Being Good to the Room

Nobody hands you a rulebook when you walk in, and there is not much of one. What there is amounts to a few habits that make the night better for everyone around you, the band included. Most of them come down to paying attention to the people next to you.

Phones

Taking a photo or a short video is fine. Holding your phone above your head for an entire song is not, because it blocks the view of everyone behind you and you end up watching the show through a screen.

A simple rule: take what you want in the first minute, then put the phone away. If you want to film, keep the arm low and the screen dim. Some acts ask the crowd not to film at all, and some venues put the phones in pouches at the door. Follow whatever the sign or the performer asks.

The quiet songs

A band that plays a slow song or a solo piece is trusting the room to be still. Talking through it is the quickest way to ruin the moment for the people who came to listen. If you need to chat, step toward the bar or the back, away from the stage.

At a seated show or in a theatre the same applies from the first note. Wait for the applause between pieces, and arrive before the start so you do not walk across a row during a quiet passage.

The front row and the pit

The front is for people who want to be as close as possible, and it is often the most energetic spot. It has its own habits.

• Look after the people around you. If someone falls, help them up.
• If a part of the floor is a pit, where people move into one another to the music, you are choosing to be in it. Anyone who does not want to take part should stand outside it.
• Do not push forward to get past people who have been waiting since doors.
• If you feel faint or crowded, say so and move out. Staff will help.

The bar

Order, pay, and move away from the counter so the next person can reach it. Where tipping is customary, tip. Bar staff are often working long shifts for modest pay, and a small tip makes a big difference to them. Drinking is part of many nights, but pace yourself, drink water between rounds and never let someone drive who should not.

Personal space

A standing crowd is close, and a degree of bumping is normal. Still, no one should be touched without their consent. If someone makes you uncomfortable, tell the nearest staff member or security person. Venues take this seriously, and many have a quiet way to ask for help.

Support the acts

Arrive in time to hear the opener. They have often travelled as far as the headliner and played to a thinner room. Clap, pay attention, and if you like them, look them up afterwards or visit their merch table. A warm response to a support act is the sort of thing that gets them invited back.

Be the crowd a band remembers

Bands remember rooms. They remember the town where the crowd sang every word, where the front was friendly and where the quiet songs got silence. A few ways to be that crowd:

• Show up on time and stay to the end.
• Sing and clap when it fits, and listen when it does not.
• Say thank you to the staff at the door and the bar.
• Leave the space as you found it. Take your cup with you.

None of this takes effort. It takes noticing that a room is shared, and that the people on stage can feel what the people in front of them are doing.