My bad punk concert experience- broken bass

slick519 · #1 05-06-2003, 08:47 PM

It was saturday night, and all of hte local "punks" were all really blazed. Unfourtunatly i had a gig to play at a local venue which is notorious for its wild mosh pits, but i figured, i am on the stage, what the hell. Well i was wrong. I was playing away, and the mosh pit was goin on below the stage. then people got up on each others shoulders and were moshing like that, no harm done. But once the lead singer started to kick the moshers, it got out of hand. they got up on the stage, and with no bouncers, this got into some trouble.
One of the kids was pushed right in to me and knocked me on my cab, which fell over onto the stage.... blew some tubes... So i got back up and started to push the kids off the stage, and one of the kids decided that he didnt want to be pushed. So he grabbed my bass neck and swung me around, off the stage, and i landed on my ass with my bass neck snapping in two (my neck drove into the ground, and i kept going, snapping my neck off at the body)

Any way, this kid split,a nd i cant find him to pay for damages (approx 800 USD) he snapped the neck off of my brothers black stingray and brok some tubes out of an old carvin head. yeah, so i am not very happy at all. I think that it is safe to say that i will never let anyone get on stage again.

slicks

Matt Till · #2 05-06-2003, 11:02 PM

Let me say that I would just start killing people left and right if that happened to me.

fastplant · #3 05-07-2003, 09:06 AM

I would blame your singer. What would compel him to start kicking the audience?

DanGouge · #4 05-07-2003, 09:21 AM

If the club did not have proper security personnel, then they shoulder some of the blame too. I mean from your description of what happened, it sounds like you could have been seriously hurt in the process. I would look at ways to seek compensation from the club too.

wulf · #5 05-07-2003, 09:50 AM

That's why a lot of 'punk' bands use pretty beat up gear - after all, it tends not to be a musical style that depends a lot on subtle nuances of timbre!

If you're going back to venues like that, I'd suggest considering getting some beat up old equipment to take with you (cheap bass and probably a solid state amp as well). I'd also suggest being very wary of inciting the crowd.

It's a sad story - but hopefully you can at least learn from it a bit, even if you never see the guy who pushed you off the stage again.

Wulf

slick519 · #6 05-07-2003, 10:23 PM

yeah, i guess that i have learned my lesson. I cant really ask the "club" for compensation for lack of security, for it really isnt a club, it is actually a church trying to get kids to convert to whatever religion they are. But the plan backfired. Anyone who goes to these things are the "no god, no masters" type people, and just come for the music. The church wants to stop, but they booked, and promised a whole year of shows

. I cant get compensation because it is a non profit organizaton, and well, i would just feel bad. (damn morals!) And besides, the church itself is spending lots of money on repairing damage to its gym/stage that the concerts bring (ie broken doors, broken basketball hoops, etc.

well... at least i gained some experience, and some character building blocks

.

SlicKS

Stanley Design · #7 05-08-2003, 09:03 AM

hmmm, lets see, a guy breaks all your stuff, throws you around the room, your holding a big heavy stick(your neck that broke off) and you didnt just start wailing on him with it?

i would have

Microbass · #8 05-08-2003, 10:25 AM

if the neck of my grabber snapped, i would kill, whoever did it.

his friends, his home, his car, him, i would destroy.

oh well.. i sure hope you can replace the stuff

Paul A · #9 05-08-2003, 11:22 AM

Why can't you get compensation from the church?
I would think they have the responsibility on this as they organised the event.
Why the hell shouldn't they pay? just because they are a "church" ?????

wulf · #10 05-08-2003, 11:42 AM

The organisers certainly need to think about whether they can handle future events. For example, what are they going to do when somebody's spine is stamped on and damaged beyond repair?

Even if you get the option of playing there again, think about it - if they don't have a few 'security' people in place, it might not be worth it, even if you've got some suitably crappy equipment to use by then.

Wulf

James Hart · #11 05-08-2003, 11:57 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Paul A
Why can't you get compensation from the church?
I would think they have the responsibility on this as they organised the event.
Why the hell shouldn't they pay? just because they are a "church" ?????

+100,000

they caused the damage, tell them to take up a collection!

non profit just means they don't pay taxes

DPKolba · #12 05-08-2003, 06:54 PM

You won't go far in the world with morals buddy. It's a church, and they are still liable. Nothing sacreligious...just business.

Aaron Saunders · #13 05-08-2003, 09:41 PM

They put on a show with no bouncers at all...it's their damn fault. One could also argue that you should not have gone on stage (especially with a stingray) when you knew it was going to be a rough crowd, and hell, one could even argue that it's your ****** singer's fault for kicking the moshers, but the church is still ultimately responsible. Things could easily have gotten a lot more violent and people could have gotten hurt. Who would be responsible? The church. So your **** gets trashed? Who's responsible? That's right, the church. They can bloody well pay up, as they should never have even let those people in when there wasn't going to be any bouncers.

slick519 · #14 05-08-2003, 11:55 PM

Good news, I called the church pastor, and it turns out thatt his wife is a loaded, so he paid me cash right out of his pocket... 1000 bucks! Man, i have to stop doing, and being around stupid things and people, because my luck will run out!!

well, i am happy, and should be able to replace everyhting that was broken. If not, i know who to call!!

Yeah, after the kid threw me offstage, he did get hell from the rest of the audience, a broken nose and some other stuff just from being on the bottom of a mosh pit for a little too long....

Slicks

Munjibunga · #15 05-09-2003, 12:22 AM

Many, many, many years ago, when I would occasionally strive for slightly altered consciousness by smoking herbal preparations, one of my favorite experiences was a "blown mind." You know, a sense of astonishment and incredulity so strong that all other thoughts are banished to the nether world. Well, this thread has evoked the closest thing to that for me in over 25 years. I just don't know what to say.

Yes sir, I do believe my mind is blown!

Munjibunga · #16 05-09-2003, 12:25 AM

DAMN! This is really mind-blowing!!

Osama_Spears · #17 05-09-2003, 09:41 AM

Only one thing to blame...

Punk.

I am not a big "mosher" myself...it's kinda stupid when you think about it.

-Jon

Mike Money · #18 05-10-2003, 08:34 PM

One of my basses is all decked out in American flag stickers, and when I get my first gig at a mainly punk joint, I am bringing it, and I have a pro-Bush song read to play... I am going to have fun.

slick519 · #19 05-11-2003, 11:31 PM

niiiiice.... dont forget to tell them you skipped all the peace protests because you were working at the GAP.... hah, that should be fun to watch

. Dont forget your tazers, nothin gets em riled up like provokatoin (is that a word?)

please, after the fact, do tell, i want to hear the reactions...

slicks

BigWig Will · #20 05-19-2003, 09:31 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Mike Money
One of my basses is all decked out in American flag stickers, and when I get my first gig at a mainly punk joint, I am bringing it, and I have a pro-Bush song read to play... I am going to have fun.

Are there going to be crusties there? If there are, I suggest setting up a bunch of mirrors around the area where your band will play. The crusties will get so enraged over that 'one guy' that keeps looking at them funny that they will viciously attack them, shattering the mirrors and creating a pretty cool "disco" ball effect.

I reccommend wearing a suit made of tin foil for this, seeing as you don't want any of the 7 years of bad luck store up in the mirrors to get on you.