Moshing
Encyclopedia
Moshing is a dance in which participants push or slam into each other. They also flail their limbs to breakdowns of hardcore punk
and its sub-genres. It is most associated with aggressive music genres, such as hardcore punk
and heavy metal
. It is primarily done to live music, although it can be done to recorded music.
In the 2000s, many variations of moshing exist, such as thrashing, or the more extreme Wall of Death, and are typically done in an area in front of the stage which is referred to as the mosh pit or simply pit, though many mosh pits have been known to occur elsewhere, most notably the middle. In the Wall of Death, participants are directed away from the center of the standing area by a member of the band until a large, rectangular area is cleared, and, upon the band beginning the next song; the two sides perpendicular to the stage sprint at each other and collide in the middle.
While moshing is seen as a form of positive feedback or expression of enjoyment, it has also drawn criticism over its dangerous nature. Injuries and a few deaths have been reported. However, it is generally agreed that moshers are not trying to harm one another, and that they follow an unwritten "moshing etiquette".
scene in Washington, D.C. Early on, the dance was frequently spelled mash in fanzine
s and record liner notes, but pronounced mosh, as in the 1982 song "Total Mash" by the D.C.-based hardcore band Scream
. H.R.
of the band Bad Brains
, regarded as a band that "put moshing on the map," used the term mash in lyrics and in concert stage banter to both incite and to describe the aggressive and often violent dancing of the scene. To "mash it up" was to go wild with the frenzy of the music. Due to his Jamaican
-accented pronunciation of the word, fans heard this as mosh instead.
By the 1980s, the term was appearing in print with its current spelling. By the time thrash metal
band Anthrax
used the term in their song "Caught in a Mosh
", the word was already a mainstay of hardcore and thrash scenes. Through the mainstream success of bands like Anthrax, Nirvana
and The Melvins
, the term came into the popular vernacular.
Moshing has became very popular in the "Club" scene and is used mainly in teenage clubs in the UK. It may also be referred to as "stomping" or "raving" and each are referring to the bouncing motion, gained from the euphoric style of music, usually to the beat of the bass or beat of a music, and most modern songs have a climax moment where the dancer waits at a beat free moment of the song, and explodes with energy after the tense build up to "mosh" with others.
shows in the form of the pogo
. The slam dance during the first wave of American and British punk in 1977 was characterized by stage dives, frenetic jumping, and chaotic motion to match the music. Similarly, practitioners of the pogo would jump up and down wildly to the music, bouncing off and into one another, though staying mostly in place. The pogo and slam dance were both a part of the punk movement at this time, and converged into a more violent and extreme form, moshing, as the first wave of punk died out and gave way to the hardcore punk
subculture
that emerged in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
The first dance identifiable as moshing may have originated in Orange County
, California
, during the first wave of American hardcore. Examples of this early moshing can be seen in the documentaries Another State of Mind, Urban Struggle
, The Decline of Western Civilization
, and American Hardcore
, as well as footage from the shows of the era.
Amidst the burgeoning hardcore scene at the time, the dance was initially referred to simply as slam dancing, and was characterized by "strutting around in a circle, swinging your arms around and hitting everyone within your reach." But these circular, rhythmic motions soon came to be known by Los Angeles
and Southern California area hardcore participants as the "Huntington Beach Strut" (or "HB Strut"), after the city in Orange County
where this particular style originated. Author Steven Blush writes:
This more violent version was soon exported to the San Francisco and Bay Area punk scene, where pogoing was still the prevalent form of dance. From there, it spread to the east coast of the United States through touring hardcore musicians such as Bad Brains, Henry Rollins
and Ian MacKaye
, who witnessed the HB Strut while traveling. Slam dancing also became popular in the burgeoning crossover thrash
scene.
movement was among the many styles of music that directly evolved from hardcore. Through the mainstream success of several grunge bands, the word mosh entered the popular North American vocabulary and the dance spread to many other music genres. According to John Linnell
of They Might Be Giants
, "it didn’t matter what kind of music you were playing or what kind of band you were; everybody moshed to everything. It was just kind of the enforced rule of going to concerts."
