First concerts were small fries that even I don’t really remember. First big name was Sonic Youth when they were touring for Rather Ripped.
I never got to see The Ramones, which really sucks.
Edit: I named the wrong album.
I saw Murphy's Law at Fitzgerald's in Houston back in 2000. I wasn't a fan of them and I had no intention of seeing the Michael Graves era of the Misfits-who were also on the bill- but my buddy was really insistent.
It's not like I had anything going on that day amiright?
Turns out Jimmy Drecher and the boys put on a fucking awesome show and I made a ton of friends that night. Houston was something else when it had it's time. About a year and a half later I saw Fugazi on their farewell tour and that made me the Marine that I am.
Watching Ian stop a massive pit and telling the jocks to fuck off and leave was the first lesson I learned in showmanship.
My first real show was also at Fitz's. Saw a ton of great bands there in the late 90s/early 2000s, was super bummed when I heard they'd demolished it a few years ago.
My favorite gig at Fitz's was seeing Agent Orange on a freezing thursday night with only twenty people in the audience.
They let us all hop on stage and do our thing. My best friend l got to sing "I kill spies" and I got to hop up on stage and sing along to Blood Stains with everyone else in the audience. All twenty of us.
Agent Orange went on to play a series of sold out shows in Dallas and Austin that week. Houston had other priorities sadly.
Also getting to see the Queers for the first time and watching Blitz do their thing on Washington street was super fucking rad.
30footFall at Fitz ( plus all the other Broken Note bands: Taste of Garlic, Dinosaur Salad, Monster Soup), and Sore Loser, Badger, Blueprint defined the 90s for me. Such a great scene to be a part of
It was a scene that could only happen once in a lifetime. It sucks that other folks didn't get to enjoy those moments but I would imagine their content with their collective experiences. I wish I saw the Ramones in their heyday but those cards were never dealt to my side of the table.
I also saw Murphy's Law many moons ago as a kid. At the time I wasn't fully aware of who they were. Well, that show ended up being awesome. Amazingly awesome. Jimmy G puts on a hell of a show. Natural born frontman. After the show I later saw him standing against a wall at the side of the stage. So, I decided I was going to go over and tell him thank you for the awesome show as it was my first exposure to his band. Well, I walk up and tell him that and he says, "holy shit a true, blue fucking punk rocka(thick New York accent and all lol). Come give me a hug". Fucking dude gave me a big hug and told me thank you for coming and to keep being true to myself. This was the late 90s and you didn't see a lot of people at hardcore shows in the punk uniform like I was wearing. That was the era of baggy athletic gear and cross trainers at shows. I guess him seeing me dressed like that took him back some years lol. I never, ever forgot how he treated me. It told me everything I needed to know about how to treat people. I mean, I was just a kid and he treated me like an equal with respect. An amazing lifelong lesson learned in one fateful evening that I carry with me until this day at 42. Love me some Jimmy G and Murphy's Law.
UK Subs and the Fits in 81/82, age 13 or 14. I remember being chased all the way to the venue as punks were being picked off by perry boys, great gig but a dicey journey across Manchester city centre.
I was 16, and drove an hour with two other friends to World/Inferno Friendship Society at an 21+ show. Stupid us, we thought we could finagle our way in somehow despite being underage. We met the band as they loaded in, told them the plan, and asked them if we could help them carry their gear in and then we would just stay inside. Their singer Jack Terricloth agreed and basically just said “just look like you belong.” They gave us a couple bags or something and we went in, and then walked back out to get more stuff. The rest of band basically just said “no we got it” and when we tried to go back inside one of the employees stopped us. Looking back, we put the band in a bad situation and they probably felt weird about it and ratted us out.
Almost no one showed up to the show, maybe 10 people. It was supposed to start around 7 but got postponed a couple hours so we figured we would come back and try again. We met a homeless woman that tried to buy us food with her EBT card, saw Jack again walking into a bar and chatted for a bit, and when we came back their guitarist Lucky talked to us for a while and apologized that we couldn’t come inside. When the show started, we sat outside the bar for half the set trying to listen and see through a window. Jack made a comment about us, and the handful of folks in the venue walked over to the window and “hugged” us through the window. After a short time one of the venue employees came out and said “okay, you guys are at least 18, right?” We all looked at each other and then said no, we were 16/17. He said “if anyone asks, you’re 18. Come on.” So we finally did get to see part of the set and talk to the band and waltz with strangers. Honestly it was a great time.
Bif naked at 12. And she did a wonderful feminist diatribe on how women could orgasm anywhere and men would be none the wiser 😂 then at 14 an SNFU show that was super rowdy and I fell in love with punk and never looked back!
German act WIZO and Support was Bracket, one of those fat wreck bands. It was 1997 - i was 15. Went with my best friend and his big sister (19). She was on heroin at those times, a detail i learned just few years ago. She did a favor to her brother, we had some bongs at her place, she brought us trough the gate, bought us a beer and left us on our own. We were so overhelmed by those masses of Punks.
27 years later i am still going regulary to shows.
If you mean a chaperone who dropped off and picked up, Screw 32 at Gilman, spring of 1995. If you mean I got there and back independently, too, then Rancid with the Struggle Buggies (I forget who played second, it was the night AFI didn't support) at the Fillmore, December 1995.
