September 10, 2026
Live music has always made people go a little crazy! Over the years I’ve seen old concert footage of early Beatles and Osmond Brothers concerts where teenage girls had worked themselves up into such a wild frenzy that security had to literally carry them away. Although I was drug to a Backstreet Boys concert back in the 90’s, I’ve never had the opportunity to experience the screaming teenage girls concert panic, thank God! Maybe screaming thirteen-year-old girls has never been a concert problem for me, but I’ve had a few hefty gals decked out in fishnet pushing their way over my head in a crowd surf. Not only that, but I’ve also taken a boot to the mouth as well as a few hundred elbows jabbing into my back during a few crazy concerts. At these kind of shows I was just glad that I survived!
Back in my teen years, parents were scared to send their kids to AC/DC and KISS shows, but these bands played stadium concerts with seats. It’s the smaller venues with the “no seats, general admission” vibe where the wild times really get rockin’! These are the places where you stake out your spot and then fight for your life! The wildest concert I ever fought my way through was a Social Distortion concert in a small venue in Dallas called Deep Ellum Live back in 1994. And over the years I’ve battled my way through Dropkick Murphy, Slayer, Flogging Molly, and even Gwar shows. I’ve always love watching the Irish rockers Flogging Molly because on stage these guys are wearing slacks and ties while playing banjos and fiddles, and in the crowd there’s a wild mosh pit going on behind me. Years ago at a Slayer show I started the concert about fifty feet from the stage, but through all the pushing and slamming during the show I ended the evening standing a mere ten feet from the stage!
When I decided to go to the Social Distortion concert down at the Bomb Factory in Deep Ellum last week, I figured things might be a bit more mellow than the old days. After all, singer Mike Ness is 64 years old now, and by the looks of those that had gathered for the show, most of us looked old enough to remember a time when leisure suits were still in fashion. The lady next to me told me that her first concert was Siouxsie and the Banshees, and with that tidbit of concert info, I was believing that we were all part of the AARP crowd of punk rockers. Besides, this was my eighth Social Distortion concert, and over the years I have certainly noticed how the concerts had mellowed a bit. I certainly wasn’t expecting things to get too wild, but I guess I was wrong regarding that thought.
As soon as the first band, The Chats, took the stage the crowd behind me started getting a bit rambunctious. Okay, this was a young band with young fans. I figured we’d just let the little buckaroos in the crowd have their fun and that would be that. However, when the punk rockers the Descendents came on stage the place went full blown, mosh pit crazy! Like Social Distortion, the guys in the Descendants are old enough to remember when mood rings were cool, but the punks behind me didn’t seem to care that the guys on stage were in their sixties. The slam dance party had kicked off in a big way! And these were some hefty slam dancers! Everyone who jumped into the mosh pit directly behind me were of NFL worthy size! I suddenly had to rely on my own football training just to keep my ground!
In general admission concerts, we devoted fans arrive way before the venue’s doors even open, and once they are open there’s another hour of standing before the show even starts. Of course, there’s usually a first band followed by a second band to stand through before the headliners even make their presence on stage. By the end of the evening devout music fans might have been on their feet for at least five hours! Now add the joy of trying to keep your footing while multiple two-hundred-pound slam dancers are crashing into your back and some hefty guys and gals are crowd surfing over your head. A good punk rock concert is a work out that rivals any kind of cardio or weight training I’ve ever put myself through. It builds your core, burns tons of calories, and really works on those leg muscles! As an added bonus, not only do you get to bathe in your own sweat but everyone else’s sweat as well! By the time Social Distortion had come on stage I was soaked in sweat, and I think most of the sweat had come from all those slimy bodies that had been pounding into me for the last hour!
Although someone tried to launch me up at an Alice Cooper concert years ago, I’m proud to say that I’ve never crowd surfed. At a lean mean 205 pounds, I always figured I was a bit on the large side to take on the venture of being carried over the heads my fellow rock fans. However, not everyone feels this way. One guy who decided to ride the evening’s surf had a belly that should have kept him on the floor. The worse part was the fact that everyone was shoved in so tightly around me that I couldn’t even pull my arms up to protect myself from the porky surfers. Strangely enough, there were a few brave souls of the female persuasion who took on the surf. More than once I’ve had a few young women surfing over my head faced down, which is NEVER a good idea! There’s just no telling how many times those girls were groped by the punk rock crowd. Then again, maybe that was the whole idea to begin with.
As Social Distortion tore through some of their new songs, I started to really get to know the people around me way too well. The lady in front of me had her butt shoved up in my crotch like I had just ordered a lap dance from her while my right elbow was pressed into the left boob of the girl behind me. Yea, I was making new friends really quick.
“You can’t out muscle me!” some guy screamed out as he fought for slam dancing dominance. Security finally had enough of the mosh pit bully and tossed him, but there were several folks crashing into my shoulders who were way too freaking hefty, not to mention, way too elderly to be trying to pull off the punk rock, slam dance. By the time Social Distortion had bid us all good night, my Fitbit informed me that I had burned off 3,500 calories during the concert! To be honest, I think these shows are rougher on my body than some of the football games I suffered through back in my school days. Wearing shoulder pads to these shows may not be a bad idea. The next day I could barely get out of a chair. Fortunately, my monthly chiropractor visit was scheduled for that week. When I told my twenty something chiropractor that I was feeling like a train wreck due to my last punk concert she just smile. Although she claimed that she had been to a few such concerts herself, I could tell what she was really thinking. “Dude, you’re too old for slam dancing.”
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