. Karate kick is a move that is used when the dancer kicks forward, similar to that of someone who might practice karate
, as high as they can and comes down. Then the repeat this step almost immediately on the opposite leg they landed on. Other moves, as well as variations of flips are also common. Many members of the immediate crowd outside a hardcore dancing pit will move moshers towards the middle of the pit to keep the pit from expanding or protect themselves. Observers are also known to put their hand out in the form of a fist as a means to back them away or as a signal to back away
Despite the widely known "moshing etiquette" which most moshers and hardcore dancers abide by, the aggressive nature of hardcore dancing or mosh pits can also lead to fights due to people commonly being accidentally hit by other moshers, whether or not the person is moshing. Due to this, some venues (though not many) that host hardcore events ban hardcore dancing and or moshing at their establishments.
Among the first musicians to criticize moshing publicly was Ian MacKaye
, frontman of Minor Threat
, founder of Dischord Records
and early promoter of the straight edge
lifestyle. Beginning in the late 1980s during his time in Fugazi, MacKaye became well known for his opposition to "violent dancing" at shows (despite having done so during Fear's
Halloween 1981 performance on Saturday Night Live
).
Consolidated
, an industrial dance group of the 1990s, stood against moshing. On their third album, Play More Music
, Consolidated
included the song The Men's Movement, which proclaimed the inappropriate nature of slam dancing. The song consisted of audio recordings during concerts from the audience and members of Consolidated, arguing about moshing.
In the 1990s, The Smashing Pumpkins
took a stance against moshing, following some especially tragic incidents. At a 1996 Pumpkins concert in Dublin, Ireland
, 17-year-old Bernadette O'Brien was crushed by moshing crowd members and later died in the hospital, despite warnings from the band that people were getting hurt. At another concert, singer Billy Corgan
said to the audience:
At The Drive-In
began to speak out against slam dancing at their shows, and their frontman Cedric became known for his anti-moshing speech at Big Day Out 2001 in which he bleated at the crowd as if they were sheep. Later that day, Jessica Michalik
was crushed in the mosh pit, which caused her to die five days later, of asphyxiation. The coroner criticized the crowd control measures in use at the time, and also criticized Limp Bizkit
lead singer Fred Durst
for "alarming and inflammatory" comments during the rescue effort.
Another fan died at a Smashing Pumpkins concert in Vancouver
, British Columbia
, Canada
on September 24, 2007. The 20-year-old male was dragged out of the mosh pit, unconscious, to be pronounced dead at a hospital after first-aid specialists attempted to save him.
At the Columbus, Ohio stop of Gigantour 2006, Lamb of God
lead singer Randy Blythe
chastised the crowd for moshing after someone was hurt in the mosh pit, commenting that: "The world looks at a show like this and thinks we are just a bunch of violent motherfuckers who try to hurt each other. Well, that's not what we are about. Next time someone hits the ground, pick them up or I will stop the band."
Mike Portnoy
, founder and ex-drummer of Dream Theater
, criticized moshing in an interview published on his website:
Groove metal
group Five Finger Death Punch
had an incident when, during the last song of a concert, a young man received a compound fracture on his ankle in a mosh pit. Ivan Moody
, the band's lead singer, leaped into the crowd with Zoltan Bathory
, the band's lead guitarist, and carried the injured fan onto the stage, where he was taken to the hospital.
Moody stated "I've felt bad because of what has happened. I miss the old Pantera
kids who would just throw each other. Just respect other people; come on." Bathory stated: "Because he broke his leg I threw down my guitar. We just finished when he broke his leg, and I came out and I stayed with him until the paramedics picked him up. These are my people and that's how it is."