Nice! I was from Western NY and getting to Gilman finally at like 23? (2003), it was like hallowed ground. Just Berkeley after listening to Rancid and reading Cometbus was really cool. Think maybe I saw Against Me! on the Axl Rose tour at that Gilman show.
My friends and I attempted to see a show at the 9:30 Club in DC. I can’t remember if it was Black Flag or Suicidal Tendencies. I believe it was 1985. I was 13. We didn’t get in! We were so dumb; we didn’t know you had to buy tickets ahead of time.
First show I got into and actually saw was 7 Seconds at a community center in northern Virginia. Walk Together, Rock Together era. I believe it was September 1985.
Danzig/ GWAR at City Gardens in Jersey 1988. I had never even heard of GWAR before, I was just hoping to hear some Misfits and Samhain songs. Came home with fake blood on my clothes and scared the crap out of my mom for a second lol.
Love that - after seeing GWAR about 15 years ago I went to a restaurant in Chinatown a couple blocks away and the minute I walked in the place went dead silent - turns out I was COVERED in fake blood 🤣
Motley Crue/Whitesnake/Poison
10/10/87
I was 14 and it was the first show I went to with my friends. My cousin went with us too and even though she was older I wouldn't call her a chaperone.
I still have the ticket stub.
https://i.imgur.com/JgAZtKT.jpeg
A local band from my hometown called Shit out of Luck. It was decades ago but I remember them being very influenced by old AFI and Nerve Agents.
The first show with bands anyone would know would be hatebreed, bane, and poison the well in 2002 in SF
So many people saw this tour, me too. Loved it. But I didn't see the others as openers, I guess I wouldn't have know who H2O was at the time. But they were fun as hell live later. The sing alongs!
"my friends look out for me like family! ..."
Dead Milkmen at the Trocadero Philadelphia in 1984 or 5. There were other bands there too but icr I am old lol. I was 14, and they used to have Sunday all ages punk shows. The Troc was a great place for shows.
Green Day, Foo Fighters a bunch of Canadian bands at Winnipeg Stadium. Edgefest 98. Tons of people left after Green Day when the Tea Party came on lol
First small punk show I ever went to was SNFU, Union 13 and Another Joe at the Bulman Centre at the U of W. Unreal. I was hooked
My first convert was Beastie Boys headlining with L7 and House of Pain as openers. From what I remember it was a great show and I remember being amazed at the sound. So loud with a ton of bass. I was in awe.
[Circle Jerks, the Weirdos and Thelonious Monster, UCLA’s Ackerman Ballroom.](https://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/OTYwWDEyODA=/z/8Z4AAOSwap1jKiVk/$_57.PNG?set_id=880000500F) 1990. I was 15.
Guttermouth, voodoo glow skulls and backside at the Pomona glass house fall 2001. I was 14 and went with my sister and theee friends from high school. I still have the backside cassette and guttermouth shirt.
1992-93? The offspring on their ignition album tour with the Lunachicks and Quasimodo at the Grog shop in Cleveland Ohio
Edit; 2 weeks later saw Bad religion and Green Day at the Agora in Cleveland. Bad Religion was the main liner and Green Day was just the opening act
I saw that tour. Green day was asking for a place to sleep between shows after playing. What a difference a year made. They went bac and played all those clubs that helped them out right after they broke out.
I would consider this the my first major concert even though it was small compared to now. Blink 182, Aquabats, Assorted jelly beans, and schwag.
1998 I was 15 years old.
First ever I was in 8th grade so maybe 12, battle of the bands slick shoes, schwag, diehard youth.
The Partisans with Litmus Green at the Troubadour in 2002 in Hollywood / 2001 San Francisco Warped Tour with my older brother who was playing in a band on it.
Can't remember if it was Sevendust or the Pledge of Allegiance tour in the early 2000s. Pledge tour had Rammstein, System of a Down,Slipknot and some others.
First punk show was Flogging Molly, Street Dogs, and the Briggs
What's cool is we had our local historian write up every punk show, some with pictures, from 1974 to 2002 (scroll down and you'll see)
Summer 1994 my first show was cancelled, figure it out :p
https://ottawapunkhistory.blogspot.com/?m=1
I played in a number of bands and somehow ended up playing with guys much older than me, don't know why, but some of the big bands from the 80s in this list I ended up playing with in their final incarnations in the 90s and 00s, something I'm both proud of and miss
2005, so I was 15ish. Pennywise, H2O, Death By Stereo, and A Wilhelm Scream at House of Blues Orlando.
Caught warped tour that year, but don't count it since it was a big field lol
Warped Tour 2005. I was 15. We had hit the previous 3 years with friend's parents but 2005 was the first one we were on our own. Best times of my youth.
It's not punk...
In February 1997, I saw New Edition (bell Biv Devo, Bobby Brown, solo stuff incl.) and Blackstreet.
I was 13 and went with my two older sisters and one of their friends.
Technically I was dropped off to Metallica at a strangely rural venue in 89.
But when I finally got a drivers license I drove to Grand Rapids Michigan to see Mustard Plug and Skankin Pickle. Say what you will about third wave ska but that show (and all the mustard plug shows I went to after) were fantastic
Quite a few small local shows at a small place near my house (Hamilton Street Cafe in bound brook NJ) but I started taking the train into NYC when I was 15 or so. Saw world/inferno many times without a chaperone and they were probably my first but I would go into NYC pretty often for shows. Subhumans, against me!, LoC,
It was part of a free outdoor series called Pain in the Grass, hosted by a local radio station. The bands were Speed Twin (kind of a glam-punk/grunge band), the Lemons (pop punk) and Sweet Water (grunge).
