It's early summer, the sun is beating down on my face, I'm packed tightly up against a metal barricade, waiting for a band to come out and preform for thousands of fans. I'm at a summer music festival. It is an overall happy, uproarious experience, but one thing turns me off about the atmosphere; it is filled with pot smoke and the smell of shotgunned beers. However, I did not let this fact ruin the experience for me.
I know that many are saying that all music festivals are these days are big fields to just go and drink and do drugs, but I disagree. As someone who enjoys music festivals (or any concerts in general), I can say that there is an entirely separate magic in the air for the 3-4 days you spend listening to live music that doesn't involve any substances. The feeling that you get being surrounded by people who have a similar taste in music, by people who let you sing at the top of your lungs, in general, people who just let you be you... it can't be matched. The music that is pulsating through your entire body, it moves you and makes you feel better about the world. THAT, is what music festivals are all about, and it has nothing to do with the drugs.
Take Woodstock as an example. Yes, it was a staple for psychedelic and (arguably) drug culture, but there was much more to it than just that. It was one of the first major gatherings of fans to enjoy one common love, music. Think about it... Hendrix, The Who, CCR, Janis Joplin... all in one place. Music mattered to the fans back then, and this kind of pulsating music culture still exists and matters today, some people are just losing sight of that passion for the music itself.
I'm not saying that drugs and alcohol are the only things that are that are plaguing large festivals. There are people who go and are just generally rude to folks who share this idea, who get in their way, and act mean to those who don't share this exact idea of a good time. I've even been called "stupid" for not getting drunk and not singing along with Paul McCartney (Keep your comments to yourself, man. Let it be.)
Overall, I guess that all I am trying to say is that there is a non-drug-fueled magic to music festivals that shouldn't be lost or forgotten. Even though the crowds can reach hundreds of thousands of avid music fans, there is a certain level of intimacy with each other that exists there and that exists with the artists on stage that can't be matched anywhere else. So slip into those dirty TOM's you haven't worn in over a year, grab plenty of water, and get out there. Oh, and most importantly, be yourself, man. Too many people are too shy and won't break out of their shell at shows. Bust a move and belt out some vocals, ain't nobody going to stop you from being yourself.