UK punk band Hacksaw
came out against moshing after an incident at a 2006 gig caused several fans to suffer serious injuries. This resulted in a song on their 2007 album, Vote Hacksaw, titled "Amateurs In The Pit", wherein they condemn all moshers as "brain dead morons who wanna stamp on kiddies".
Joey DeMaio
of American heavy metal band Manowar has been known to temporarily stop concerts upon seeing moshing and crowd surfing, claiming it is dangerous to other fans.
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
and its sub-genres. It is most associated with aggressive music genres, such as hardcore punk
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
and heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
. It is primarily done to live music, although it can be done to recorded music.
In the 2000s, many variations of moshing exist, such as thrashing, or the more extreme Wall of Death, and are typically done in an area in front of the stage which is referred to as the mosh pit or simply pit, though many mosh pits have been known to occur elsewhere, most notably the middle. In the Wall of Death, participants are directed away from the center of the standing area by a member of the band until a large, rectangular area is cleared, and, upon the band beginning the next song; the two sides perpendicular to the stage sprint at each other and collide in the middle.
While moshing is seen as a form of positive feedback or expression of enjoyment, it has also drawn criticism over its dangerous nature. Injuries and a few deaths have been reported. However, it is generally agreed that moshers are not trying to harm one another, and that they follow an unwritten "moshing etiquette".
Etymology
The term mosh came into use in the early 1980s American hardcore punkHardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
scene in Washington, D.C. Early on, the dance was frequently spelled mash in fanzine
Fanzine
A fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest...
s and record liner notes, but pronounced mosh, as in the 1982 song "Total Mash" by the D.C.-based hardcore band Scream
Scream (band)
Scream is a hardcore punk band from Bailey's Crossroads, Virginia active from 1981 to 1990. As of 2009, the band has reunited to play several shows.-Biography:...
. H.R.
H.R.
H.R. is the stage name of Paul D. Hudson, the lead singer of the hardcore punk band Bad Brains. His vocals can be quite diverse, ranging from a rapid-fire nasal whine, to feral growling and screeches, to smooth near-crooning or staccato reggae rhymes...
of the band Bad Brains
Bad Brains
Bad Brains is an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1977. They are widely regarded as among the pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members objected to this term to describe their music. They are also an adept reggae band, while later recordings featured elements of...
, regarded as a band that "put moshing on the map," used the term mash in lyrics and in concert stage banter to both incite and to describe the aggressive and often violent dancing of the scene. To "mash it up" was to go wild with the frenzy of the music. Due to his Jamaican
Jamaican English
Jamaican English or Jamaican Standard English is a dialect of English spoken in Jamaica. It melds parts of both American English and British English dialects, along with many aspects of Irish intonation...
-accented pronunciation of the word, fans heard this as mosh instead.
By the 1980s, the term was appearing in print with its current spelling. By the time thrash metal
Thrash metal
Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...
band Anthrax
Anthrax (band)
Anthrax is an American heavy metal band from New York City, formed in 1981. Founded by guitarists Scott Ian and Danny Lilker, the band has since released ten studio albums and 20 singles, and an EP featuring Public Enemy. The band was one of the most popular of the 1980s thrash metal scene...
used the term in their song "Caught in a Mosh
Among the Living
Among the Living is the third studio album by American heavy metal band Anthrax. The album was released in March 1987 by Megaforce Worldwide/Island and is certified gold by the RIAA. The BBC has described the album as "arguably their big breakthrough", and "often cited by fans as their favourite...
", the word was already a mainstay of hardcore and thrash scenes. Through the mainstream success of bands like Anthrax, Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
and The Melvins
The Melvins
The Melvins are an American band that formed in 1983. They usually perform as a trio, but in recent years have performed as a four piece with two drummers. Since 1984, singer and guitarist Buzz Osborne and drummer Dale Crover have been the band's constant members...
, the term came into the popular vernacular.