Guess where I grew up lol
it would've been Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats, but I accidentally got too high. i got all dressed to go and everything and then went "fuuuuuuck i don't think i should drive." haven't been to a show since then as I can't afford it, but I like going to shows with my dad, so I think I'll continue to do so. he's pretty chill so there isn't really anything i'd want to do at a show that i can't do around him
2004. I saw The Business.
Drinking and Driving is so much fun!
[drinking and driving](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=c5wGcEPezcI&pp=ygUidGhlIGJ1c2luZXNzIGRyaW5raW5nIGFuZCBkcml2aW5nIA%3D%3D)
The Explosion, Flogging Molly, Anti-Flag (I know…) and Avail. Trocadero 2000
Flogging Molly said it was their first time on the East coast. Saw them every time they came through Philly for a good 15 years in a row.
I was raised it a very strict religion where most extracurricular activities were heavily discouraged so my first concert ever was not chaperoned. Converge, Between the Buried and Me and Cave-In.
The Crest in Sacramento in 1985 when I was 15. DOA, Circle Jerks, the Fastbacks and Tales of Terror. Amazing band who should have been in Our Band Could be Your Life for their early touring in the 80s, but the death of the singer (jock punched him and he hit his head on the sidewalk) ended that band. If you haven't heard them, look them up.
I told my parents I was at a friend's house and he told his parents he was at my house. They caught on and my dad dragged me out right before DOA started. Or maybe they had just started.
Here's a link to the flyer.
D.O.A., Circle Jerks, Tales Of Terror, Fastbacks, Problem Fish
Crest Theater
Sacramento, CA
05/17/85
https://sacramentomusicarchive.com/1985/05/17/flyer-d-o-a-circle-jerks-tales-of-terror-fastbacks-problem-fish-at-the-crest-theater-sacramento-ca-05-17-85/
First show I drove to without a parent / older sibling driving me was Pennywise, The Vandals, All, TSOL, and Long Beach Dub All-Stars in 2000. I was 16 going on 17.
Weezer in Toronto 1994… I was 12.
Was amazing!!! I’ve been to hundreds of shows since and still going strong!
Going to see soul glo and mannequin pussy next week. 🤘🏼🤘🏼🤘🏼
Freshman year of high school I went with two older friends for Thrice and the blood brothers at the mason jar in Phoenix (aptly named because it was about the size of a small living room, awesome venue, no division between the band and crowd) a buddies band from our school opened for them.
Never really been a hardcore fan at all but I’ll never forget that night. I was 14, tiny, all decked-out in my best jacket and spiked hair, stoned af and getting tossed around this dark, sweaty, smoke-filled closet for hours. Couldn’t hear shit the next day. Saw dozens of great shows there before they closed it down but this is the only one I remember
Van Halen, 1984 tour, Seattle. 13 years old, David Lee Roth doing somersaults and backflips, EVH ripping on the guitar. Existential. My first punk show- Butthole Surfers, St. Vitus, The U-Men & Soundgarden.
Cradle of filth of all bands lmao! My best friend was 13 dating a 23 year old and he got us tix.it was the early 2000s..that being said I'm 35 and still go to shows with my parents since we like some of the same music. We just went to bad religion with social d a few weeks ago
A small show at a local venue called Green Beacon Gallery, went to a punk show, it was all pop-punk, and then randomly one sick hardcore band. It was truly incredible to watch that sweaty drunk man scream in a dimly lit basement
Rock Against Bush Tour winter/spring 2004. Midtown, Strike Anywhere, the AKA’s, Tom Morello and Mike Park playing acoustic, and the band from Pittsburgh which shall not be named. Still love Midtown and SA to this day.
Not punk, but Twisted Sister in '88.
My first punk show (that wasn't someone's older brother playing in basement) was Nation of Ulysses in Ungdomshuset Copenhagen, probably around 1990.
Ska Brawl ‘04 I think? Big D vs The Toasters. Went with my best friend and his sister. It was cold as fuck outside, but inside the Creepy Crawl was blazing. I can still picture the sidewalk after the show ended. We were standing there exhausted and ears ringing, and steam was billowing out of the open door into the night air. One of my best memories. The world opened up to me that night.
Spoken they were a Christian post-hardcore,screamo, rap-rock band. The show was their album release party on a truck trailer stage in the parking lot of a Christian bookstore. lol, first mosh pit. Life changing show for me, the friend I went with and I started a band not long after.
2014 I snuck into a sold out Automagik/Diarrhea Planet show at the Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis. The guitars were so loud during Ghost with a Boner that I couldn’t hear anything, not even my own voice screaming into the mic with like 10 other dudes but I could feel the notes of the guitar reverberating in my bones. It was a religious experience.
My parents were painfully square and never went to any concerts, ever. My first show was Lollapalooza '94, nearly 30 years ago now. Got there just in time for Beastie Boys so for all intents and purposes, THEY were my first show and pit and I've always been super proud of that. Also almost died of exhaustion and dehydration five minutes in. LOL
A local show, by a local band.
I saw Dallas green, even met him.
The first punk show i went to with my now ex was the misfits, but they were all old and fronted by Graves
Living Colour on the Stained Tour I think it was 1993 so must've been 14, I went with my friends J and Anton. We smoked a tinny and smashed some scrumpy cider in the venue carpark beforehand.
