Guest NASA Posted July 23, 2007 Report Share Posted July 23, 2007 As uaccustomed as I am to public speaking.... I have taken the time to register a name on this forum to talk about the throwing of glowsticks at our shows. It's a cool effect, I'll admit... especially if you're twisted... but the problem comes when they get thrown at the stage. In addition to distracting the performers, those plastic tubes can scuff the finishes of the instruments or damage exposed speaker cones (as JK's speakers are)... this fad did start at Phish shows as far as I know, and the glowstick fights durring "Harry Hood" were in response to the song, not an expected high point of just ANY song. The people who figure they are giving out a hippie free-bee or "adding to the show" are perhaps innocently distributing them, but in the hands of a chaotic little imp they become a missle, not a trip toy. Although no one else in the band has said so publicly yet (to my knowin'), I can tell you that we don't enjoy the glowstick showers. I'm not going to start raving like my old man, saying "Damn Kids" and shaking my fist, but I'm going to apeal to the audience to keep your glow in the audience. Wave 'em around all you like, put them in your hair, mouth, cover yourself in them until you are irradiated, but please, please PLEASE - Don't throw them. Not at each other, and definitely not at the stage. The folks in the band have spent a lot of money and in some cases a lot of time aquiring the pieces of equipment we need to make the music sound like it does... ... as well as hiring the best engineer for the job... *koff koff*... ... these guitars, drums, speakers in the cabinets, have all been deliberately chosen for the job... and they take enough abuse bouncing down thousands of miles of highway every year in order to produce the music. Some of the guitars have belonged to these guys since they were teen-agers, so without giving too much personal information about the band away, in some cases we're talking about instruments which were made before the Magna Carta was signed! But seriously, these instruments can't be replaced and refinishing them destroys the value so it's not an option... and if you damage one of John's speakers, it's not like we've got a replacement just laying on the side of the stage... some of the speakers in the cabinets John's using are formerly a certain guitar player's property if you take my meaning, and there just ain't no more of them. Eaton's Modulous guitars are fairly-much one of a kind, Koritz has had his drum kit since he was a kid, Kevin's bass guitars are rare birds... ... and then there's MY @#*%&!!! MICROPHONES... ... but I digress. I have a talent for it. Glowsticks are cool, and we don't want anyone to stop having a "Lit Up" fun night, but consider the fact that the band is there to concentrate and lose themselves in the music that's asking to get out of them... don't distract them from listening to the muse, or they might make a mistake in the translation we're all hoping to somehow understand... or at least, well... you understand what I'm getting at... ... and one other thing to consider: If you are going to freely distribute these pieces of plastic for everyone's amusement, AT LEAST PICK UP A FEW OF THEM UP ON YOUR WAY OUT, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU DO IT OUTDOORS IN A BEAUTIFUL FIELD OF GRASS OR WOODED LOCALE. Glowsticks are a good time but in addition to containing mildly toxic juice they're not all that biodegradible. That's all, and I don't mean this to sound mean-spirited or commanding or officious in any way. I am not attempting to speak for everyone but I thought it might be an idea to consider. If you bring glowsticks, just bring enough for your personal use... we like the fact that they're around because they ARE cool, but keep 'em in your hands/ hair/ clothing/ orifice of choice... after all, the tune says "Let there be SONGS to fill the air"... not glowsticks. Thanks and see you around the playground! ~Cameron~ DSO Sound Engineer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advisory Board Herdygerdy Posted July 23, 2007 Advisory Board Report Share Posted July 23, 2007 Leave it to Cameron to make us all feel warm and fuzzy inside.... GLOWSTICKS!!! 2 for 5 BITCHES!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest NASA Posted July 23, 2007 Report Share Posted July 23, 2007 Yeah... that's about what I expected out of Mr. MENSA Meeting there. C'mon Herdy, don't lead the assault... ya butt-nut. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advisory Board Herdygerdy Posted July 23, 2007 Advisory Board Report Share Posted July 23, 2007 Yeah... that's about what I expected out of Mr. MENSA Meeting there. C'mon Herdy, don't lead the assault... ya butt-nut. Well Cammy, you know I do have an IQ of 129.... so put that in your pipe and smoke it!!!! I prefer to act like an ass... people expect ALOT less from you! Butt-nut..... I like it...... I prefer fuckstick though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest crazy digits Posted July 23, 2007 Report Share Posted July 23, 2007 Cameron, whatever WE need to do to get another ROADRASH, we'll do it....keep it coming brother. WE love you. Herdy, butt nut is perfect for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advisory Board Herdygerdy Posted July 23, 2007 Advisory Board Report Share Posted July 23, 2007 Herdy, butt nut is perfect for you. Bix, comming from you, I think I'm flattered... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum MVP bs69 Posted July 23, 2007 Forum MVP Report Share Posted July 23, 2007 I think they look best hanging from trees and lighing a path in weird geometric designs in the woods at night Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest NASA Posted July 23, 2007 Report Share Posted July 23, 2007 I SO did not want this to become a discussion on the term "Butt-Nut". Must you bring out the worst in me, Herdicus? Love you, man... and by the way, you are going STRAIGHT to Hell for that 2-point conversion to my "Got Jesus?" t-shirt in Asbury Park NJ... high IQ my pah-toot. May you live long and NOT prosper (flashes Vulcan sign then flips hand around to display middle finger prominently). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deadheadjpc2000 Posted July 23, 2007 Report Share Posted July 23, 2007 Damn....Tough Room here...LOL Lightsticks and such are very cool around your campsite or person.... *Can't find my way home.... Peace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum MVP anddave Posted July 23, 2007 Forum MVP Report Share Posted July 23, 2007 Cameron, whatever WE need to do to get another ROADRASH, we'll do it....keep it coming brother. Yes, this post felt like a roadrash right from the first sentence. When I got to "*koff* *koff*" I was sure. Love that Cameron prose! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advisory Board Herdygerdy Posted July 23, 2007 Advisory Board Report Share Posted July 23, 2007 Love you, man... and by the way, you are going STRAIGHT to Hell for that 2-point conversion to my "Got Jesus?" t-shirt in Asbury Park NJ... high IQ my pah-toot. May you live long and NOT prosper (flashes Vulcan sign then flips hand around to display middle finger prominently). Oh Cammy, I'm going to hell for alot more then that... Joke of the day for you Christians... (If I offend anyone... that's your problem) Q: How come Jesus doesn't eat M&M's?? A: Cause they fall through the holes in his hands... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum MVP bs69 Posted July 23, 2007 Forum MVP Report Share Posted July 23, 2007 Oh Cammy, I'm going to hell for alot more then that... Joke of the day for you Christians... (If I offend anyone... that's your problem) Q: How come Jesus doesn't eat M&M's?? A: Cause they fall through the holes in his hands... Yep, That's the clincher! You are going strait to hell now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum MVP FunkyBass13 Posted July 24, 2007 Forum MVP Report Share Posted July 24, 2007 Damn Herdy, your posts always seem to put a smile on my face. Cam: butt-nut !! That is fucking awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest NASA Posted July 24, 2007 Report Share Posted July 24, 2007 Well Herdy, not to try and top you, but I was gonna say that if Christ had a beer gut like yours he'd have pro'ly bent the dang nails right outa the wood... ... see ya in Pergatory, m'man. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advisory Board Herdygerdy Posted July 24, 2007 Advisory Board Report Share Posted July 24, 2007 Well Herdy, not to try and top you, but I was gonna say that if Christ had a beer gut like yours he'd have pro'ly bent the dang nails right outa the wood...... see ya in Pergatory, m'man. It's the only thing I have that's bought and paid for, Cammy.... and yes... those nails wouldn't hold my fat ass... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum MVP anddave Posted July 24, 2007 Forum MVP Report Share Posted July 24, 2007 Yep, That's the clincher! You are going strait to hell now "Clincher"... heh heh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum MVP chuckvegas Posted July 24, 2007 Forum MVP Report Share Posted July 24, 2007 A band, crew, and fan base beyond description. Time off and unemployment are definitely the devil's workshop. Without the clarity, indeed... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackjones Posted July 24, 2007 Report Share Posted July 24, 2007 ... and one other thing to consider: If you are going to freely distribute these pieces of plastic for everyone's amusement, AT LEAST PICK UP A FEW OF THEM UP ON YOUR WAY OUT, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU DO IT OUTDOORS IN A BEAUTIFUL FIELD OF GRASS OR WOODED LOCALE. Glowsticks are a good time but in addition to containing mildly toxic juice they're not all that biodegradible. AMEN! And as someone who regularly watches from up close, I feel pretty comfortable sayiing WE don't like them either. The balloons and glowsticks constantly nailing you. It's like contagious idiocy you can see rolling around as each unwitting stranger gets hit in the head: Uh. Uh. Uh. Uh. As it was stated in another thread (ahem) it ain't a frikkin volleyball game. And airborne glowsticks have been known to blind. Think about that. It gets to be like I am more in air traffic control mode navigating the skies rather than watching the show. Why? Allgood and Gratefulfest were enough. I can't tell you how many people have been furious with me when I start popping their balloons, but at that point I just don't care. I try not to infringe upon others good time, but at some point it is give and take. And in the end it is all litter anyway. Litter. Enough with the irritants, people. Enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum MVP jfolks Posted July 24, 2007 Forum MVP Report Share Posted July 24, 2007 fuck glowsticks, balloons, beachballs, etc.... two reasons i hate them: one, they distract me from the music, from the x-factor.... you know when dso is playing incredibly as usual and you lose your sense of space/time/reality and nothing else in the world exists except you and the music and your dancing with your eyes closed and the music takes you higher than drugs possibly can then *BLAM* it all washes away in an instant because a 10 lb beachball just hot you in the head then fell to the ground and you tripped on it so now you just want to throw it to get it out of the way and now your back in reality and the guitar solo is over and you werent paying attention cause you just got hit in the head by a freakin beachball.... i hate that shit. and seeing people hit the balloons/beachballs in the air is also distracting... but secondly, is that people throw glowstix at the band. or so it seems. this pisses me the hell off. how disrespectful can you be?? not to mention your distracting the band from their music, when theyre dodging missiles. kira wears Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman's hat for protection against glwosticks at the ledges, and left during the second set of one of the shows because she was getting constantly bombarded by flying glowstix... despite the funny hat's protection... this is getting outta hand people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackjones Posted July 24, 2007 Report Share Posted July 24, 2007 At the ledges, a guy with a huge balloon hat (read: view obstructor and future litter) stepped right in front of us. Kira leaned over and said: "I think we can add massive balloon hats to our list of irritants" and she is right. Don't make me have to pop your hat. Just don't make me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest NASA Posted July 24, 2007 Report Share Posted July 24, 2007 There's absolutely nothing wrong with a little hippie pageantry... nothing makes my day like wandering through the crowd on my way to FOH and seeing someone in a bear costume, or like the other day at an outdoor gig on this last tour when I looked over to see someone with a fish head on, dancing... glowsticks can be an artful decoration to anyone's show, I recall seeing the guys from Leftover Salmon walking a campground late at night playing acoustic instruments, all of them outlined with glowsticks on their clothes... these toys are a part of our scene, as are balloons, etc. ... ... does anyone remember that outdoor gig in Iowa a few years ago when one of the sponsors for the show thought it would be a good idea to give out 10" inflatable beachballs which, due to their material construction, had a good amount of weight to them when spiked? THAT was a good day... ... you can't escape some of it, but you can make a bit of a difference next time you see a few grinning hippies cocking back to throw a handful of those sticks. If you come upon someone preparing a salvo of glowsticks, relate the better parts of this thread (y'know... forget all of the Jesus jokes and "Butt-Nut")... ask them not to throw the lot of them, ask them to be mindful of the band's concentration, and remind them that someone has to clean that mess up... If we're not acting responsibly, caring for our surroundings and treating our neighbors with respect, we're not being very good people let alone a "counter-culture"... how can we call ourselves different if we leave a pile of plastic and garbage behind, just like every other crowd? Just a thought. I