now only play two "locals" where we're known. F*ck driving for an hour each way, sweating your bollocks off for no reaction, getting grief from punters, and all for £30.
Of course, it could be God's way of telling us we're crap...
sorry to hear that. (it wasn't me)
Cher Lloyd is had a hard time at V festival - not so much piss-taking but where they threw it afterwards.
That sucks, words cannot describe how much I hate insufferable wastes of blood and organs like that.
Would you mind telling us the venue? I find myself gigging around Suffolk quite often, sounds like a place we would want to 'prepare' for...
"The World don't wanna be saved, only left alone"
Rarely had trouble directed at us, usually just stuff off in the distance. We played a pub where we saw someone get 'glassed,' ambulance and police arrive,etc, punters hardly batted an eyelid - just a normal saturday night there. We were offered a return gig there at a much higher than our standard rate but without hesitation all 6 of us refused. Same gig where there was a bloke shoplifting from the supermarket next door to order and various punters snorting cocaine off the sink in the gent's ( by no means furtively).
Large, inebriated men do seem to like to gather by doorways in pubs when you are trying to cart gear in and out ( possibly made worse by the smoking ban) and I end up being painfully polite to people I'd just rather avoid. My wife almost never comes to our gigs ( she's seen the current band do a short set at a wedding only) and I certainly wouldn't ask her to come to somewhere I haven't played before.
Oh, last gig we did someone shouted 'fuck off' at our singer mid way through the set. He finished the song and walked off. I was completely oblivious to this ( if I spent less time looking at the fretboard perhaps I'd see more trouble!) and had to catch up later with why the bass player had to say goodnight halfway through the set.
Breeding mammals with insects is my personal bugbear.
Had a similar thing years ago watching my wife and her friends being bothered by the locals...horrible feeling to be on stage when that's going all. All ended fine though in our case, but still it can be one of the downsides of gigging.
I'll PM youOriginally Posted by Bidley
I've been gigging relatively regularly for the last 4 years, and we've only had one bit of trouble - at The Soundhouse in Leicester, when the "promoter" took exception to the venue owner because he expected the venue to do all the promoting for him and wanted his money back. He threw a couple of punches (and missed badly), then shouted "I'll rip yer fackin' head off!" while said owner was on the phone to the coppers.
We got a call from that "promoter" a couple of weeks ago, asking us to do another gig for him. Needless to say, we told him where to shove it. Apparently, we'll never get another gig in Leicester again
One of the locals in one of the places we play has a tendency to shout "That was the best one you've done all night..... but it was still fucking shite"
He finds this hilarious.
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