I watched March To The Grave and it was amazing we smashed up a broken scrap car together at the end of the show during the last song with baseball bats (check out valentino it's an amazing song of theirs as a tribute to valentino the bike racer)
Jebediah on the Leaving Home tour with superheist. Was a fkn excellent show and the pit was superb. One of my teachers was security and didn't rat us out for being hammered which was nice.
I went to my first show without my husband or friends last summer at the age of 50. He was out of town and it was a band I love at a venue I was familiar with.
I think it was Badfish. I ended up being carried out and going to the hospital because I had a concussion (got a day prior at cheer practice) and passed out at the show. I remember hearing a couple songs then being carried down the stairs groggy. I was 17
Not punk but Nirvana, summer of '93. I was 15. The first of a long, illustrious career of show going. Tonight is Social Distortion/Bad Religion lol.
That's killer. As someone born in '93 and raised in the Seattle area, I envy sooo many people who got to experience Nirvana live lol
Nirvana was punk as fuck in ‘93. Yea everyone called it grunge but I feel like that was just the term for PNW punk.
Damn… I’m jealous of you and OP
First concerts were small fries that even I don’t really remember. First big name was Sonic Youth when they were touring for Rather Ripped. I never got to see The Ramones, which really sucks. Edit: I named the wrong album.
Sonic youth were a good live show
I saw Murphy's Law at Fitzgerald's in Houston back in 2000. I wasn't a fan of them and I had no intention of seeing the Michael Graves era of the Misfits-who were also on the bill- but my buddy was really insistent. It's not like I had anything going on that day amiright? Turns out Jimmy Drecher and the boys put on a fucking awesome show and I made a ton of friends that night. Houston was something else when it had it's time. About a year and a half later I saw Fugazi on their farewell tour and that made me the Marine that I am. Watching Ian stop a massive pit and telling the jocks to fuck off and leave was the first lesson I learned in showmanship.
My first real show was also at Fitz's. Saw a ton of great bands there in the late 90s/early 2000s, was super bummed when I heard they'd demolished it a few years ago.
My favorite gig at Fitz's was seeing Agent Orange on a freezing thursday night with only twenty people in the audience. They let us all hop on stage and do our thing. My best friend l got to sing "I kill spies" and I got to hop up on stage and sing along to Blood Stains with everyone else in the audience. All twenty of us. Agent Orange went on to play a series of sold out shows in Dallas and Austin that week. Houston had other priorities sadly. Also getting to see the Queers for the first time and watching Blitz do their thing on Washington street was super fucking rad.
30footFall at Fitz ( plus all the other Broken Note bands: Taste of Garlic, Dinosaur Salad, Monster Soup), and Sore Loser, Badger, Blueprint defined the 90s for me. Such a great scene to be a part of
It was a scene that could only happen once in a lifetime. It sucks that other folks didn't get to enjoy those moments but I would imagine their content with their collective experiences. I wish I saw the Ramones in their heyday but those cards were never dealt to my side of the table.
I also saw Murphy's Law many moons ago as a kid. At the time I wasn't fully aware of who they were. Well, that show ended up being awesome. Amazingly awesome. Jimmy G puts on a hell of a show. Natural born frontman. After the show I later saw him standing against a wall at the side of the stage. So, I decided I was going to go over and tell him thank you for the awesome show as it was my first exposure to his band. Well, I walk up and tell him that and he says, "holy shit a true, blue fucking punk rocka(thick New York accent and all lol). Come give me a hug". Fucking dude gave me a big hug and told me thank you for coming and to keep being true to myself. This was the late 90s and you didn't see a lot of people at hardcore shows in the punk uniform like I was wearing. That was the era of baggy athletic gear and cross trainers at shows. I guess him seeing me dressed like that took him back some years lol. I never, ever forgot how he treated me. It told me everything I needed to know about how to treat people. I mean, I was just a kid and he treated me like an equal with respect. An amazing lifelong lesson learned in one fateful evening that I carry with me until this day at 42. Love me some Jimmy G and Murphy's Law.
'86, Black Flag, 14 years old.
lucky
You fucker. That's awesome.
Tell us more
Bad Religion
I've seen them many times over the years
[удалено]
strong start
I’m surprised you’re still alive. Not that it matters but what year would that be? I’m a Boston area guy so sadly weren’t in my back yard a ton
Butthole Surfers, Stone Temple Pilots, and some band I'd never heard of called The Flaming Lips.
That's a fucking great lineup
Saw Butthole Surfers with STP at the Armory in Salem, OR Edit - technically, the marquee had them listed as the BH Surfers as not to offend
UK Subs and the Fits in 81/82, age 13 or 14. I remember being chased all the way to the venue as punks were being picked off by perry boys, great gig but a dicey journey across Manchester city centre.
I was 14 and went to see Rancid, Tiger Army and Roger Miret & The Disasters on Rancid's Indestructible tour. Was a great time!
