It goes without saying that every concert one attends will be different, factors such as the genre of music, the size of the venue, time of day, will contribute to how the audience will behave that fateful night. I went to my first concert when I was twelve, it was at the Merriweather and my sister and I were in the seated section. While we jumped and sang our hearts out to the older Paramore throwbacks, the majority of their set displayed their newest album at the time, which was far chiller and had more of a pop sound, so the audience was zen as well. I’ve been to many concerts since then, mainly indie and alternative, but with the occasional hardcore band in which I kept to the sidelines and headbanged within the comfort of my own space. I didn’t enter my first mosh pit until April of last year.
It was such a drastic difference to anything I had experienced before. Watching a pit and being in the center of one was unlike how I imagined. I felt so present in my body and in that moment in time. I was shoved in the shoulder and shoved someone by their arms back. We moved with the pounding rhythm of the song, and I felt fueled by the energy coursing throughout the room. As someone who’s 5’1, I’ve always felt that my body couldn’t make all that much of an impact, I didn’t trust it would withstand roughhousing so I never tried. To be in a setting where people of all age groups and sizes were encouraged to get physical, even when it was painful, it was still so freeing. I wore the cut on my cheek the next day with pride.
I think concert etiquette has changed over the years. The coolest shoegaze and alternative bands have such lively audiences now, but there’s a lack of respect for those who choose not to participate in a mosh. And then, the more mainstream the concert, the more people will opt to record over dance at all. Why don’t we look out for one another, give each other space? Why are we so in our heads, so afraid of looking goofy, that we hold ourselves back if we want to participate? We pay to attend a concert, everyone’s eyes are literally glued to the stage, and yet in the cramped settings, doing anything more than bobbing your head feels taboo and holding your ground at a barricade and not giving into the mosh is rigid. What is the perfect medium? Is there one to be found?
Unruly Bodies 
Although I’ve never been to a mosh pit, I have seen videos on TikTok and Instagram of people literally trying to beat up other people in the pit. And there will be comments stating that it is what you should expect if you are in the pit. Even though, those videos have not made me against mosh pits, it does like you mentioned, makes me question why there is such a lack of respect. Especially for women in mosh pits because there is also content of women talking about being directly assaulted in the pits. It just makes me wonder how it got to this point and how the mosh pit “culture” could be improved so this is not a reoccurring issue.
I’ve only in recent years started going to concerts so I can’t draw a wide comparison but I’ve for sure noticed a lack of respect between concert-goers. I think another thing to note is the audience of these artists. I’d like to say my music taste is diverse so I’ve experienced a couple different concerts. When I went to see Faye Webster and Mitski at All Things Go one year, the crowd was super nice and very chill and kind. I remember when Mitski came on my friends and I got so excited because we all love her. This couple in front of us noticed, and urged us to stand in front of them. I would say we got lucky but the overall ambience was very nice. On the other hand, when I went to a concert where the audience was younger teenage boys the moshpit was DREADFUL. The amount of pushing, tugging, and body sweat being transferred was insane and no one cared when 5’4 girls went tumbling into the ground. It just makes me wonder where the line would be crossed for people to mindful of others and share spaces properly.
I am in a wheelchair and mosh very frequently. There are some styles of hardcore and slam dancing that involve windmilling your arms and spin kicks and the goal is to not swing at people. Yes there are bad apples but generally they will get kicked out, and I have seen it happen multiple times. With other styles such as “push pits” the goal is in the name- pushing other people around, again not hitting them. Running into the wall of the pit to get pushed back in is another thing. As a fem presenting person and a wheelchair user, I have personally been punched in the face by a super drunk dude that got way too aggressive and started swinging. I grabbed his arm and dragged him down to my level so I could chew him out and the vocalist of the band did the same. A butch lesbian dragged him out of the venue. I have never personally felt super unsafe because poor behavior is NOT tolerated at least in Baltimore. It was a bigger problem back in Northern Virginia, but one of the most problematic guys got his butt beat by someone else in the back of the venue. That’s just my two cents 🙂