This Thursday, I’ll be going to my fourth or fifth Flogging Molly concert. The lads always put on a heck of a show, and I make a point of seeing them most every time they pass nearby. (My dream show would be a Flogging Molly / Gogol Bordello double-headline–obviously I dig this ethno-punk thing that’s been going on lately. :D)
I love good music, and I love a loud rock 'n roll show. On the other hand, I’m pretty fond of my hearing, especially as that’s what lets me enjoy the music that I love. Concerned for my hearing, which is probably already slightly damaged (I have trouble hearing folks occasionally, and have a tinnitus that I notice in very silent environments, such as just before falling asleep), I’ve been considering wearing a set of earplugs at the show. I don’t suppose it can make me much more of a square than I already am, being a 29 year old law student and all.
So aside from the “looking like a dork” thing, I’m concerned that the muffled sound will dampen my enjoyment of the evening. Has anyone else done this–worn hearing protection at a rock n’ roll show? How was the experience?
If it’s not clear, I’m looking for encouragement–I know this is the right thing to do to protect my hearing from further damage, I just feel a bit odd about it.
Yeah I know what you mean, I go to small clubs and am often right next to the speakers. Gets really loud. I don’t wanna look like a dork but also don’t like the idea of not being able to hear the music properly. I wish they’d crank those amps to about 3/4 of capacity instead of 110%.
Funny, I was going to get in this thread and mention that I buy Hearo’s Ear Protectors from the local Guitar Center or online, via the link I provided to Musician’s friend. But **Pork Rind’s ** link is to the exact same product.
The vast majority of the audience wears plugs at my shows that I play and go to, and we’re talking about the most cred-heavy dudes you’ll meet - the type that would sneer at Flogging Molly. Join the cool kids and keep your hearing.
While I’ve never worn earplugs to a punk show, I’ve done it many a time to a variety of hip hop and electronic shows. If anything, I think I enjoyed the performances a whole lot more since the plugs tend to make the sound cleaner, if that makes any sense. Many venues here think that louder = better, to the point of distorting the sound beyond all recognition.
There’s something to be said for being able to walk out of a show without my ears ringing. I like to have a lasting impression, but not in a physical sense.
Anyone giving you a dirty look is just jealous that they were too self-conscious to wear a pair, IMO. Flaunt your self-preserving dorkiness!
I’ve worn earplugs to pretty much every concert since my first exposure to the Rolling Stones, back before most of you were born. Sometimes it was just wadded-up tissue, but then I found these. Designed for shooters, they work just as well in a club.
The “high-fidelity” protectors were something I wasn’t aware of, and look to be the (nearly) perfect solution to the problem. (Given the typical concert decibel levels, I could ask for greater attenuation, but it seems like a fair trade.)
I will make a trek out to Guitar Center or the like this week before the show, and enjoy the relatively ring-free ears afterwards!
I used to go to shows, 3 or 4 a week, in the mid-80s. I wish I had worn those little foam ear plugs back then. I’ve got about 60% hearing remaining in my left ear and even less than that in my right. I go out a couple of times a month now to hear live bands, and I’ll even turn around and go home to get some if I discover that I don’t have any on me.
They work good enough for me, and don’t reduce the quality of the sound of the band, just the volume.
I’ll add my vote for protecting your ears, and I’ll add my rant that bands in large venues are too busy making things loud and not concerned enough with making things sound good. The last concert we went to the music was so loud it was distorted and basically damned unpleasant (and I wear earplugs to every show, too). If I had a magic wand, I’d wave it at every concert I go to and make the music level much more human-friendly.
And yes, I may be too damned old.
ETA: The last concert we went to was a hip hip/rap artist - I’m 41.
In my EMT days I was part of what we called the “special events team” We worked concerts, football games, races, etc. Take it from this guy who dosent hear so well at 37 that I have a hard time imagining that some of the noise exposure I had as a 20-something did not damage my hearing. Be a dork who can still hear at 30.
I’d recommend the Etymotic Research ones, and if you go to a lot of shows consider having a custom fit pair of their Musicians’s Earplugs made. The difference between their product and more general ones, or ones for shooters, is that they are designed by audiologists to reduce volume evenly over the entire audible range. Shooters earplugs will block a lot more high frequencies.
You’re paying good money for tickets, it’s worth investing a little more in getting the maximum enjoyment from the experience. And as for the “if it’s too loud, you’re too old crowd”? Just ask Pete Townshend. I saw him perform his rock opera “Lifehouse” in London, and the poor guy had to literally put his head next to the speaker to tune his guitar.
Enjoy the show! Just saw Flogging Molly at the Beaumont Club in Kansas City, MO last Tuesday. Some friends of mine are on tour with them, The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band. Hope you dig them - they play a sort of punk/delta blues. I put a clip up on YouTube (with the band’s permission). The song is not really like most of their other stuff, but it features two members of Flogging Molly “Two Bottles of Wine”.
I’m all for wearing ear protection at a show! I find it actually helps me hear the show. By cutting down the top and low ends, I can actually make out the lead singers’ words. Crazy huh!
I’d been wearing earplugs to shows for the last couple of years. Oddly enough, I can hear the show better with them in. It’s also nice, because I can hear when I leave, too.
I use these little foam rubber jobbers that you can get at the rug store for about two bucks for six pairs. They work just fine.
My father (55) always does it and he’s a regular concertgoer. I’ve heard from him and others that these days, the design of earplugs has advanced to the point where you don’t lose any particular part of the sound, they just lower the volume. I’ve never worn them myself because I don’t quite believe it’s that good, but if they were ruining the shows he’d have stopped doing it.
The incessant ringing and buzzing noises you’ll eventually hear 24/7, coupled with the loss of certain ranges and occasional muting in one ear, is just something you have to deal with if you want to be cool like me. Stand right next to a stack and rock on!
Yeah, I wish I was worried about my hearing 20 years ago.
I’m 50 and have been wearing earplugs at concerts probably since I’ve been 25. There is not a chance that I could remember to bring expensive earplugs, so I usually just stuff napkins in my ears, even though it severely attenuates the high end frequencies. Occasionally, I’ll remember to bring some foam earplugs, but that is rare. My hearing ain’t so hot. I have a hard time hearing in a noisy bar, but i’m not nearly as deaf as a lot of my peers.
I’m an old fart and pretty uncool, so I don’t really give a fuck what people think. I constantly marvel at retards who play their iPods so loud on public transportation that you can’t carry on a conversation. Those people will be pretty uncool when they are 30 and can’t hear for shit.
I was a sound engineer in the 70s and 80s and always had ear-plugs. In that job, it’s just a reasonable protection, like wearing a hard hat on a construction site. Since I was doing it, sound systems have evolved to the point where you can deliver quality sound to nearly every point in a club or arena. And many bands are using “in-ear monitors”, so they no longer have to boost the volume of the main system to overcome the stage monitor speakers. The best sound is when the instrument amps are off-stage as well, so the lead guitarist can get the “tone” he wants - which always seems to involve the amp cranked to 11 - without killing the ears of the poor saps in the line of fire.
The thing is, to not “give a fuck what other people think” is a pretty good definition of “cool”. Sheep care about what other people think.
Don’t you know? Humans are immortal and unchanging until about age 27. Or a friend dies. Whichever comes first.