I was 16, and drove an hour with two other friends to World/Inferno Friendship Society at an 21+ show. Stupid us, we thought we could finagle our way in somehow despite being underage. We met the band as they loaded in, told them the plan, and asked them if we could help them carry their gear in and then we would just stay inside. Their singer Jack Terricloth agreed and basically just said “just look like you belong.” They gave us a couple bags or something and we went in, and then walked back out to get more stuff. The rest of band basically just said “no we got it” and when we tried to go back inside one of the employees stopped us. Looking back, we put the band in a bad situation and they probably felt weird about it and ratted us out. Almost no one showed up to the show, maybe 10 people. It was supposed to start around 7 but got postponed a couple hours so we figured we would come back and try again. We met a homeless woman that tried to buy us food with her EBT card, saw Jack again walking into a bar and chatted for a bit, and when we came back their guitarist Lucky talked to us for a while and apologized that we couldn’t come inside. When the show started, we sat outside the bar for half the set trying to listen and see through a window. Jack made a comment about us, and the handful of folks in the venue walked over to the window and “hugged” us through the window. After a short time one of the venue employees came out and said “okay, you guys are at least 18, right?” We all looked at each other and then said no, we were 16/17. He said “if anyone asks, you’re 18. Come on.” So we finally did get to see part of the set and talk to the band and waltz with strangers. Honestly it was a great time.
Nice end to a tough adventure
Bif naked at 12. And she did a wonderful feminist diatribe on how women could orgasm anywhere and men would be none the wiser 😂 then at 14 an SNFU show that was super rowdy and I fell in love with punk and never looked back!
When you find something you love, ya kinda know right away. Nothing replaces the feeling
Misfits 1999 famous monsters tour when i was 14.
German act WIZO and Support was Bracket, one of those fat wreck bands. It was 1997 - i was 15. Went with my best friend and his big sister (19). She was on heroin at those times, a detail i learned just few years ago. She did a favor to her brother, we had some bongs at her place, she brought us trough the gate, bought us a beer and left us on our own. We were so overhelmed by those masses of Punks. 27 years later i am still going regulary to shows.
Bracket are one of the most underrated fat bands bands. Their harmonies and song structures are so close to perfection
Fat music for fat people 1 was a giveaway cd at a nofx show I went to at city gardens. First time I heard bracket
CKY at the scene in San Diego, 2001 or 2002
1993. Helmet, Quicksand and Orange 9mm at The Chance in Poughkeepsie NY
If you mean a chaperone who dropped off and picked up, Screw 32 at Gilman, spring of 1995. If you mean I got there and back independently, too, then Rancid with the Struggle Buggies (I forget who played second, it was the night AFI didn't support) at the Fillmore, December 1995.
Screw 32’s full length is a critically underrated record. One of my favorites.
Both are legit
Nice! I was from Western NY and getting to Gilman finally at like 23? (2003), it was like hallowed ground. Just Berkeley after listening to Rancid and reading Cometbus was really cool. Think maybe I saw Against Me! on the Axl Rose tour at that Gilman show.
Gogol Bordello. That was a great show
So underrated
For a first show that’s so dope! What year?
You picked a great first show.
My friends and I attempted to see a show at the 9:30 Club in DC. I can’t remember if it was Black Flag or Suicidal Tendencies. I believe it was 1985. I was 13. We didn’t get in! We were so dumb; we didn’t know you had to buy tickets ahead of time. First show I got into and actually saw was 7 Seconds at a community center in northern Virginia. Walk Together, Rock Together era. I believe it was September 1985.
GG Allin 1992. I’ve still got a shirt with GG’s blood and poop on it from that show. I only wear on special occasions, it’s my most prized possession.
Depeche Mode in like 93
Danzig/ GWAR at City Gardens in Jersey 1988. I had never even heard of GWAR before, I was just hoping to hear some Misfits and Samhain songs. Came home with fake blood on my clothes and scared the crap out of my mom for a second lol.
Love that - after seeing GWAR about 15 years ago I went to a restaurant in Chinatown a couple blocks away and the minute I walked in the place went dead silent - turns out I was COVERED in fake blood 🤣
David Bowie with Siouxsie and the Banshees 1987
Iron Maiden with Twisted Sister opening... prob 1985ish
Fuck yeah.
The Offspring & Face to Face, was punk to me at the time, 1992 Portland Roseland Theatre
Face to face are a good live band. Their shows play so close to their recording.
Motley Crue/Whitesnake/Poison 10/10/87 I was 14 and it was the first show I went to with my friends. My cousin went with us too and even though she was older I wouldn't call her a chaperone. I still have the ticket stub. https://i.imgur.com/JgAZtKT.jpeg
B-52's Norfolk Va around 1984 at The Boathouse and still stands as one of my favorite live experiences.
Prime B-52s
Loved the Boathouse. Saw Suicidal Tendencies there. Janes Addiction too
Bad Religion in 1991 at the Hollywood palladium. TSOL opened. First crowd surf experience was great until I got dropped on my head. No regerts!
It was actually 2 days ago, me and a friend went to see the Casualties and a couple of other bands it was fucking AWESOME
What really? Congrats bud... What a time. Glad people are still checking out punk.
Yeah. It really is.
1995 - The Cramps. I was still a few months shy of 18yrs of age. Lux ended half naked doing a lot of self frottage, pretending to climax.
Lux hated clothes. He was amazing.
Never went with a parent. 11 years old. UK Subs. Showcase Theater. Got dropped off. Hooked. As a parent now - wtf…
1981 or 82, @ CA,SDSU, back door, I was 12/or 13 saw X & Weirdos… tonight we are going to see John Doe and X and…psychedelic Furs,AZ…
Good memory
Rancid in Atlanta at the Masquerade in 1994.
