Have You Ever Walked Out Of A Concert ?

Paul_C

fretmeister said:

Walter Trout at the Stables in Milton Keynes about 15 years ago.

I went with @Paul_C .

Ollie Brown was the opening act and he was very good for a young chap.

Trout was the loudest act I’ve ever seen, including all the metal gigs I’ve been to.

The volume was beyond stupid. We left in the first song and I’m glad we did. The SPL was close to vomit inducing levels. It was painful just to be in there.

The people who stayed absolutely got some permanent hearing damage that night.

Even outside the double doors to the room it was still too loud for conversation. We ended up having a drink in the bar about 30 metres from the closed main doors to the room. 

That was my most recent one, the only other one I can recall was Crass back in the 80s, which was because they were terrible.

Jalapeno

Yep - Robert Cray @ Hammersmith Odeon (as was) - dullest thing I've evert been to.

Offset

Wilko Johnson at Cheltenham Town Hall, sadly the same year he died.  Left at half time - just dreadful.   Then Terrorvision last year in Camden - the sound was atrocious.

equalsql

I got talked into going to see Judas Priest in Bournemouth back in the late 70s by my band mates. Rob Halford strutting the stage in his leathers with the peak cap and a whip. All of them posing beyond belief. Honestly, it was embarrassing to watch. I loved serious hard and progressive rock bands at the time but this was like a pantomime for pubescent 13 year old boys. 
I noped out after about 5 songs.

lustycourtier

equalsql said:

I got talked into going to see Judas Priest in Bournemouth back in the late 70s by my band mates. Rob Halford strutting the stage in his leathers with the peak cap and a whip. All of them posing beyond belief. Honestly, it was embarrassing to watch. I loved serious hard and progressive rock bands at the time but this was like a pantomime for pubescent 13 year old boys. 
I noped out after about 5 songs.

Sounds fantastic. Rock N Roll is supposed to be over the top.

barnstorm

Makes me feel less like an old man to know that lots of you also hate how stupidly, unnecessarily loud many gigs are.

I remember NPR doing a piece at least 10 years ago suggesting most people wanted the volume turned down, and yet…

The cinema's awful these days, too, for anything but the gentlest films. Sat through Dune 2 a couple of weeks ago because a friend wanted to see it, and was prepared to endure the nonsense story and stupid dialogue, but the assault from the speakers was genuinely almost intolerable. Didn't help, of course, that the score is yet another collection of BRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHMMMMMMMMMMM noises from Hans Zimmer. Someone needs to tell him to knock it off.

ICBM

barnstorm said:

Makes me feel less like an old man to know that lots of you also hate how stupidly, unnecessarily loud many gigs are.

I remember NPR doing a piece at least 10 years ago suggesting most people wanted the volume turned down, and yet…

“If it’s too loud, you’re too old”… no, the levels at a lot of modern gigs are far beyond just being a bit too rock’n’roll for the over-50s - way beyond exhilarating and into uncomfortable and even dangerous, and often at the expense of a good mix too since the sources which are easiest to amplify to extreme levels are not usually the ones you want to hear most of. (ie not the vocals.)

barnstorm

Trying to think back, and I'm pretty sure the last gig I went to that didn't sound better with earplugs was in 2010.

Offset

I'd almost forgotten The Manics around 30-ish years ago at The Wedgewood Rooms in Portsmouth.  Me and a mate lasted a couple of songs and then retreated to a bar off the main auditorium.  It was painfully loud and even as a relative yoof back then, I was seriously worried about damage to my hearing.

RickLucas

I walked out of a Jeff Beck gig in about 1990, and a Gov't Mule gig in about 2004. Beck was too loud, and Mule were tedious. I wear plugs now for all gigs.

Supportact

barnstorm said:

Makes me feel less like an old man to know that lots of you also hate how stupidly, unnecessarily loud many gigs are.

I remember NPR doing a piece at least 10 years ago suggesting most people wanted the volume turned down, and yet…

The cinema's awful these days, too, for anything but the gentlest films. Sat through Dune 2 a couple of weeks ago because a friend wanted to see it, and was prepared to endure the nonsense story and stupid dialogue, but the assault from the speakers was genuinely almost intolerable. Didn't help, of course, that the score is yet another collection of BRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHMMMMMMMMMMM noises from Hans Zimmer. Someone needs to tell him to knock it off.