Moshing has became very popular in the "Club" scene and is used mainly in teenage clubs in the UK. It may also be referred to as "stomping" or "raving" and each are referring to the bouncing motion, gained from the euphoric style of music, usually to the beat of the bass or beat of a music, and most modern songs have a climax moment where the dancer waits at a beat free moment of the song, and explodes with energy after the tense build up to "mosh" with others.
Origins
Slam dancing, a precursor to moshing, can be traced back to 1970s punk rockPunk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
shows in the form of the pogo
Pogo (dance)
The pogo is a dance in which the dancers jump up and down, while remaining in the same location; the dance takes its name from its resemblance to the use of a pogo stick, especially in a common version of the dance, where an individual keeps their torso stiff, their arms rigid, and their legs close...
. The slam dance during the first wave of American and British punk in 1977 was characterized by stage dives, frenetic jumping, and chaotic motion to match the music. Similarly, practitioners of the pogo would jump up and down wildly to the music, bouncing off and into one another, though staying mostly in place. The pogo and slam dance were both a part of the punk movement at this time, and converged into a more violent and extreme form, moshing, as the first wave of punk died out and gave way to the hardcore punk
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
subculture
Subculture
In sociology, anthropology and cultural studies, a subculture is a group of people with a culture which differentiates them from the larger culture to which they belong.- Definition :...
that emerged in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, during the first wave of American hardcore. Examples of this early moshing can be seen in the documentaries Another State of Mind, Urban Struggle
Urban Struggle
Urban Struggle is a rare film made in 1981 that documents the hardcore punk scene at the Cuckoo's Nest nightclub. The black-and-white film features performances by TSOL, Circle Jerks and Black Flag, and shows early slam dancing. It is not available on home video format, but portions of the film...
, The Decline of Western Civilization
The Decline of Western Civilization
The soundtrack was released in December 1980 by Slash Records on LP. In the late 1990s it was released on CD as well. It is currently out of print. Germs singer Darby Crash appears on the soundtrack album cover. He died shortly before the film was released, though the promotional images for the...
, and American Hardcore
American Hardcore (film)
American Hardcore is a documentary directed by Paul Rachman and written by Steven Blush. It is based on the book American Hardcore: A Tribal History also written by Blush. It was released on September 22, 2006 on a limited basis...
, as well as footage from the shows of the era.
Amidst the burgeoning hardcore scene at the time, the dance was initially referred to simply as slam dancing, and was characterized by "strutting around in a circle, swinging your arms around and hitting everyone within your reach." But these circular, rhythmic motions soon came to be known by Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
and Southern California area hardcore participants as the "Huntington Beach Strut" (or "HB Strut"), after the city in Orange County
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
where this particular style originated. Author Steven Blush writes:
This more violent version was soon exported to the San Francisco and Bay Area punk scene, where pogoing was still the prevalent form of dance. From there, it spread to the east coast of the United States through touring hardcore musicians such as Bad Brains, Henry Rollins
Henry Rollins
Henry Rollins is an American singer-songwriter, spoken word artist, writer, comedian, publisher, actor, and radio DJ....
and Ian MacKaye
Ian MacKaye
Ian Thomas Garner MacKaye is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, musician, label owner, and producer. Active since 1979, MacKaye is best known for being the frontman of the influential hardcore punk bands Minor Threat and The Teen Idles, the post-hardcore bands Embrace and Fugazi, as well...
, who witnessed the HB Strut while traveling. Slam dancing also became popular in the burgeoning crossover thrash
Crossover thrash
__FORCETOC__Crossover thrash, often abbreviated to crossover, is a form of thrash metal that contains more hardcore punk elements than standard thrash. The genre lies on a continuum between heavy metal and punk rock...
scene.
Crossover into mainstream genres
By the end of the 1980s, the initial wave of American hardcore punk had waned and split into other subgenres. The Seattle-based grungeGrunge
Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...
movement was among the many styles of music that directly evolved from hardcore. Through the mainstream success of several grunge bands, the word mosh entered the popular North American vocabulary and the dance spread to many other music genres. According to John Linnell
John Linnell
John Sidney Linnell is an American musician, is known primarily as one half of Brooklyn, New York alternative rock duo They Might Be Giants...
of They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years Flansburgh and Linnell were frequently accompanied by a drum machine. In the early 1990s, TMBG became a full band. Currently, the members of TMBG are...