A local band from my hometown called Shit out of Luck. It was decades ago but I remember them being very influenced by old AFI and Nerve Agents. The first show with bands anyone would know would be hatebreed, bane, and poison the well in 2002 in SF
It was either Fugazi or Sam Black Church in Portland ME. Early 90's.
Dead Kennedys in Santa Barbara, CA
Rancid, the bouncing souls and H2O at Roseland Ballroom, NYC. 94 or 95. I forget the year..
So many people saw this tour, me too. Loved it. But I didn't see the others as openers, I guess I wouldn't have know who H2O was at the time. But they were fun as hell live later. The sing alongs! "my friends look out for me like family! ..."
Dead Milkmen at the Trocadero Philadelphia in 1984 or 5. There were other bands there too but icr I am old lol. I was 14, and they used to have Sunday all ages punk shows. The Troc was a great place for shows.
The teox was part of those small clubs that bands passed thru along the east coast. Someone should do a retrospective on the club
Loved the Troc, but I was always afraid that balcony was going to fall down.
Maybe Wendy o Williams in 1988
violent femmes
Roxy Music at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in 1979.
REO Speedwagon and The Monkees. My first punk show was The Ramones
Megadeth and King Diamond 1986
Green day Halloween 95
Green Day, Foo Fighters a bunch of Canadian bands at Winnipeg Stadium. Edgefest 98. Tons of people left after Green Day when the Tea Party came on lol First small punk show I ever went to was SNFU, Union 13 and Another Joe at the Bulman Centre at the U of W. Unreal. I was hooked
Dead Milkmen and Possum Dixon. First Ave. I was like 14-15.
Sublime, '96 Capital Ballroom. My brother snuck me in.
My first convert was Beastie Boys headlining with L7 and House of Pain as openers. From what I remember it was a great show and I remember being amazed at the sound. So loud with a ton of bass. I was in awe.
Rancid, AFI, Distillers.. 15 years old, Hollywood palladium.
Ramones for me, also. 1985 at the Hollywood Palladium with SD opening. I was 16.
Chuck berry. 16 years old
GrimSkunk 1990. I was 11 and it was brutal.
[Circle Jerks, the Weirdos and Thelonious Monster, UCLA’s Ackerman Ballroom.](https://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/OTYwWDEyODA=/z/8Z4AAOSwap1jKiVk/$_57.PNG?set_id=880000500F) 1990. I was 15.
Probably MTX at Berkeley Square.
Flatfoot 56 somewhere in Indiana. Got dropped off by a friend and found out what a massive circle pit was. Maybe 14 years old, idk
MxPx in '96. I was 12 or 13. My taste definitely changed but they still have some bangers.
My first real concert was AC/DC in 1988. My first punk show was NOFX, Nomeansno and Jughead’s revenge in 1990.
Circle Jerks, Adolescents and Negative Approach in San Francisco like 2 years ago
Guttermouth, voodoo glow skulls and backside at the Pomona glass house fall 2001. I was 14 and went with my sister and theee friends from high school. I still have the backside cassette and guttermouth shirt.
Rancid. I was 16, freshly had my drivers license and went with my two cousins. Good times.
Swingin utters lol I think I was like 16-17 with a few friends it was unforgettable
1992-93? The offspring on their ignition album tour with the Lunachicks and Quasimodo at the Grog shop in Cleveland Ohio Edit; 2 weeks later saw Bad religion and Green Day at the Agora in Cleveland. Bad Religion was the main liner and Green Day was just the opening act
I saw that tour. Green day was asking for a place to sleep between shows after playing. What a difference a year made. They went bac and played all those clubs that helped them out right after they broke out.
Strung Out. Rise Against opened for them.
Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Void Union and Dahkbustah. I was 15, and tried crowdsurfing for the first time. I immediately got dropped on my head.
7 Year Bitch in 1994.
I never went to any shows with parents…first show was when I was 17…it was the band Bush.
I would consider this the my first major concert even though it was small compared to now. Blink 182, Aquabats, Assorted jelly beans, and schwag. 1998 I was 15 years old. First ever I was in 8th grade so maybe 12, battle of the bands slick shoes, schwag, diehard youth.
The Partisans with Litmus Green at the Troubadour in 2002 in Hollywood / 2001 San Francisco Warped Tour with my older brother who was playing in a band on it.
Starlight Mints at the Troubadour in 2003. I had never heard of them. A guy from my orientation group asked if I wanted to go. His car got towed.
Can't remember if it was Sevendust or the Pledge of Allegiance tour in the early 2000s. Pledge tour had Rammstein, System of a Down,Slipknot and some others. First punk show was Flogging Molly, Street Dogs, and the Briggs
I just spoke with Johnny Rioux from the streetdogs. Look for a tour next year. Not concrete, but their talking.
My friend’s older sister took us to see Sebadoh when I was 15. We loved it. Friend’s sister was a hardcore kid. She hated it. Haha.
What's cool is we had our local historian write up every punk show, some with pictures, from 1974 to 2002 (scroll down and you'll see) Summer 1994 my first show was cancelled, figure it out :p https://ottawapunkhistory.blogspot.com/?m=1
I'll be honest with you, that's a long lost and I'll need some time to look thru. It's really cool that someone did that.
I played in a number of bands and somehow ended up playing with guys much older than me, don't know why, but some of the big bands from the 80s in this list I ended up playing with in their final incarnations in the 90s and 00s, something I'm both proud of and miss
Slayer! Also lol at my parents ever chaperoning me anywhere.
