If you haven’t been to a gig before, then your first mosh pit is likely going to be quite the experience!
People running into each other and jumping over the place; from an outsiders perspective, mosh pits can seem very violent and unpleasant.
And honestly, they can be.
When the people in them don’t follow the rules, that is.
When done wrong, a mosh pit is a place to start a fight with the wrong people.
When done right, a mosh pit is a way to dance and express yourself to music in a physical way. It’s sort of like head-banging with your entire body.
So this blog post is here to help you understand the differences between the two and help you to enjoy moshing for the enjoyable experience that it is, rather than the unpleasant time it can be.
Let’s begin with the cardinal rule of all Mosh Pits.
1. The Golden Rule
Seriously, if you only learn one thing about mosh pit etiquette, it should be this:
If someone falls down, pick them back up.
A mosh pit is a place to dance and be energetic, but they can be very dangerous if you fall down, as you can easily get trampled and badly hurt.
Let’s imagine that you fell down.
I’m guessing that you would want someone to help you up.
So make sure that you do it for someone else.
One of the first times I joined a mosh pit was at a gig for The Damned, back when I was around 15.
It was such a fun experience, jumping up and down and into people: I was loving life!
But all of a sudden, I slipped on the beer-soaked floor and fell right on to my back.
Looking up at the dozens of people jumping and slamming into each other over me was absolutely terrifying, and I nearly had a panic attack.
Thankfully a few lovely people noticed and helped me to my feet immediately.
I think I got out of that pit pretty quickly after that, but I had learned an important lesson that I would remember from then on.
2. Know that Mosh Pits exist
People moshing in the wrong place is annoying and potentially dangerous.
I once saw three guys try to start a mosh pit at the very back of a Pet Shop Boys gig.
It didn’t go very well and they were not popular people with the rest of the crowd.
So like, don’t do that.
However, equally annoying are people who get frustrated by mosh pits when standing in the designated mosh pit area.
If you are at a gig of music any heavier than, say, S-Club 7, then there is likely going to be a mosh pit.
If you are stood at the very front of that gig, there will be a mosh pit directly behind you.
You need to accept that and decide for yourself if you want to stay.
Here’s my very detailed drawing of how gigs work.
What I’m trying to say is that if you are at the edges of a mosh pit, you may get knocked into by people moshing.
It is likely accidental and just a part of the experience in that area. If you don’t like it, move back.
Do not get annoyed at the people in the pit. They are in the accepted mosh pit area and you are in the wrong.
The and the same rule goes for the people inside of the mosh pit, hence the next rule.
3. Crowd Killing is Dumb
Mosh pits are places to dance and jump into people. It’s fun, and carries with it a slight sense of danger.
A crowd killer is someone aims to intentionally ‘accidentally’ hit other people.
Maybe by windmilling their arms, or even as explicit as kicking other people at the gig.
Do not be that person!
A mosh pit is not an excuse to punch, kick or otherwise intentionally hurt others.
While there is a history of violence at punk/metal shows, it is mostly a thing of the past, and that’s where it should stay.
The idea of indiscriminate violence in a mosh pit is a stupid machismo thing.
I don’t understand it and don’t want to.
There are some poeple who argue against this.
“Don’t go to hardcore shows if you don’t want the hardcore experience”
– Some twat
These people are wrong and go to gigs looking for a fight rather than to enjoy the gig.
Next up is a closely-related rule.
4. Don’t Pull People In To A Pit
Let me illustrate this point with an urban legend I’ve heard many times.
The story goes like this:
A space opens up at a metal show for a mosh pit/wall of death/circle pit.
Some guy on the edges of the pit sees a girl in front of him wearing a tube top. He decides it would be ‘fun’ to pull her top down and then push her into the pit, presumably to get trampled.
Another person sees this, so announces for everyone to stop, then steps in to the space to protect the girl.
Several people also step in and create a barrier around her, giving her privacy to pull her top back up and get out of the pit if she wants.
The guy who pulled her top down & pushed her then gets punched in the face and shoved into the pit, just as everyone else charges in to mosh.
Urban Legend
I have no idea if this story is true, but it paints a picture and has a moral to it.
If you try to force others into a pit, especially just so that they get hurt or scared, you are a terrible person.
It’s also unlikely that anyone else in the pit will care if you then get hurt.
Now, I am aware that this contradicts the Golden Rule.
However, I like to think the guy in the story gets picked up before he’s hurt badly, leaving him to walk off to think about what he’s done.
Ego shattered but bones intact.
5. Crowd Surfing is Optional, Usually
Crowd surfing is the act of climbing on peoples shoulders and being carried to the front of the stage by other people in the crowd.
Many venues say this isn’t allowed, but the act is still very common at gigs, so be aware that people may be passing overhead.
A boot to the back of the head is not a great feeling.
So be aware of what’s going on in the pit.
If people start to crowd surf, keep an eye out so that you don’t get hurt, and if someone is surfing over you, give them support to reach the front and not fall to the ground.
As an aside: if you are in a pit and the crowd surfing is getting too much for you, I would suggest just moving back.
Being one of the people supporting a crowd surfer isn’t really something you can opt out of.
I once saw A Day To Remember at Download Festival in 2017, and the “pit” was just 200 people all trying to crowd surf at the same time.
It made it hard to actually enjoy the band because I was helping people surf to the front every few seconds.
Important Note:
Now, this shouldn’t need to be said, but it does.
Crowd surfers are not open targets to grope or sexually harass.
Your job is to help the person along with minimal touching to their parts that you wouldn’t want to be touched by strangers.
Sexual assault at music shows is far too common, and one reason it is so common is because some people see crowd surfers as open targets to cop a feel.
They aren’t.
Wrap Up
Those are your five rules for mosh pits, and hopefully some real-world experience that may help you in gigs to come.
Just remember the golden rule, and everything else stems from that.
If you’re in the pit, you have agreed to the socially accepted rules of that pit.
Care for the people around you and don’t use it as an excuse for a fight or a grope.
