Originally Posted by Rob Instigator

I am the 33 yr old, balding, doc marten wearing profusely rocking mo fio

Originally Posted by demonrail666

UK Show Demographic.

1. The Blast First Posse.

Tend to stand more towards the back at shows these days. They're primarily male, 30s-40s and will usually wait until SY play Brother James before going home to listen to some Big Stick on vinyl.

2. The Wire readers.

Again mostly male, 20s-40s, usually more into checking the support band, wearing a Merzbow T, Nike sandals and sporting either a William Reid haircut or a #1 skinhead. stand close to the front so they can see what gauge strings Lee is using. Wishing they were back at the ICA so they could compare notes about frequency saturation and Evan Parker with their two friends.

3. The Noiseniks.

30s-40s, exclusively male. Come more out of ritual these days, wishing the band still sounded a bit like Swans. They'll be wearing a greying Confusion is Sex T shirt and standing at the side, right in front of the PA so they can spontaneously shit themselves everytime things get a little loud. They'll also be pretty drunk.

4. For the Love of Kurt.

Early 20s, mixed male and female, doing Fine Art at Uni, edging closer to Emo these days when it comes to dress but will definitely be wearing a Goo T shirt. Bull in the Heather and Dirty Boots will get a massive cheer. The guys will all be looking at Kim whilst the girls will be remarking just how much Thurston looks like the guy from Happy Days. They read the NME every week but insist that they hate it. They'll sneer at people younger than them wearing Nirvana Tees.

5. The Guest Listers.

Ex-members of Lush, My Bloody Valentine and at least two members of Teenage Fanclub. The guys look like Bob Mould, the women like Meg Matthews. They think Sonic Youth are 'just great to still be doing their thing'.

6. MTV 2 Brigade.

teens-30s, Bought tickets only because the Flaming Lips show had sold out. Spend the entire time prior to the band coming on talking to their five friends about a Bonnie Prince Billy track they downloaded. Mostly male, they worship at the alter of Beck. Likelyhood of seeing one of them in a Deerhoof T is very high.

7. The Hoxton Massive.

20s-30s, mixed male and female, they'll either be wearing an ironic Motley Crue T Shirt or else an ESG hoodie. 100% Converse and sporting an iPod. They have a couple of Sonic Youth albums at home somewhere but right now they're 'sort of listening to rockabilly shit man'. All the guys will be called Ben, for some reason.

8. The Aging Fall Fan Contingent.

These will turn up exactly two songs into the set, usually with their wives. They will chuckle knowingly when Lee gets a bit 'Prog Rock' on Mote. They'll dress like alcoholic postmen and look disdainfully at the increasingly youthful audience. They'll leave before the encore so they can get enough sleep before work the next morning. A lot of them will be called Dave and all will own at least one Captain Beefheart album. They will be wearing shoes.

9. The Terrorizer Readers.

These have a lot in common with the Noiseniks but are generally younger (20s usually). Their hair will be long, sometimes dreaded, or else completely shaved off. They'll be wearing DMs, black combats and either an ISIS or (if they're a little older) a Godflesh t Shirt. All of them, without doubt, will be male. Their minds will wander to happy memories of Converge shows whenever Kim sings, impatiently waiting for another dose of feedback. Some of them may attempt to stagedive during Pipeline/Kill Time. Deep down, they'll all be wishing that A. they were watching Neurosis instead, and B. that at least one of the women in there would be prepared to rid them of their virginity.

10. The Barlow Lou-kalike.

There will be lots of these, but all will have come alone. They will look like Lou Barlow, obviously, and stand exactly midway between the bar and the stage. They will watch all the support acts. Chances are that if they're not wearing a Sebadoh T Shirt (underneath an open untucked shirt), then they'll be sporting a fading Dinosaur one. In the gap before the encore, they'll shuffle towards the stage to check out Lee and Thurstons effects peddles. He will buy a T shirt from the vender at the venue.

11. The Neo-Riot Grrls.

They're here to see Kim, basically, to get some style tips that can replace their current fascination for the 50s sweatergirl look. Needlessly to say that they'll be female. Most will be in their early 20s. They'll desperately try and avoid the constant longing gazes from the Lou-alikes. They will dance during Kool Thing. The Lou-a-likes will swoon.

12. The Albini-for-President Army.

These are declining in number and quickly turning into an equivelent of the Aging-Fall-Fan. They'll stalk to the bar everytime Kim sings. They might be wearing a Shellac shirt and their hairstyle will be 'sensible'. DMs or (black) Converse and black Levis will finish off their (anti-) look. They'll go home thinking the show was '"shit".

