Seattlest: An Open Letter to Seattle's Douchebags: Knock it the Hell Off!

jonnyoctagon

Fri, 16 Nov 2007 13:40:24 -0800

guest

Tue, 31 Jul 2007 11:45:31 -0800

I agree with you. I worked for festivals in Seattle for about 6 years and know first hand that there is really no excuse for not getting your prepaid, ticket holding, festival supporting guests through the gate in a quick and painless manner. Your experience at the BP gate is shameful. I do have one descending comment. The wristbands at BS are completely necessary and the hell you would go through without them wouldn't make anyone happy. There is a limited capacity in Memorial Stadium. Before the wrist bands, if you wanted to make it inside you had to get in line as soon as the gates open and wait all day, missing all the other awesome things going. With the wristbands you can pick one up in the morning and enjoy the day knowing you will get to see the evening show. This solution is actually an innovative one. I think they should actually charge a few bucks for the band so people who only pick one up because the "might" want to go don't take them away from people who really really love the bands that are playing that night. And please people, don't complain about the ticket price. How much is one show at any other large venue? We are lucky to have a nonprofit festival in our city. Where else can you spend $30 for 12 hours of entertainment?

guest

Tue, 31 Jul 2007 10:57:18 -0800

I didn't really expect The Stranger to write anything along these lines since they sponsored the event and all, so thank you for writing this. Friday's main stage didn't really get bad until Blue Scholars started. My friends and I were watching from the corner across the street from Neumos where we'd had almost no problems watching The Blood Brothers. Once Blue Scholars started, people were constantly walking around and in front of us to the point where we could only catch glimpses of the performance. We decided to make our way through the crowd to the beer garden and watch from there, which was a baaaaad idea, because it was full of douchebags who weren't there for the music at all, but just wanted to get drunk and be loud idiots. As such, we were able to see the performance, but couldn't hear hardly anything. I also had to deal with a bleach-blond rhythmless skank bumping into me as she drunkenly grinded on her boyfriend. Things were generally much better at the Vera stage (can't say anything for Neumos because we couldn't get in). Saturday was much better, possibly because I was much drunker and all of the above problems with Friday didn't bother me as much. I also spent most of the day at Neumos and the Vera stage, with the exception of Against Me (side note: they played way too much new stuff, so their set was totally weak). Anyway, the one performance that made the whole debacle worthwhile was seeing Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground close out the Vera stage Saturday night. Just about everyone watching them was there for the music and to have a good time, and was really what the whole weekend should have been. My vote for next year: get rid of the beer garden and age restrictions on Neumos. That'll weed out most of the drunken idiots that don't care about the music and there's plenty of bars along that block anyway, so if people still want to get drunk, they can.

kasa

Tue, 31 Jul 2007 08:48:14 -0800

Outdoor festivals? One word: PICKATHON. If nothing else, you're pretty much guaranteed a deficit of fratty-hipsters. Of course you have to pay through the nose for it, and it's, you know.... Pickathon. Glad I'm a dork. Also, anyone know what was up with the kids in capes after the Block Party? What was that shit?

guest

Tue, 31 Jul 2007 07:14:11 -0800

Jeremy M. Barker: the Lewis Black of concert critics.

guest

Mon, 30 Jul 2007 21:49:50 -0800

Nice rant. I went to the Capitol Hill Block Party on Saturday evening for the sole purpose of watching two bands I love: Against Me! and Spoon. Sad to say I felt like I was in the minority. Most people seemed to be there to either party till they fell over or were there because it was cool and just wanted to be seen. Yes, I feel like The Stranger provoked this behavior from their text on their website blog and event insert in their rag. I am used to going to Bumbershoot and getting annoyed by people who are there just to because it was something to do. Or, people that show up for one band and then spend the remaining time wondering around in a daze getting in my way. I've learned to deal with this. Those people usually aren't drunk and rude though. The worst aspect of the Capitol Hill Block party had to be the process in which you had to get into Neumos once the beer garden was closed. Which low IQ-scoring drop out was in charge of this crow management technique? And why on earth did they make Neumos an over 21 club anyway? It just isn't fair to the under 21 people who paid their $20 same as me. It is going to take one awesome band for me to return to the Capitol Hill Block Party because quite frankly that event is not for music fans.

Saxtor

Mon, 30 Jul 2007 21:21:02 -0800

You're just going to the wrong festivals. For example, the lineup for the first Sasquatch (hippy bands!) was the only one that has really interested me, and I had a blast. From all reports of later years, it has just become a swarming hipster/emo-fest, but the first year was amazing. Yonder Mountain String Band's Northwest String Summit fest outside Portland is quite possibly the best year-to-year festival I've been to with quality beer (Rogue!), beautiful scenery (Horning's Hideout) and an all-around good vibe. Two weekends from now, August 10th-12th, local rockers Flow Motion are holding their Summer Meltdown festival which the festival I'm most anticipating this year. The management, being grassroots, runs it better than any Gorge/Bumbershoot/etc. festival, with clean portapotties, non-overbearing security, plenty of good beer (Deschutes!) and a comfortable party atmosphere. What I'm saying is, these low-attention-span type festivals with all the sponsorships, 100 bands and services and security not worth discussing draw such a weird element that just isn't for me. I go to 5-7 outdoor festivals every Summer, and the ones that are the worst are the Bumbershoot/Block Party/Endfest type. Pack 'em in, get 'em drunk, push 'em around, get 'em out.

opus

Mon, 30 Jul 2007 18:36:46 -0800

Welcome to our generation. In the past half-decade all the children of '80s yuppies hit the drinking age, and yes, they are obnoxious. And they have money to burn...hence the sponsors. What I don't get is when preppy-frat-tastic formed a union with hipsterdom? When did Urban Outfitters become Abercrombie & Fitch? And do we have to keep calling these kids with their neon sunglasses and ugly dresses hipsters even when their style has been played out in London and NYC for three years?

guest

Mon, 30 Jul 2007 16:54:34 -0800

Amen! As a 23 year old, I constantly feel way too old for my age for being so anti-outdoor-festival but it really is because of certain people that they've become hellholes. I'm glad i'm not alone in feeling this way.