, "it didn’t matter what kind of music you were playing or what kind of band you were; everybody moshed to everything. It was just kind of the enforced rule of going to concerts."
Hardcore Dancing
Hardcore Dancing is a form of aggressive dancing in a circular pit similar to a mosh pit but has significant differences. It's existence is most prominent in Hardcore/Straightedge culture. as well as in Punk and many of its sub-genres and sub-cultures. Hardcore dancing is usually 2 Steps, windmills, karate kicks etc. The dance move of a windmill consists of the dancer flailing his/her arms in a circular motion similar to a windmillWindmill
A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. Originally windmills were developed for milling grain for food production. In the course of history the windmill was adapted to many other industrial uses. An important...
. Karate kick is a move that is used when the dancer kicks forward, similar to that of someone who might practice karate
Karate
is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It was developed from indigenous fighting methods called and Chinese kenpō. Karate is a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands. Grappling, locks,...
, as high as they can and comes down. Then the repeat this step almost immediately on the opposite leg they landed on. Other moves, as well as variations of flips are also common. Many members of the immediate crowd outside a hardcore dancing pit will move moshers towards the middle of the pit to keep the pit from expanding or protect themselves. Observers are also known to put their hand out in the form of a fist as a means to back them away or as a signal to back away
Despite the widely known "moshing etiquette" which most moshers and hardcore dancers abide by, the aggressive nature of hardcore dancing or mosh pits can also lead to fights due to people commonly being accidentally hit by other moshers, whether or not the person is moshing. Due to this, some venues (though not many) that host hardcore events ban hardcore dancing and or moshing at their establishments.
Criticisms
Ian MacKaye
Ian Thomas Garner MacKaye is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, musician, label owner, and producer. Active since 1979, MacKaye is best known for being the frontman of the influential hardcore punk bands Minor Threat and The Teen Idles, the post-hardcore bands Embrace and Fugazi, as well...
, frontman of Minor Threat
Minor Threat
Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C. in 1980 and disbanded in 1983. The band was relatively short-lived, but had a strong influence on the hardcore punk music scene, both stylistically and in establishing a "do it yourself" ethic for music distribution and...
, founder of Dischord Records
Dischord Records
Dischord Records is a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label specializing in the independent punk music of the D.C.-area music scene. The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release Minor Disturbance by The Teen Idles...
and early promoter of the straight edge
Straight edge
Straight edge is a subculture of hardcore punk whose adherents refrain from using alcohol, tobacco, and other recreational drugs. It was a direct reaction to the sexual revolution, hedonism, and excess associated with punk rock. For some, this extends to not engaging in promiscuous sex, following a...
lifestyle. Beginning in the late 1980s during his time in Fugazi, MacKaye became well known for his opposition to "violent dancing" at shows (despite having done so during Fear's
Fear (band)
Fear is an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1977. The band is credited for helping to shape the sound and style of American hardcore punk, the group started out as part of the early California punk rock scene, and gained national prominence after an infamous 1981...
Halloween 1981 performance on Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
).
Consolidated
Consolidated (band)
Consolidated was an American radical activist recording and performing group, formed in 1988 and best known in the early 1990s as an alternative dance/industrial music band. They were distinguished by left-leaning political activism and politically radical lyrics, as well as their innovative sonic...
, an industrial dance group of the 1990s, stood against moshing. On their third album, Play More Music
Play More Music
Play More Music is the third full-length album by industrial/hip hop artists Consolidated which was released in 1992.During its concerts, Consolidated placed microphones in the crowd, so that audience members could interact with the band between songs...