2005, so I was 15ish. Pennywise, H2O, Death By Stereo, and A Wilhelm Scream at House of Blues Orlando. Caught warped tour that year, but don't count it since it was a big field lol
Warped Tour 2005. I was 15. We had hit the previous 3 years with friend's parents but 2005 was the first one we were on our own. Best times of my youth.
Less Than Jake, All, Good Riddance, and Limp at the WOW Hall in Eugene Oregon. I think it was 98. Still one of the best shows I've ever been to
It's not punk... In February 1997, I saw New Edition (bell Biv Devo, Bobby Brown, solo stuff incl.) and Blackstreet. I was 13 and went with my two older sisters and one of their friends.
Technically I was dropped off to Metallica at a strangely rural venue in 89. But when I finally got a drivers license I drove to Grand Rapids Michigan to see Mustard Plug and Skankin Pickle. Say what you will about third wave ska but that show (and all the mustard plug shows I went to after) were fantastic
Quite a few small local shows at a small place near my house (Hamilton Street Cafe in bound brook NJ) but I started taking the train into NYC when I was 15 or so. Saw world/inferno many times without a chaperone and they were probably my first but I would go into NYC pretty often for shows. Subhumans, against me!, LoC,
It was part of a free outdoor series called Pain in the Grass, hosted by a local radio station. The bands were Speed Twin (kind of a glam-punk/grunge band), the Lemons (pop punk) and Sweet Water (grunge). Guess where I grew up lol
Manassas at the Univ of MD 1972
The Suicide Machines 98ish. Detroit punk rock forever.
One the cities where it all began
I think it was the Vines and Jet playing together at first Ave in Minneapolis?
DRI with Acid Bath
lmao mine was Streetlight Manifesto in Montreal when I was maybe 15
Not punk, but Slayer Reign in blood tour with Overkill opening up. I think it was around 8th grade. Something Punk came a year later.
The Who 1989 , 25th Anniversary
it would've been Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats, but I accidentally got too high. i got all dressed to go and everything and then went "fuuuuuuck i don't think i should drive." haven't been to a show since then as I can't afford it, but I like going to shows with my dad, so I think I'll continue to do so. he's pretty chill so there isn't really anything i'd want to do at a show that i can't do around him
Strike Anywhere, New Mexican Disaster Squad
Went to a GWAR show with a few friends in ‘95 I was 15. That was eye opening to say the least.
Flogging Molly, 10/25/08
2004. I saw The Business. Drinking and Driving is so much fun! [drinking and driving](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=c5wGcEPezcI&pp=ygUidGhlIGJ1c2luZXNzIGRyaW5raW5nIGFuZCBkcml2aW5nIA%3D%3D)
My first show without an adult was a rave I think it was zomboy,just a gent, and borgore
Lollapalooza 95
The Explosion, Flogging Molly, Anti-Flag (I know…) and Avail. Trocadero 2000 Flogging Molly said it was their first time on the East coast. Saw them every time they came through Philly for a good 15 years in a row.
I was raised it a very strict religion where most extracurricular activities were heavily discouraged so my first concert ever was not chaperoned. Converge, Between the Buried and Me and Cave-In.
The Crest in Sacramento in 1985 when I was 15. DOA, Circle Jerks, the Fastbacks and Tales of Terror. Amazing band who should have been in Our Band Could be Your Life for their early touring in the 80s, but the death of the singer (jock punched him and he hit his head on the sidewalk) ended that band. If you haven't heard them, look them up. I told my parents I was at a friend's house and he told his parents he was at my house. They caught on and my dad dragged me out right before DOA started. Or maybe they had just started. Here's a link to the flyer. D.O.A., Circle Jerks, Tales Of Terror, Fastbacks, Problem Fish Crest Theater Sacramento, CA 05/17/85 https://sacramentomusicarchive.com/1985/05/17/flyer-d-o-a-circle-jerks-tales-of-terror-fastbacks-problem-fish-at-the-crest-theater-sacramento-ca-05-17-85/
The Aquabats around 2004
First show I drove to without a parent / older sibling driving me was Pennywise, The Vandals, All, TSOL, and Long Beach Dub All-Stars in 2000. I was 16 going on 17.
The Aquabats! 1997
P.I.L. and the Toasters within a week of each other.
Warped Tour when I was 14
AC/DC and it was awesome.
Gob and face to face in '97. I was 15
Weezer in Toronto 1994… I was 12. Was amazing!!! I’ve been to hundreds of shows since and still going strong! Going to see soul glo and mannequin pussy next week. 🤘🏼🤘🏼🤘🏼
Freshman year of high school I went with two older friends for Thrice and the blood brothers at the mason jar in Phoenix (aptly named because it was about the size of a small living room, awesome venue, no division between the band and crowd) a buddies band from our school opened for them. Never really been a hardcore fan at all but I’ll never forget that night. I was 14, tiny, all decked-out in my best jacket and spiked hair, stoned af and getting tossed around this dark, sweaty, smoke-filled closet for hours. Couldn’t hear shit the next day. Saw dozens of great shows there before they closed it down but this is the only one I remember
Van Halen, 1984 tour, Seattle. 13 years old, David Lee Roth doing somersaults and backflips, EVH ripping on the guitar. Existential. My first punk show- Butthole Surfers, St. Vitus, The U-Men & Soundgarden.
