Shoulder to shoulder with a thousand other bodies, you stand in the pit watching your favorite band play on stage. You look around expecting to see the delighted faces of raving fans taking in the spectacle of the show. Instead, you're met with the light of a camera to your left, a flash to your right from someone snapping a selfie, and, in front, a phone-wielding hand reaching up into the air, capturing video of the stage and blocking your view. You are adrift in a sea of phones recording the show while their owners miss it. This is the modern concert experience.
At least it's what I see when I go to shows. It seems like now, people watch more of a concert through their camera than by looking at what's happening on stage. It's one thing to take a few pictures for keepsakes or grab a clip of a few of your favorite songs, but is it really necessary for you to hold your tablet above everyone's heads to capture forty-five minutes of blurry, unintelligible video?
Apparently, I'm not the only one who thinks this is an issue, as a growing number of bands have begun flat out banning phones at their shows. The first time I can remember a musician asking for fans to leave their phones in their pockets was in the mid-2010s. Jack White made a reasonable request that fans don't spend the show absorbed in their devices—no force or insistence, just an ask. Since then, other acts like Bob Dylan, Tool, and A Perfect Circle have adopted a policy of phones being concealed in Yondr pouches, those little bags that kind of look like glasses cases.
In my opinion, it's entirely reasonable to ask that fans not record your whole set. I see it in the same regard as going to a movie; you're not going to whip your phone out during the second act to ask your friends where they want to meet for dinner; you step outside if you need your device. Not only is being surrounded by flashlights and view-blocking smartphones distracting to people around you, but it's also probably a fairly dystopian sight to see from the stage. An ocean of cameras filming your every move—how nerve-wracking.
At the same time, to go so far as to outright ban phone use at your show is not a good look. Try to justify it as you want, but it gives the air of egotistical self-indulgence. What do you mean you need to text your friends to find them? Eyes forward, you're here to see me, me, ME! In the case of bands like Ghost, your phone is locked in a pouch that can only be opened by venue staff. We may have made it millions of years as a species without the ready access to each other that phones have created, but that's not the way it is now. If there's been an accident or a tragedy, I would like to know now, not after Papa finishes another overly edgy song that can barely be considered metal. “Spillways” doesn't rock nearly hard enough to justify missing, well, anything.
I think Jack White had the right idea. If you ask people to do something, chances are most of them will do it, especially if they see everyone else around them doing it. Humans are nothing if not clay to be molded by peer pressure. Sure, you’ll have a handful of people who won’t listen, but is having a few dozen phones in a crowd of thousands that big a deal? If so, you can always make headlines by having them thrown out of the show!
These are just the humble opinions of a dirty hippie who thinks shows are for getting wasted and being weird in front of strangers. So, I decided to ask around to see what the normal people think of this issue.
I found the majority of people agree with me. When everyone has their phone out at a show, it can be pretty annoying; nobody is ever going to see that footage you’re blocking my view to capture. The general sentiment is to be mindful of others and step to the side if you have to use your phone during the show, but if someone decides to take a few pictures, there’s really no harm. I did discover a small subset of people who are adamantly against the idea of a venue or band telling them they can’t use their phone at their shows. They scream about great injustice and oppression of civil liberties; however, let's be honest, this isn’t just an issue with phones at concerts. There will always be people ready to push back loudly against rules or restrictions of any kind. Still, they represented only a very small minority of those I spoke with.
One person, my man Camden, who also plays in the Richmond, Virginia-based hardcore band Contact, had this to say about the issue: “Banning them and forcing people to surrender them before entering venues like they’re kids at school is a huge turn-off for me. We don’t even do this at movies or Broadway shows, which are arguably more appropriate places to do so. It feels like a bunch of older musicians are being crybabies.”
After speaking with Camden and a few others, something hit me. Nearly everyone who had wanted to talk with me about this was thirty or over. The generations who began attending concerts before the smartphone invaded all had similar opinions. This made me wonder if people my age, twenty-somethings who are native to the smartphone-infested concert, would have something else to say. I started asking around, being more careful to pick people who appeared to be about my age. What I found is that we all agree it's distracting and unnecessary to have your phone out the whole show, but a ban is not the way to go.
Most of us fans agree about the situation; how about the bands? What's the perspective of the people playing in the field of cameras? I caught up with my favorite jam band icons, Dizgo, on their Outer Space Tour to see what they thought. Key player Jake Evatt said, "Personally, I feel it's good for us when people take video of us and share with their friends." A take that reminded me of the Grateful Dead’s ideas on the taping of their shows: the best way to spread your music is to let the fans do it. Guitarist Andrew Pickel had this to contribute: "I'm not trying to control people and tell them what they can or can't do." These guys won’t be putting any boots on your neck, and that’s the way it should be.
When it comes down to it, most of us seem to agree about a few things when it comes to phones at shows. For one thing, it is not the band’s right to say you can’t have them at all. I think this is an absolutely foolish thing to do and will bet that it affects the ticket sales of bands that choose to do so. It is, however, not cool to have your phone out during the whole show. Time and time again, I saw parallels being drawn to movies; most of us wouldn’t take a call in the middle of a theater.
Next time you find yourself at a show, try to be kind and courteous to those around you; it’s their night out, too. There is absolutely nothing wrong with getting some snaps or a recording or two, but please don’t try to be an amateur cinematographer. If you need to shoot a quick text, you do you, but maybe stepping out into the lobby would be better if it’s a call; it’s quieter out there, anyway. And if you’re a band considering outright banning all phone use at your show, I hope you’re prepared for the pushback.
