Let's Go to the Punk Rock Show!
a NOFX Experience
Bobby Rice
Issue date: 11/5/08 Section: Features
Unlike other punk concerts I have been attending recently, the crowd for NOFX was not the usual petite, teenage high schoolers who are much smaller and easier to see around. We had to fight through full grown men, mostly bigger than myself to get within four rows of the stage and yet, it was still a struggle to see between the broad shoulders and shoving girls fighting for similar vantage points. Yet, we had our spot, and were prepared when the lights went out and lead singer, Fat Mike took the stage.
Not be let down, it was obvious as soon as Fat Mike took the stage that he was having trouble keeping his eyes open. But nonetheless, his speech was fairly straight and his energy seemed none deterred. The crowd returned the favor, raising their fists in the air and screaming as Fat Mike's fellow cohorts entered the stage, El Hefe (lead guitarist and trumpet player), Eric Melvin (guitar and accordion) and Erik Sandin (drums.)
After a brief comedic introduction, the band began the night with "Dinosaurs Will Die" and never seemed to let up for the rest of the night. Other than a brief pause for Fat Mike to grab himself another drink for which he had a cup holder attached to his mike stand and also to put on a WWE wrestling belt thrown at him from the crowd, which he wore for the rest of the set.
They played fast and crisp. Every chord and verse was audible and complimented with backup vocals by the entire audience. Their classics, like "Linoleum", "Murder the Government", "Bob" and "Kill All The Whiteman" sounded better live than on their records and the crowd seemed to want to soak in the songs, singing along with every word while still fighting off crowd-surfers and a swirling pit. The sweat poured off of everyone around me, I continuously had trouble breathing from the immense density of bodies that surrounded me and the amount of energy I exerted from singing and dancing.
Songs like "Seeing Double at the Triple Rock" and "Franco Un-American" with their fast, blazing speed created an even larger feel to the songs and the band. The crowd surged forward, everyone just trying to keep their balance and savagely fighting to move closer to the stage while trying to keep singing with the high paced songs. These 40-year-old drug abusing, alcoholic punk rockers dictated to the crowd the energy and speed of the show. Fat Mike hardly ever lost the smile on his face, El Hefe tore up his guitar as if he were a member of KISS in front of 100,000 fans, and Melvin swung his green dreadlocks across the stage as he danced with a look on his face like a 16-year-old boy.
Not be let down, it was obvious as soon as Fat Mike took the stage that he was having trouble keeping his eyes open. But nonetheless, his speech was fairly straight and his energy seemed none deterred. The crowd returned the favor, raising their fists in the air and screaming as Fat Mike's fellow cohorts entered the stage, El Hefe (lead guitarist and trumpet player), Eric Melvin (guitar and accordion) and Erik Sandin (drums.)
After a brief comedic introduction, the band began the night with "Dinosaurs Will Die" and never seemed to let up for the rest of the night. Other than a brief pause for Fat Mike to grab himself another drink for which he had a cup holder attached to his mike stand and also to put on a WWE wrestling belt thrown at him from the crowd, which he wore for the rest of the set.
They played fast and crisp. Every chord and verse was audible and complimented with backup vocals by the entire audience. Their classics, like "Linoleum", "Murder the Government", "Bob" and "Kill All The Whiteman" sounded better live than on their records and the crowd seemed to want to soak in the songs, singing along with every word while still fighting off crowd-surfers and a swirling pit. The sweat poured off of everyone around me, I continuously had trouble breathing from the immense density of bodies that surrounded me and the amount of energy I exerted from singing and dancing.
Songs like "Seeing Double at the Triple Rock" and "Franco Un-American" with their fast, blazing speed created an even larger feel to the songs and the band. The crowd surged forward, everyone just trying to keep their balance and savagely fighting to move closer to the stage while trying to keep singing with the high paced songs. These 40-year-old drug abusing, alcoholic punk rockers dictated to the crowd the energy and speed of the show. Fat Mike hardly ever lost the smile on his face, El Hefe tore up his guitar as if he were a member of KISS in front of 100,000 fans, and Melvin swung his green dreadlocks across the stage as he danced with a look on his face like a 16-year-old boy.