No it's not just you. I find some gig volume levels quite uncomfortable, and often unnecessarily so. I splashed out on some of those molded earplugs a while back, primarily for use on stage or rehearsals, but I've ended up taking them along to every gig I go to. Well worth the money in my opinion as it's made the general gig experience much better as a listener as well as performer.

Philly_Q

ICBM said:

barnstorm said:

Makes me feel less like an old man to know that lots of you also hate how stupidly, unnecessarily loud many gigs are.

I remember NPR doing a piece at least 10 years ago suggesting most people wanted the volume turned down, and yet…

“If it’s too loud, you’re too old”… no, the levels at a lot of modern gigs are far beyond just being a bit too rock’n’roll for the over-50s - way beyond exhilarating and into uncomfortable and even dangerous, and often at the expense of a good mix too since the sources which are easiest to amplify to extreme levels are not usually the ones you want to hear most of. (ie not the vocals.)

I totally agree, but I guess the question then becomes how much do you drop the volume, and how do you get any kind of consensus?  To give an extreme example, you don't want a gig so quiet that people around you are talking over the music.

Supportact said:

No it's not just you. I find some gig volume levels quite uncomfortable, and often unnecessarily so. I splashed out on some of those molded earplugs a while back, primarily for use on stage or rehearsals, but I've ended up taking them along to every gig I go to. Well worth the money in my opinion as it's made the general gig experience much better as a listener as well as performer.

I think this may not be the answer, but it's certainly an answer.  I never got round to buying properly moulded earplugs, but I did use a cheaper alternative, with variable attenuation levels, for a number of years.  That certainly improved the gig-going experience.

Supportact

@Philly_Q that's a good point, you are never going to get everyone to agree on the optimal volume levels, and some genres do demand a certain amount of volume. Where I find it annoying is where it's clearly causing people to feel discomfort to the point they think about leaving, or it's just not necessary for the type of music being performed. You can't please everyone though.

Philly_Q

I'm going to look into the moulded earplugs again.  I haven't been to many gigs in recent years, but I'm retiring next year and I think I may start going a bit more frequently (it'll make a change from going to the library to keep warm, and doing crosswords...).  I can never remember the name of that place that specialises in earplugs but I'm sure I can find it easily enough.

Sesh

Back in 95? I went to see Pulp. They were great, but I did the usual pre gig pint and went in to see the warm up act, Minty. After about 2 minutes, me and the other chap I was with went, "Nah," and went for another pint. 

Supportact

Philly_Q said:

I'm going to look into the moulded earplugs again.  I haven't been to many gigs in recent years, but I'm retiring next year and I think I may start going a bit more frequently (it'll make a change from going to the library to keep warm, and doing crosswords...).  I can never remember the name of that place that specialises in earplugs but I'm sure I can find it easily enough.

I got ACS ones.

Philly_Q

Supportact said:

Philly_Q said:

I'm going to look into the moulded earplugs again.  I haven't been to many gigs in recent years, but I'm retiring next year and I think I may start going a bit more frequently (it'll make a change from going to the library to keep warm, and doing crosswords...).  I can never remember the name of that place that specialises in earplugs but I'm sure I can find it easily enough.

I got ACS ones.

They're the ones, thanks!  I always think it's ACM, but then I remember that is (or was..?) the Academy of Contemporary Music.

Gassage

Yes.
Everything But The Girl - horrendous.

I also literally fell asleep at Kylie.

drpbier

I hadn't when this thread started but did so for the first time on Sunday night...walked out of the Happy Mondays about 6 'songs' in. The support acts were great (Stereo MCs and Inspiral Carpets) but Shaun Ryder was appalling. He was never a top flight singer (!) but now just stands there bellowing the lyrics which he reads off the auto prompt. And croaking about his missing manuka honey. After the thrill of the first song (Kinky Afro) and seeing Bez do his thing, it got very old very fast.

Philly_Q

Gassage said:

I also literally fell asleep at Kylie.

Oh, I fell asleep at a Meat Loaf show.  I wouldn't have left if I'd stayed awake though, it was a rare gig where I'd gone with other people.