Festivals...'the family' and Shakedown St

[The Mayor]

hello to the cavern dwellers

i'm new to this board, but a veteran of the festival scene i still believe that my 'real family' is found at festivals and other fantastic music scenes and we are a great community, members of some of the heighest moments of human possibility and then there's shakedown street...this year was my 3rd berkfest and my first working instead of camping in whooville...(read some of the posts from berkfest) the shakedown scene was miserable, like concentrated phish slime...the gas, the pharmies, the addicted kids, the angst...none of that is part of the music and the community vibe i've talked to lots of these kids, they say they're poor and just trying to make a living...goin' on tour...i guess i'm old and old-school and live by a different belief, that is to go to the show(s) because it is living not to make a living...unless you are festival staff...and even then i see too many hard-working individuals working 20 hr days being that oh so necessary buffer between 'the real world' and festivals and getting shit-on by the crowd..they ask us to live by 3 simple rules: no gas, no glass and no dogs, all of them meant to keep us safe as we explore music and dance community and beauty ...like 10,000 stars coming together in a tiny space to celebrate life and creation and not all go immediatly super nova

still i've met some great people this year thru the music scene, this year and year after year,and thus i find myself here meeting more and more people from our family i find many groups of friends who are on parallel paths with other groups of friends and we are the people who are the 60,000+ at phish IT and the 1,500 folks who make it to strangecreek or any other small festival

so now to shakedown street...a sad reflection i have on 3 years of east coast festivals is that those that squash the gas are less successful than those where gas is king...it sucks that where the worst shakedowns are allowed happen you tend to have a successful festival...perhaps the hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on tens of thousands of balloons (phish IT) is reflective of a crowd with cash to burn shakedown street houses far too many who aren't there for the music, and thus not part of our family too many who promote fights and shitty products, theft and degredation...it absolutely sucks...these individuals are like head lice in the dreads of our mostly kindy family...the fact is that they provide a service, but not a core service, to our family not the love, not the smiles, not the music, not the food, ice, beer; not the peace, beauty or meetings of like-minded people...shakedown street is a service industry for the crowds of 'citizens' who buy their tickets and go to the show citizens who plan with their friends on who's taking the beer, collers, food grills etc...each group like its own tribe going to a gathering of the tribes where each comes in power to celebrate life...our community is amazing...to bring so many empowered groups made-up of kind individuals who share and look out for each other the ugly side shakedown street service industry is an affliction on the festivals that so many work so hard to be the best things possible for the larrgest amount of people possible

Don't turn your back...to many berkfest posts say to 'just walk away if you don't like what you see' that's bullshit, these people aren't into the music, they destroy the scene in their pursuit of money and unlike the legitimate vendors who make efforts to be polite and helpful these shakedowners will too often be lookin' to gaffle you when you're gone from your campsite if you see someone without a wrist band, a non-citizen, here's someone who hasn't planned and carried in the food, beer and shelter needed for 3 days of fun, someone who will scope out your zone and rob you though...so don't walk away, stand up for what's right for our family

thanks

the mayor

[Tooly]

here here!

couldnt have said it better myself

[Tungsten Gruvsten]

Geez Mayor, this intelligent outburst is in stark contrast to the man I met that stated he was so hot he could "tea-bag a soft-serve"

see ya in 3 days!

[Esau]

My friend,if I could cross still the border I would spin a fatty and enjoy it with you.

Very nicely said.

I do remember a time back in the eighties where it was still a cool scene in shakedown,although the sketchiness was still present,but not like today.I've heard some serious bad tales from heads on Dead tour,let along the festival scene.

quote:

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so don't walk away, stand up for what's right for our family

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Cheers~

[Northern Wish]

Mr. Mayor,

I agree wholeheartedly about the gas comments. Nothing kills my buzz at a show worse than seeing the depths humans will sink too as they climb over each other money in hand to ensure they get the next balloon. Its the primary reason I haven't been back to Deer Creek since 2000.

As for family, maybe we need to officially organize our family: those with jobs who see the shows we can, and probably enjoy them three times as much as that schwilly "head", because we had to book the time off, and actually earn the money being spent. Those cretins make me sick how everything is put in perspective and measures up by how dirty/ smelly they are, and how nappy their dreads can be. I say unite 9 to 5 ers!!! We work hard, get time off and don't have to look like dryer lint, or smell like economy class on a train across Bangladesh- just to enjoy ourselves.

How about some family time at moe.down?

Peace,

Sean

[kung]

I think this thread is symptomatic of the Us vs. Them mentality that comforts us. Why is it that we are more entitled to see these shows? Oh right that's the word ENTITLED. White upwardly mobile entitled head will travel. I find just as much sketchy shit going on with our 'type' of people- i.e. clean.

[Northern Wish]

No No No kung, you missed the point.....

It is not the us vs. them mentality in that us are the clean cut, pay your own way tour types and they are the heady patchwork wookies. It is simply the us, that love the music and are there for the camaradarie, bands etc. and them (see the above post) that are only there for the "party favors" and the like. You know them the kids that have been outside of 140 Phish shows, but never seem to go inside and "getdown from a kickdown".

Sean