, Consolidated
Consolidated (band)
Consolidated was an American radical activist recording and performing group, formed in 1988 and best known in the early 1990s as an alternative dance/industrial music band. They were distinguished by left-leaning political activism and politically radical lyrics, as well as their innovative sonic...
included the song The Men's Movement, which proclaimed the inappropriate nature of slam dancing. The song consisted of audio recordings during concerts from the audience and members of Consolidated, arguing about moshing.
In the 1990s, The Smashing Pumpkins
The Smashing Pumpkins
The Smashing Pumpkins are an American alternative rock band that formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1988. Formed by Billy Corgan frontman and James Iha , the band has included Jimmy Chamberlin , D'arcy Wretzky , and currently includes Jeff Schroeder Mike Byrne , and Nicole Fiorentino The Smashing...
took a stance against moshing, following some especially tragic incidents. At a 1996 Pumpkins concert in Dublin, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, 17-year-old Bernadette O'Brien was crushed by moshing crowd members and later died in the hospital, despite warnings from the band that people were getting hurt. At another concert, singer Billy Corgan
Billy Corgan
William Patrick "Billy" Corgan, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional poet best known as the frontman and sole permanent member of The Smashing Pumpkins. Formed by Corgan and guitarist James Iha in Chicago, Illinois in 1987, the band quickly gained steam with the...
said to the audience:
At The Drive-In
At the Drive-In
At the Drive-In was an American rock band from El Paso, Texas, considered part of the post-hardcore genre and active from 1993 to 2001. They were known for their extremely energetic stage shows which hearkened back to the 1980s hardcore scene...
began to speak out against slam dancing at their shows, and their frontman Cedric became known for his anti-moshing speech at Big Day Out 2001 in which he bleated at the crowd as if they were sheep. Later that day, Jessica Michalik
Jessica Michalik
Jessica Anna Michalik was an Australian teenage girl from Dee Why, Sydney who died as a result of asphyxiation five days after being crushed in a mosh pit during the 2001 Big Day Out music festival during a performance by nu metal band Limp Bizkit.-Incident:The Coroner's Court of New South Wales...
was crushed in the mosh pit, which caused her to die five days later, of asphyxiation. The coroner criticized the crowd control measures in use at the time, and also criticized Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit is an American rock band from Jacksonville, Florida. Formed in 1995, the group's lineup consists of Fred Durst , Wes Borland , Sam Rivers , John Otto and DJ Lethal . The band achieved mainstream success with their second studio album Significant Other, released in 1999...
lead singer Fred Durst
Fred Durst
William Frederick "Fred" Durst is an American musician, director, producer and actor, well known as the frontman of the band Limp Bizkit.-Early life:...
for "alarming and inflammatory" comments during the rescue effort.
Another fan died at a Smashing Pumpkins concert in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
on September 24, 2007. The 20-year-old male was dragged out of the mosh pit, unconscious, to be pronounced dead at a hospital after first-aid specialists attempted to save him.
At the Columbus, Ohio stop of Gigantour 2006, Lamb of God
Lamb of God (band)
Lamb of God is an American heavy metal band from Richmond, Virginia. Formed in 1994, the group consists of vocalist Randy Blythe, guitarists Mark Morton and Willie Adler, bassist John Campbell, and drummer Chris Adler...
lead singer Randy Blythe
Randy Blythe
David Randall "Randy" Blythe is the vocalist of American groove metal band Lamb Of God and side-project band Halo of Locusts. He is known as D. Randall Blythe on Lamb of God's albums....
chastised the crowd for moshing after someone was hurt in the mosh pit, commenting that: "The world looks at a show like this and thinks we are just a bunch of violent motherfuckers who try to hurt each other. Well, that's not what we are about. Next time someone hits the ground, pick them up or I will stop the band."
Mike Portnoy
Mike Portnoy
Michael Stephen "Mike" Portnoy is an American drummer primarily known as the former drummer, backing vocalist, and a co-founder of the progressive metal band Dream Theater, as well as the temporary drummer for the hard rock band Avenged Sevenfold. Known for his drumming prowess and technical...
