19 April

I was there when rock gigs still felt edgy. A bit dangerous, seat of your pants, only a handful of musicians daring to try to entertain an enormous crowd that overwhelmed them in scale, with ingenious lighting rigs designed for dramatic effect. It was like a high-wire act. Now gigs are through the looking glass of Spinal Tap and well out the other side. Grandfathers strutting the stage, in slick productions with national debt level ticket prices. Gigs are mostly about the love of being in a crowd, not music or art. They’re an ‘event’, like walking across the Harbour Bridge, or a City to Surf. A place for people to assemble, to be with other people. The act is secondary, a means to an end. The sad thing is that the whole industry became Spinal Tap 40 years ago already. The hair bands like Bon Jovi of the 80s and 90s were already parodies of a parody. They’re still out there now. https://www.facebook.com/reel/1655140365612426/?fs=e&fs=e