[sean.bonner]

Here you all go.

[Naga]

I'd say yes, because hell, you payed for it, and it's fun, but you shouldn't be singing horrendiously loud, loud enough to bother other people.

[highlander]

Doesn't everyone (except tapers) sing at live Hip shows? cratch:

[SirMatticus]

The Hip live is my drug of choice. When I'm at a show I can't help but "sing, sing, sing all day".

Having said that, I am respectful of those around. At the Fort York show on Saturday I moved away from the guys that were taping and into a "sing-along friendly" area.

[thompson girl]

Absolutely yes! I am a singer. I couldn't imagine going to a concert and just bopping to the music. I'd feel like an idiot. At least when I'm singing I don't feel as nerdy.

I'm going to start a thread about this taping thing. I'm confused by it.

[gratts99]

if i was at the fort york show and people werent singing along with 38, i would of thought something was wrong.
When they come out with a song they havent played in 12 years everyone has a right to freak the hell out and sing!

[Bosman]

Much like anything else, I think this comes down to respect for those around you. For example, don't scream out the lyrics into some poor sap that happens to be right infront of you. Don't dance if you've got a beer in your hand and you're pouring it all over that same guy's head. If someone's trying to take a picture, don't stand infront of them, don't walk infront of them, etc. And if they're recording, don't go out of your way to make a lot of noise.

Everyone has a right to enjoy the experience of a concert. All the crowd surfers and people who love to mosh to the Hip (cratch, have every right to do so, but they don't have the right to hinder my, or anyone else's for that matter, concert experience.

Unfortunately, when I attend a concert and I'm near the front, I can count on being pushed, trampled and hit in the head by crowdsurfers. It's not right, but it's reality. To me, it's worth the negative experiences to be closer to the band. And if it became unbarable, I can always remove myself. On the same token, one can expect people to sing at a concert and if someone nearby (or directly in your ear) just so happens to be tune deaf, you may have no other choice than to move somewhere else.

[The Horrible Esthete]

First off, my apologies to Lance & Hipase for my role in muddling up the Fort York review thread with this crap.

But why am I not surprised that the voicing of an objection would be systematically picked apart and distorted on an online forum?

Most of us sing at a concert. And most of us typically don't mind that such a thing occurs.

But then again, most concertgoers sing quietly enough so as to not be audible over the amplifiers, and do so out of respect for others, out of self-consciousness, and MOSTLY, one would hope, so as to hear the actual performance.

Am I right?

And, most every show, there is a moment or two where the audience autonomously sings in unison, either to an "anthem" of sorts, or at the invitation of the artist. I don't think too many of us mind this type of droning sing-along, either.

Correct?

But some people find it acceptable to sing loudly and obnoxiously along with whatever they deem as a "favorite" or "gem", effectively ruining songs that I want to hear THE ARTIST perform, songs where the artist isn't imploring us to "help" or "join in".

THAT bothers me, and I'm betting it bothers others, too.

And it surprises the hell out of me that "Steve" and I are the only ones who would want to hear GORD, not half of Ontario, sing when TTH blow the dust off "38 Years Old".

But hey -- whaddya gunna do?

[skippy the wonder dog]

... if someone nearby (or directly in your ear) just so happens to be tune deaf, you may have no other choice than to move somewhere else.

Unless it's assigned seating, in which case you're doomed.

Live music is interactive. At one time, people shouted and yelled for Beethoven and Mozart as they do today for the Hip, or so I've read. Crowd feedback is part of the experience. So yes, people should sing along, and yell, and make noise.

But "singing along" doesn't include what the four drunk chickies in the seats behind me at London in 2004 were doing: belting out the lyrics off-key and at the top of their lungs for the sake of demonstrating to everyone else what big fans they were. I had to buy the livedownloads disc just so I could hear what the band did that night. :roll:

[thompson girl]

Most of us sing at a concert. And most of us typically don't mind that such a thing occurs.

But then again, most concertgoers sing quietly enough so as to not be audible over the amplifiers, and do so out of respect for others, out of self-consciousness, and MOSTLY, one would hope, so as to hear the actual performance.

Am I right?

I think you're completely right. And I would hope that no one could sing louder than the amplifiers! :wink:

Seriously though, it seems like everyone on this forum at least has a real respect for the musicians/music they are going to see/hear. Unfortunately I think its the people (again, usually intoxicated/impaired people) who are at the concert just for the party aspect of it that are the obnoxious loud singers who ruin the experience for everyone else.

Personally, I feel really stupid when I'm at a concert and I'm not singing along while everyone else is. You really feel like you're an outsider and missing out on something. I feel bad for those people who had no idea why everyone was singing to 38 yrs old!

[screw_ball]

I usually sing at any show if I know the lyrics, and I don't mind if the person next to me is bellowing out the lyrics at the top of his lungs. I think the audience singing along is just a natural part to any concert, and anyone who's annoyed by it should save their money and stay at home and listen to the recrd or something if they only want to hear the band. Or they could wait a few weeks for the bootleg, I guess, but that's nowhere near as fun. :thumb:

EDIT: Anyway, The Horrible Esthete is right. The only time I've heard singing louder than the amps is at tiny shows where the band is a bit too big for the venue.

[The Horrible Esthete]

But "singing along" doesn't include what the four drunk chickies in the seats behind me at London in 2004 were doing: belting out the lyrics off-key and at the top of their lungs for the sake of demonstrating to everyone else what big fans they were. I had to buy the livedownloads disc just so I could hear what the band did that night. :roll:

THAT is the crux of my point.

The problem is that the question whether or not your singing is "okay" is subjective.

So here's a rule of thumb: If you must sing, keep it at a level that is barely audible to youself. Everybody's good with that, right?

[Billy]

This post seems a little less heated than the last, so I'll wade in. I can fully understand both sides of this arguement, but I tend to be on the singing side. That being said, I have never been to a concert where I had some yahoo screaming off key anywhere near me.

Of the 20 or so concerts I have been to, there is one moment that stands out more than any other in my mind. It was 1996 for the Henhouse tour, in Saskatoon. The crowd was really excited and showing it for the whole concert, then when Scared started, the place got real quiet and the crowd started to clap along with the beat. Pretty soon absolutely everyone was clapping. Then, when Gord started to sing, so did the audience, and eveyone kept it up for the whole song. It was one of those electric moments that sent chills through my whole body and I had tears welling up in my eyes. It was the fact that everybody was completely sharing the same vibe and collectely getting off on the Hip. I've had plenty of great memories since, but that one will remain firmly cemented as the best to date.

[chris]

When you sing, your hearing actually gets worse so that you don't deafen yourself. A muscle called "stapedius" in your middle ear contracts when you sing and creates a barrier to protect your ear from damage. That means that when you are singing at a loud rock show, you are probably singing a lot louder, and more off key than you think you are.

As well, the more you like whatever you're listening to, the less damage it will do... it creates some kind of electric brain activity that makes you less susceptible to hearing loss.

[The Horrible Esthete]

And I would hope that no one could sing louder than the amplifiers! :wink:

Well, I meant louder from MY vantage point. A blathering drunk standing behind me always seems to be more audible than the guitars I'm trying to listen to.

Personally, I feel really stupid when I'm at a concert and I'm not singing along while everyone else is. You really feel like you're an outsider and missing out on something.

So essentially what you're saying here is that insecurity might prompt one to sing aloud? See, that reinforces part of my point:

Singing along is sometimes demonstrative rather than interactive.