Some Easy Ways to "Upgrade" Your Festival experience

Tips to Upgrade Your Festival Experience via the Festival Lawyer

I first came across this article more than a year ago when it was first written. I’m glad that I found it again today and can reblog it here.

These are all just good tips about music festivals and what to do to have a good time. If you’d like to see more festival tips and tricks check out my blog at FestGuru’s Blog

thefestivallawyer:

I have gone to a lot of concerts over the years. I’m talking, “ saw Pink Floyd, The Clash, White Stripes before they broke up” years worth of concerts and “I wish I had started wearing ear plugs a long time ago” years worth of concerts.

One thing I have learned is that the festival experience really can be upgraded by you. Here are some easy ways to “upgrade” your concert experience while at the same easily making other people’s festival experiences more awesome.

OFFER TO TAKE PEOPLE’S PHOTOS - Everyone hates that thing where they are trying to take a picture and have to take a selfie with their arm way out in front of them and their heads smushed together. Seriously, you know that picture is going to suck. So next time, when you see someone struggling to hold the camera to take one of those horrible selfies, just walk up and say “hey can I take that for you?”. Guess what, you just made an instant concert friend and totally upgraded that person’s concert experience. Also, if you want a pic of you and your gf  or you and your friends they kind of have to take your picture back. It’s like the law or something.

BE POSITIVE/ ENTHUSIASTIC   - Speaking of taking pictures,  Last year at Outside Lands I asked someone to take a picture for us. “Fuck yeah I will” was his response. While taking the picture he was saying “fuck yeah..fuck yeah..this pic is going to be killer”. When it was done I  told him thanks and he said “No..thank YOU!..that was fucking awesome”. Festivals are just about the best place to find a gathering of eccentric, interesting, positive, individuals who are looking to have a good time.  You can be one of those folks. Heck, you ARE one of those folks. 

Here is the funny part. You might feel weird about it but you need to SHARE your enthusiasm with others to get the maximum out of your festival life.  Yes, you are in crowd of people who are super different and diverse from you.   But you all have something in common. You are so passionate about music you are coming to this  shared experience even though it is a little nuts to stomp around for 3 days of mayhem.

So next fest, tell a stranger about a band you are excited about. Or give a tip to someone  about where to eat or where the lockers are. Or wear a costume or a funny T-Shirt. Being enthusiastic and positive is  seriously  contagious. You will notice that your whole experience changes. If people think you are cool they will give you a larger slice of pizza or bend the rules slightly to let you go into a VIP section you shouldn’t. The shuttle bus you are on suddenly is a party bus now and you will meet cool people who have amazing stories of having come to this festival from Spain, or Australia, or Brasil, or wherever. And since you said “hi” to them and didn’t want anything in return, strangers will tell you some crazy ass story of the time they met Morrissey or will give you a tip for the next festival you go to…All of the above things have really happened to me just from being positive and enthusiastic..seriously..try it.  

PUT YOUR FUCKING IPAD DOWN FOR FUCK’S SAKE   - I know I just said to take a bunch of pictures and take other people’s pictures…but this is different. I am not talking about taking pictures of your friends or maybe recording a few shots just for your memories. I am talking about people who just stand there recording the whole show through their video camera.

STOP..in the words of Louis C.K.  "you are watching TV of an event that you are there live to see..it’s right there in front of you".  Let me add that YOU WILL NEVER FUCKING WATCH THAT VIDEO …I PROMISE YOU.. And if you do it will make you sad to watch because you will be thinking “man, I was just sitting there taking video and I wasn’t really present and enjoying it”.  Please stop this..it makes the concert a group of observers rather than what it should be ..a shared human experience. 

I really want to get a T shirt that says “Put your phone down, it’s a concert" 

USE THE WORDS “NO WORRIES” AND “SORRY ”  - I have learned from dealing with a lot of very volatile folks over the years that the worst way to get someone to calm down is to yell “calm down”. One of the best ways is to say “Im sorry” or “that was an accident, are we cool”.  I’ve seen a lot of potentially ugly situations defused by a “no worries” or “sorry man” sprinkled in it at the right time. Everyone is then happier. 

TELL YOUR FRIEND TO STOP TALKING DURING “BLACKBIRD”  - Okay look I know I want to keep this as a list of positive suggestions and I will but people need to fucking stop talking at concerts during quiet beautiful songs. Okay?

Seriously, If you are standing there talking to someone during an acoustic number for a band you are supposedly a fan of and you paid to see, I just can’t get or understand you. It’s like you really need a complete life change. I saw Paul McCartney  and heard people talking loudly around me during him doing a beautiful quiet rendition of “Black Bird”. I felt like people were pissing on the Mona Lisa. Please..I’m begging you… stop your stupid conversation.  I know it’s stupid because you are seeing something beautiful and ignoring it and instead wrecking other people’s experience by talking over it.  Unless you are saying to your friend “oh shit you are on fire!”  you need to stow that conversation for after the show. 

Honestly,  if people are talking around me I just move to another spot. It seriously is just nails on a chalk board to me. I’m not saying people need to stand quietly the whole show..quite the opposite..I’m just saying if you are at a concert and they play a slow quiet beautiful song can you maybe listen to it?

I heard a guy loudly arguing with his girlfriend at a Jack White concert as he played a beautiful version of “Love Interrupted”. They were arguing about whether Coldplay or Radiohead was better. It was like A) shut up if you don’t know that Radiohead is better and B) Just fuck off in general, neither band is playing here tonight, you dummies. 

This is one of those areas where if it’s your friend you really need to stop your buddy and be like ‘hey man..I want to watch this”. I know it makes it weird and awkward between you and your friend..but really?? It’s your friend so you had to know you were bring a problem. 

Long story short, don’t be that talking guy that everyone is annoyed by…. 

SUPPORT OTHER PEOPLE WHEN THEY ARE “KILLING IT”   I know some people don’t like it when people sing along too loudly and I’ve even seen some arguments over this at festivals  But personally I love when people near me are singing along or are so crazy into the show that it’s physically affecting them.  When you see people who are just totally into it, let them know that you don’t think they are weird, that you think they are AWESOME for being that into the band. Give them a high five or a thumbs up or just  tell them they are killing it. Trust me when I say that if you encourage folks around you to have a good time, your whole section of the concert will get remarkably cooler and friendlier. 

 

DANCE- As the great Tucker Gumber AKA “The Festival Guy” once told me, “there are no bad dancers,  just boring people”. This is so true. In the words of the Violent Femmes, “When I say dance, you best dance Motherfuckers, …. just dance. or sing or bob your head..it’s great to be alive and listening to music you love isn’t it??

 

GIVE SOMETHING TO SOMEONE AND TELL THEM THEY ARE GETTING AN “UPGRADE” - I am trying to promote the idea of “Upgrade” the same way some people used to talk about “paying it forward”

 

At concerts you sometimes have  a situation where you have a ticket you can’t use, or a shuttle pass you are done with, or a lighter or flashlight you don’t need any more.  What do you do with it? I suggest you tell someone that you are giving them “an upgrade”  when you give it away. Pick someone out who is killing it and being positive and fun and  tell them..“hey here is an upgrade.” This let’s the person know that you don’t want anything in return. You just want them to  have a better festival.. It also sends the positive vibes and gives them a gentle reminder to try to pass along an upgrade to someone cool the next time they can. 

 

So there you have it…These are just my thoughts on how we could make festivals and concerts better and more fun.  Feel free to tell me anything i missed or other ways to make you have found that will make people’s fests their best fests yet! 

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