Originally Posted by Moshe

http://www.nypress.com/20/7/music/music.cfm

ANATOMY OF A SONIC YOUTH

What to expect when Kim & Thurston take the stage


By Joe Pompeo

If you’ve been to a few Sonic Youth shows, you pretty much know what to expect in terms of who’ll be in the audience. But if you’re a newcomer to those noisy concerts during which Thurston spazzes out, Kim gets told repeatedly how sexy she is, Lee stands there looking cool as hell and Steve just kind of sits and plays the drums, you might want to consult the following guide to determine which fans you should hang with while rocking out to “Kool Thing.”


Balding Middle-Age Dad Who Still Wears Converse All Stars
Aside from Sonic Youth themselves, Balding Converse Dad is probably the most cred person at the show (he saw Sonic Youth on the E.V.O.L. tour in ’86), but also one of the dorkiest. He came by himself because his wife is “over it” and his kids are still too young to be at a concert where people pass joints around. He got to the venue early enough to secure a spot that’s ideal for taking pictures, but in which he will regret having to stand when people start pogo-moshing to “100 %.” Despite his age, Balding Converse Dad manages to look pretty fucking hip in that black Calvin Klein button-down (sleeves rolled up) tucked into light-blue Levis.


Circa ’94 College Radio DJ
Circa ’94 College Radio DJ dons the same Dinosaur Jr. ringer tee he wore to that show on the Washing Machine tour back in ’95, except this time around his beer belly is sticking out. Now in his early- to mid-thirties, he talks a lot about how he’s seen Sonic Youth so many times he doesn’t even care anymore. But for some reason he still ends up at every show, his justification being that he “got the tickets for free through the station.” C94CRDJ was one of the first people to receive a promo copy of Rather Ripped, even though he was relegated from Friday afternoons to the Sunday 2 a.m. slot to make room for those two cute sophomore chicks, whose new show, “Dirty Boots,” has been making waves on the university indie circuit.


The Requisite Alternateen
Alternateens may not be as ubiquitous as they were in the ’90s, but they remain a key element at any Sonic Youth show. Salvation Army T-shirts, baggy-esque jeans with chain wallet and shaggy hair—but not in that hipster way (see also “Manic Panic”)—comprise the wardrobe of the Requisite Alternateen, who is the person most genuinely excited to be there, especially considering Mom OK-ed the concert on a school night. He/she is also probably the least pretentious audience member, as well as the one most likely to be chosen by the band to appear in a future album sleeve. This kid practically invented the song “Bull in the Heather.”


Noise Fans
These people enjoy Sonic Youth less than they enjoy Black Dice. Their favorite Sonic Youth recordings are the instrumental SYR EPs, and they’re not big on the albums Goo or Dirty. Most people come to a Sonic Youth show hoping to hear “Teen Age Riot,” but Noise Fans are there primarily for Thurston-and-Lee’s 20-minute feedback freakouts, without which they would feel as if they might as well be seeing Coldplay.


Ex-Zine Stars/Internet Celebrities
These “kids” are somewhere in their twenties and are pretty much the hippest people at the show. Discovering Sonic Youth when they were high school freshmen made them stop playing sports and start smoking cigarettes. They used to be punk, but dress pretty normal these days and therefore don’t really stand out. But what they lack in conspicuousness they make up for in scene points. Everyone remembers the zines they used to write back in ’97 as well as their first AOL screen names. They were among the first 100 people to create profiles on Make Out Club and they even baby-sat for Kim-and-Thurston’s daughter Coco while attending college in Massachusetts. Their inherent coolness and youthful drinking abilities make Balding Converse Dad secretly feel like a piece of shit.


The Poseur
Transferred to NYU. Discovered MisShapes. Bought Sonic Youth tickets. End of story.


Feb. 16, Webster Hall, 125 E. 11th St. (betw. 3rd & 4th Aves.), 212-353-1600; SOLD OUT.

Originally Posted by SpectralJulianIsNotDead

I don't think I fit into any of those categories.

Originally Posted by Moshe

Lee stands there looking cool as hell

Originally Posted by _slavo_

"tougue-in-cheek" means good or bad?

Originally Posted by perverzion

Means "ironic."

Originally Posted by pbradley

More generally, it means being facetious.

Originally Posted by pbradley

I'm part of the SY fans who don't go to the show.