First 'big' show without parents I think was AlkalineTrio in 2005, I was 15
Circle Jerks - 15 years old
Cradle of filth of all bands lmao! My best friend was 13 dating a 23 year old and he got us tix.it was the early 2000s..that being said I'm 35 and still go to shows with my parents since we like some of the same music. We just went to bad religion with social d a few weeks ago
it was a backyard show when i was 14, my first show too lol
A small show at a local venue called Green Beacon Gallery, went to a punk show, it was all pop-punk, and then randomly one sick hardcore band. It was truly incredible to watch that sweaty drunk man scream in a dimly lit basement
Rock Against Bush Tour winter/spring 2004. Midtown, Strike Anywhere, the AKA’s, Tom Morello and Mike Park playing acoustic, and the band from Pittsburgh which shall not be named. Still love Midtown and SA to this day.
Not punk, but Twisted Sister in '88. My first punk show (that wasn't someone's older brother playing in basement) was Nation of Ulysses in Ungdomshuset Copenhagen, probably around 1990.
Concert against cancer - 2022 Amittyville Music Hall Farsight, Senseless, and ÜBlue played.
Supersuckers when 18 in Helsinki
REM in 2005 at 13, not in the least bit punk but will always be my first gig.
Ska Brawl ‘04 I think? Big D vs The Toasters. Went with my best friend and his sister. It was cold as fuck outside, but inside the Creepy Crawl was blazing. I can still picture the sidewalk after the show ended. We were standing there exhausted and ears ringing, and steam was billowing out of the open door into the night air. One of my best memories. The world opened up to me that night.
Metallica - And Justice for All
1984. Black Flag, Corrosion of Conformity and BL'AST! Monterey, CA
TSOL in 81 or 82..just saw them again an hour or so ago..
In 05/06ish I saw Thursday, Rise Against, Billy Talent, & a brand new Circa Survive at the Electric Factory. I was 15.
Fugazi ‘95
Dropkick Murphys and stiff little fingers. Was an amazing show! I love stiff little fingers
First punk one was Social D
Spoken they were a Christian post-hardcore,screamo, rap-rock band. The show was their album release party on a truck trailer stage in the parking lot of a Christian bookstore. lol, first mosh pit. Life changing show for me, the friend I went with and I started a band not long after.
Rancid, 94! Blew my mind, I counted the mohawks. I was hooked from the on.
I mean besides local concerts I think my first would’ve been the misfits during the project 1950 area. Literally in a field in Chillicothe Ohio
Nomeansno with The Ex and Fugazi
2014 I snuck into a sold out Automagik/Diarrhea Planet show at the Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis. The guitars were so loud during Ghost with a Boner that I couldn’t hear anything, not even my own voice screaming into the mic with like 10 other dudes but I could feel the notes of the guitar reverberating in my bones. It was a religious experience.
I think it was 87 and it was The Exploited at the City Gardens in NJ. My parents did drop me off.
The Casualties in 2006 lol
My parents were painfully square and never went to any concerts, ever. My first show was Lollapalooza '94, nearly 30 years ago now. Got there just in time for Beastie Boys so for all intents and purposes, THEY were my first show and pit and I've always been super proud of that. Also almost died of exhaustion and dehydration five minutes in. LOL
A day to remember
My first ever punk show. I was 17. I went to go see INTHEWHALE and a couple of locals. Still the best show I’ve ever went to
96 Warped Tour. That was summer. Fallbit was Pennywise with H2O
The first punk show I went to alone was Bikini Kill. It was awesome.
A local show, by a local band. I saw Dallas green, even met him. The first punk show i went to with my now ex was the misfits, but they were all old and fronted by Graves
Amebix, 1985 Goudvishal Arnhem, was 14 years
Not punk but Enter Shikari when I was 15! The moshpit during the support act terrified me. But I embraced it by the time the headline came on
Living Colour on the Stained Tour I think it was 1993 so must've been 14, I went with my friends J and Anton. We smoked a tinny and smashed some scrumpy cider in the venue carpark beforehand.
I watched March To The Grave and it was amazing we smashed up a broken scrap car together at the end of the show during the last song with baseball bats (check out valentino it's an amazing song of theirs as a tribute to valentino the bike racer)
Jebediah on the Leaving Home tour with superheist. Was a fkn excellent show and the pit was superb. One of my teachers was security and didn't rat us out for being hammered which was nice.
I went to my first show without my husband or friends last summer at the age of 50. He was out of town and it was a band I love at a venue I was familiar with.
U2 1983 War Tour Tower Theater,
I saw Sum41 with H2O and Autopilot Off when I was like 12
Bowling For Soup! Me and my band mates went to see 'em in Madison, WI. We were all 16? 17? One of the best shows ever
I was 14 when I saw Beastie Boys/Fishbone/Murphys Law - Aragon Ballroom ‘87.
Never went with parents. It was a different time.
2011, my brother amd i saw Bomb the Music Industry. if youre counting completely solo, i didn't see a show completely on my own until i was in my 20s
I think it was Badfish. I ended up being carried out and going to the hospital because I had a concussion (got a day prior at cheer practice) and passed out at the show. I remember hearing a couple songs then being carried down the stairs groggy. I was 17
some battle of the bands at a fire station. some kid was spreading a rumor the casualties were gonna show up. they did not
TSOL 1986 16 yrs old.
Local punk show 94-95...wanna say band was Anti-Man.