Why do people talk through gigs?

[Lemonandginger1]

I'm genuinely curious. Why pay £40+ for a ticket to a gig if you're going to stand and talk loudly alllllllllll the way through? Fair enough in between the support finishing and the main band coming on but who cares about what half marathon you're running while a band is actually doing a set?

Maybe I'm getting old but it seems worse now

I find it's older people who do this (30-50s) rather than young folk - my assumption is they don't get out much and combine a catch up with the gig. It annoys the fuck out of me too.

Go to the pub first!!!

It drives me mad. I agree that it is middle aged people (said as a middle aged person). I go to a wide range of gigs and it is worse at 80s or 90s bands. Went to see Suede and during an acoustic version of The Wild Ones, Brett Anderson had to ask the crowd to be quiet.

I went to a gig once where 2 fellas were talking loudly. I went over and said "where did you get your free tickets from?" One said oh we bought them. I said so did I so shut the fuck up. People nearby cheered and my mate was creased laughing 🤣

I went to see Stevie Nicks last year - I was in front of a row full of drunk women who had been gifted very good seats (£270 each). It was obvious they weren't huge fans and wouldn't have bothered going if they had been paying.

It's well known that Stevie likes to talk and tell stories in between songs and this group behind me shouted, whooped and made loud phonecalls in between every song to the point you couldn't hear Stevie speaking over their racket. It was really fucking rude and when they were asked to shut up they jsut laughed and took the piss.

Pet peeve - paid to hear a band and all you can hear is them shouting over it

Also people who get so drunk they get kicked out - i mean why?

Because they're drunk. Hate it!

It's become a big problem.
I'm sure that if an artist said from the stage 'please chat less' they'd agree & cheer and then go back to chatting as they think the rules don't apply to them!

I was just saying this to DH last night as we were at a gig and the band did a couple of bits where they went really quiet and people were just bellowing through it.

I saw Dolly Parton a few years ago. In the row in front were 4 women who were up and down every few minutes to the bar and toilet. They talked all the way through to each other and tried to start conversations with people around them, who mostly ignored them. The loudest mouth turned round and said to us I've been dying to see Dolly for years.
My friend replied And you still haven't, you've either been outside or talked all the way through.
By the end 2 were so drunk they fell over and one fell asleep.

Tickets were around £60 each I think and they can't have listened to more than a few minutes. What a ridiculous waste.

nope exactly the other way round, IME. And men.

I tell them to STFU and that none of us - i indicate everyone around us - is interested in their inane chatter so go outside.

It usually works.

Often you'll hear the band finish a song and you won't hear applause at first you'll hear conversations carrying on that the volume had been masking. Imagine being in the band and having to hear that. I've been to hundreds of gigs and only ever saw one musician say anything about people chatting. [Ian McCulloch of Echo & the Bunnymen]