Those of you who follow this blog and its sister the525toglasgow will no doubt have realised that I love a good concert. I also love being right down the front of the venue and on the rail if possible.
I’ve often wondered what its like to see a show from further back but have never wanted to risk spoiling a show by staying near the back…until now that is.
Around this time last year, I bought two tickets to see Slipknot in Glasgow for Boy Child for Christmas. When I bought them, I prayed that his friend could go with him as I’m not really a huge Slipknot fan. We encountered some Slipknot fans in November 2023 when we saw Corey Taylor, the band’s front man, live in Glasgow and let’s just say it was a rough crowd.
By the time this year’s Slipknot gig came round, Boy Child still had the other ticket as his friend hadn’t expressed any interest in going with him so guess who said they’d go? I said yes on one condition – that I didn’t need to risk getting crushed down at the front.
Not surprisingly the show was pretty much sold out. It’s a long time since I’ve seen the OVO Hydro in Glasgow quite so busy. We agreed to stand back at the sound desk. After queuing at the merch stall for over 40 minutes I went into the arena in search of Boy Child. He found me before I spotted him.
The stage seemed miles away! But I could still just about see it. Maybe this wouldn’t feel too bad or would it? I’m only 5’3” and blind as a bat hence the reason I much prefer to be at the front.
When the support act, Bleed From Within came on, I could hear them and see the lights but barely caught a glimpse of them. So, the first part of this social experiment was en epic fail.
Time for Plan B. Between bands, we agreed to move further forward but stay to the edge of the crowd. That spot was better, but I was still struggling to see the stage over all the heads. I consoled myself with the fact that there video screens….
By the end of the first Slipknot song, I was regretting staying back…seriously regretting it. Yes, I could just about see the band on the stage, but it was the lack of atmosphere that was the biggest issue. I felt disconnected from the performance by being so far back. The atmosphere among the fans on the periphery of the crowd was lacklustre…apart from the one girl in front of us who was passionately enjoying proceedings.
Possibly the biggest annoyance about being further back wasn’t really the lack of a view but the crowd itself. The constant stream of folk wandering about with drinks and food was driving me nuts. You paid a royal fortune for the ticket to this so why aren’t you watching it?
For the band’s three-song encore, Boy Child disappeared off in search of the mosh pit. (I’m surprised he hadn’t gone off earlier to be honest) Around me, about twenty folk all wandered off and a gap emerged so I ventured further forwards…closer to the stage but still not close enough.
It was a great gig, and I still really enjoyed it but standing further back in the crowd is definitely not for me!
Lesson learned!
Coral McCallum 