Going to a concert is a common way for young people to spend their weekend nights or any night their favorite band is playing. Going to these shows as a high schooler provides a completely different experience because being a part of a larger scene is a feeling like none other.

I have been personally active by going to shows since ninth grade. Of course, I had my fair share of arena shows as a middle schooler, but those did not yield even close to the same experience as being part of the general admission crowd in small standing venues like Webster Hall or the Starland Ballroom.

I am not alone in my show going experiences as many of my peers attend such events and have a blast doing so. Whether it is to actually see a band that has been a part of your life for years on end or seeing one for the first time, these shows are place where high schoolers can let off steam and experience something unique.

Live music has a power that can bring people together like moshing with complete strangers, getting thrown across hundreds of hands, crowd surfing and then proceeding to dive into their arms off a 5 foot stage, and singing along with these complete strangers. This just makes the overall experience twice as incredible as the expectation.

The majority of youths who have never been to a concert often do not expect crowd movement nor do they expect people to go as wild as they do at these shows. I have never seen people get as excited for anything in my life as I have at shows. People will thrust you all the way up to the front of the stage just so they can be near the band or artist playing.

Specifically, the people at this high school enjoy attending shows at PNC Bank Arts Center, Terminal 5, and Webster Hall and festivals such as Governor’s Ball, Firefly Festival, and Skate and Surf Festival. These are some of New Jersey and New York’s finest festivals and venues bringing out the smallest acts to the largest.

In years past, students used to go to house shows to see Glen Rock bands CRUD or Titus Andronicus. Unfortunately, members of both bands are long graduated and such types of events do not happen nearly as frequently.

Students should respond to this problem by  starting up these types of shows again. Students should take action to find a house that is available to host house shows and find members of the local music scene to attend. If not, the music scene is in jeopardy of becoming obsolete.