Crowd @ glasto

[Trebor]

I don't think it's just an age thing. When I go to gigs (one-offs are admittedly a rarity for me now) and Glasto I see people of all ages too busy filming or talking. I still dance about like a twat, if the people around me think I'm weird for that then fuck them. I'm 34 and I'll probably carry on acting like that till my body gives up on me. So at 35 probably.

[CaledonianGonzo]

At a big festival there'll always be people in crowds who're there to accomodate friends and so have no interest whatsoever in the act on the stage.

Eagle-eyed observers on the Saturday of last year might have spied me at the back of the crowd during Ben Howard's slot on the Pyramid, making faces at him and gesturing to my comrades that we should be elsewhere, anywhere else but there.

[Yesiamaduck]

It's all down to the performance and demographic of the act obviously... I mean I'm pretty sure a lot of people at this show

knew who Janelle Monae was and it was quite sparse at the start but passer by's got drawn in due to quite frankly how awesome the show was and it filled up fast. You got the feeling everyone wanted to be there and the people at the front where there because they really wanted to see her.

[CaledonianGonzo]

While true enough that it was awesome, at least some of the people arriving after she started were coming from The Park after Pulp's secret set.

At least, that's why I got there late!

[carlosj]

At a big festival there'll always be people in crowds who're there to accomodate friends and so have no interest whatsoever in the act on the stage.

Eagle-eyed observers on the Saturday of last year might have spied me at the back of the crowd during Ben Howard's slot on the Pyramid, making faces at him and gesturing to my comrades that we should be elsewhere, anywhere else but there.

[JGP]

It's got nothing to do with age. There are people of all ages who'd go to glasto and watch the whole thing through their smartphone. Just because you don't do it doesn't mean everyone from a different generation does.

I'm 19 and I don't care what people think of me in situations like that, I'm there to have a good time and that's what I'll do. The people who are saying young people aren't 'bouncy' or lively enough at gigs any more need to go to a Chase and Status gig.

[jeffie]

I'm middle-aged and middle-class so I'll just be nodding my head in time, with polite interest.

[Pinhead]

I would say from my humble experience ranging from '94 to '13 that the overall atmos (including stages) has changed due to:

• Aging crowd - majority seemed to be roughly around my age group in the '90's
• Technology - no such thing as affordable mobiles for the masses when I began - less distraction and people felt more a part of it being disconnected from their usual lives
• Schedule - more to do late into the night and much of it laid on as part of the 'performance' of the festival - many peeps wait to get properly pissed at the night venues and knacker themselves out for the following day so perhaps less inclined to go mad then at the stages during the day and so on.
• Population - was definitely busier in '90's - just watched a bit of the '92 / '93 film last night and the main drag was absolutely rammed - gets busy today of course but as glasto-worker says, was definitely harder to get across site then. No fence and smaller site then both contribute I guess.
• Everyone has a ticket - I wonder if much of the madness I remember from the '90's was brought in by the ticketless....
• Drugs - E's then that kept you dancing and going day and night and sound systems to serve them.
• Music - to me and because of the apparently similar age group, everyone seemed to be into one flavour of indie or another and the culture of that was to mosh and stage dive and pogo and so on. Much more choice and diverse styles now, which is good, though perhaps this is reflected in the collective shared experience at various performances.
• Politics - music with lyrics that meant something, associated counter culture and that hopelessly naïve feeling that we were all gonna grow up and change the world cos we were all being told what was wrong. Nah.
• Festival cultural change - its all been done now and although it was all a great laugh at the time, new people wanna to do new things and don't want to do what their parents did.

Course this is all mightily subjective to my personal experiences.....

[CHRLY]

compare bullet with butterfly wings in 2013 with it in 97, not that big a difference in the crowd reaction tbh

[Trebor]

I was astounded to be the only person seemingly dancing to Primal Scream's Screamadelica set in 2011. Yet we were all right at the back for Chemical Brothers the following night at the same stage and everyone seemed to be going for it.

[frostypaw]

yes indeed. I don't think there are many who would disagree that the whole 'smart-phone=everything must be recorded' mentality is a downer on live shows. Hopefully, it's a novelty that will die eventually.

[Guest]

Down nearer the front it's often folk with properly fancy cameras and they get quite pissy if they get nudged by your dancing

Just an awful thing, totally not getting the moment and spoiling it for those around them let alone behind them stuck trying to look around their camera

There should be more comment in the guides about not bringing flags, chairs, fancy cameras etc down the front - both for the band so they have a chance of a jumping crowd and for the crowd of punters behind who paid to see a band not other's cameras and flags

[CaledonianGonzo]

I seem to have missed all the people down the front with the properly expensive cameras....

[russycarps]

I seem to have missed all the people down the front with the properly expensive cameras....

[5co77ie]

I caqn't understand why so many people seem to think Glastonbury has a Reading/Leeds style line-up. I think a lot of people are going to be surprised by the line-up.

[Gregcharlie]

[frostypaw]

not sure I'd like a bunch of rules on how to behave really

[WS_Jack_III]

For you guys that were saying young people are too busy with their iphones and such.

Skip to about 50 seconds in.