see no problem with balloons, myself... except when they pop, because I'm conditioned to react to a loud "Bang!" in the presence of a PA I'm trying to take to it's limits... but having been hit with a few of them, sometimes like the beachballs in Iowa, they can impact a bit more than intended by the last person to bat it into the air. I don't forsee a crack-down thing happening, we as a band are pretty much against setting any sort of guidelines. We don't need to be hard about what happens at our shows, but that's because I believe that like a lot of other community-related issues, we can take care of this internally, if you will. If you're an older 'head, show the younger set how it's done. Back when I got on the bus, there were elders of the tribe who showed me how to party without losin' it, they taught me how to love others and respect the planet, and they taught me how to be sly and get away with a lot of deviancy without getting caught or wrecking someone else's trip. Now that you're the one being looked up to, it's time for you to impart a little more that how to do a successful keg-stand to the nippers in the 'lot. Spread the word, and help us to get the scene straightened out so that we can all get sideways again, if that makes any sense. See you around the playground! ~Cameron~ DSO Sound Engineer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum MVP chuckvegas Posted July 24, 2007 Forum MVP Report Share Posted July 24, 2007 Spread the word, and help us to get the scene straightened out so that we can all get sideways again, if that makes any sense.See you around the playground! ~Cameron~ DSO Sound Engineer Cam, it does indeed...Upside out or inside down...enjoy the break, buddy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackjones Posted July 24, 2007 Report Share Posted July 24, 2007 Very well said, Cameron. I appreciate your insight and agree with your confidence in our ability to monitor ourselves, and to show others the way. And I also really appreciated the glowstick art at the ledges, such as the lifesize Boombox stage, with a dead-on likeness of Zion. I appreciate that they serve a nice purpose for keeping up with children in the dark and providing trail light so as to minimize blinding headlamps. But as a spectator I can't stand to see them airborne for so many reasons that have already been mentioned. And as for the balloons, well....... FWIW, I refrain from popping balloons until only the most extreme of circumstances, such as when Reynolds or Lisa are removing them from the stage, or the look of distraction is plain on the faces of the performers. No one likes the "pop" a balloon makes, especially when paying such attention to detail to sound quality and perfection. No one likes to hear the "pop" on recordings. But I am afraid at times I have just decided that some of them needed to go, and, taking matters into my own hands, have grabbed stage-bound balloons and popped them down at my feet so as to minimize the "pop" effect... peace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum MVP anddave Posted July 24, 2007 Forum MVP Report Share Posted July 24, 2007 I recall seeing the guys from Leftover Salmon walking a campground late at night playing acoustic instruments, all of them outlined with glowsticks on their clothes... That's good stuff! I saw a bike at the ledges all festooned with glowsticks, especially in the spokes and on the pedals, and it was mighty cool. From a distance pedaling slow, it looked like a cartoon monster with like nine legs. ... does anyone remember that outdoor gig in Iowa a few years ago when one of the sponsors for the show thought it would be a good idea to give out 10" inflatable beachballs which, due to their material construction, had a good amount of weight to them when spiked? THAT was a good day... Was that the one at the park on the river with the cool arch? Sounds mighty familiar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum MVP FunkyBass13 Posted July 25, 2007 Forum MVP Report Share Posted July 25, 2007 I remember seeing Phish back in the mid-90s and the 1st time I saw the "glowstick war" from back of the hall, I thought it was awesome. Later on, I found out the hard way that they really hurt. Glow RINGS on the other hand don't really hurt and they make some very happy to see people playing with them. I say, if you have to bring toys to throw around, at least make them something soft, so you don't end up hurting someone. But DEFINITELY, DO NOT throw them at the band. Overall, I agree with most here that say that throwing objects around is unneccesary and distracts from the music (unless its Phish doing Harry Hood and they open up the jam so people can throw them around. But I guess that is a mute point now.). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.