, founder and ex-drummer of Dream Theater
Dream Theater
Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band formed in 1985 under the name Majesty by John Petrucci, John Myung, and Mike Portnoy while they attended Berklee College of Music in Massachusetts. They subsequently dropped out of their studies to further concentrate on the band that would...
, criticized moshing in an interview published on his website:
Groove metal
Groove metal
Groove metal is a subgenre of heavy metal. It was often used to describe Pantera and Exhorder.- Characteristics and origins :Pantera's Cowboys from Hell album from 1990 was described as "groundbreaking" and "blueprint-defining" for the groove metal genre...
group Five Finger Death Punch
Five Finger Death Punch
Five Finger Death Punch is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 2005, the group's name is derived from classic oriental martial arts cinema. The band originally consisted of vocalist Ivan Moody, guitarist Zoltan Bathory, guitarist Caleb Bingham, bassist Matt Snell,...
had an incident when, during the last song of a concert, a young man received a compound fracture on his ankle in a mosh pit. Ivan Moody
Ivan Moody
Ivan Moody, British composer, was born in London in 1964, and studied composition with Brian Dennis at London University, William Brooks at York University and privately with John Tavener. He also studied Orthodox theology at the University of Joensuu, Finland...
, the band's lead singer, leaped into the crowd with Zoltan Bathory
Zoltan Bathory
Zoltán Báthory is a Hungarian-born musician. He is the co-founder and one of the main songwriters for the Los Angeles-based hard rock band Five Finger Death Punch.-Career:...
, the band's lead guitarist, and carried the injured fan onto the stage, where he was taken to the hospital.
Moody stated "I've felt bad because of what has happened. I miss the old Pantera
Pantera
Pantera was an American heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas. Formed by the Abbott brothers, Vinnie Paul and Dimebag Darrell in 1981, bassist Rex Brown would join in late 1981 with vocalist Terry Glaze. Looking for a new and heavier sound, Pantera had Terry replaced in 1987 with Phil Anselmo as...
kids who would just throw each other. Just respect other people; come on." Bathory stated: "Because he broke his leg I threw down my guitar. We just finished when he broke his leg, and I came out and I stayed with him until the paramedics picked him up. These are my people and that's how it is."
UK punk band Hacksaw
Hacksaw
A hacksaw is a fine-tooth saw with a blade under tension in a frame, used for cutting materials such as metal or plastics. Hand-held hacksaws consist of a metal arch with a handle, usually a pistol grip, with pins for attaching a narrow disposable blade. A screw or other mechanism is used to put...
came out against moshing after an incident at a 2006 gig caused several fans to suffer serious injuries. This resulted in a song on their 2007 album, Vote Hacksaw, titled "Amateurs In The Pit", wherein they condemn all moshers as "brain dead morons who wanna stamp on kiddies".
Joey DeMaio
Joey DeMaio
Joey DeMaio is an American bass player and main songwriter for the heavy metal band Manowar which he co-founded in 1980. He is also the founder and CEO of Magic Circle Music....
of American heavy metal band Manowar has been known to temporarily stop concerts upon seeing moshing and crowd surfing, claiming it is dangerous to other fans.
External links
- Berger, Tom (2004) In the Pit - How to survive mosh pits and bodysurfing! (online book)
- How to Mosh in a Mosh Pit on wikiHow (detailed listing of steps to follow, tips, and warnings)
- A Guide to Moshing and Concert Survival by Jon Testrake and Nick White, on YouTube, April 4, 2007 (humorouos video with some serious and useful content, time 8:53)
- "Crowd Surfing and Moshing" on SafeConcerts.com (includes information on injuries sustained)
- Moshing and Wall of Death in the Urban Dictionary (collection of publicly-contributed definitions and description, both lauding and criticizing moshing)
- Campino, Die Toten Hosen longest mosh - Longest mosh ever cought on tape! (video)