Evaluation Essay 1st Draft

It can been seen at almost every show that has bands that play music categorized as metal core, hardcore, screamo, and many other obscure genre names that end in core. People in the middle of the crowd doing all sorts of wild punches, kicks, jumps, all in rhythm with the music that is being played by the band. Dancing such as this has earned the moniker hardcore dancing. Although modern hardcore music has become popular amongst many people, the hardcore dancing style is a nuisance because people look silly while doing it, it is more fun to watch the band than the audience dancing, and it can be dangerous for other people .
Dancing to music should be expressive and no one should feel silly while doing it, but do people really think that showing off their karate moves to a crowd of people makes them look cool? Self expression is one thing, but punching at the floor to loud music just looks silly. Is the floor the target of said dancers aggression? Did the floor wrong this person in some way? The answer of course is not likely. Jumping around doing roundhouse kicks and throwing punches has its place in a proper setting, but at a concert it more or less makes the person look crazy. Windmilling (the act of swinging ones arms around in a big circle) only evokes the image of a four year old walking towards their sibling and saying “If I hit you, its your own fault because it is obvious I am swinging my arms around, so get out of my way or you will get hit”. All of the acts described above are just some aspects of hardcore dancing, and all of them look ridiculous in a concert setting.
When people go to the concert, it is not unheard of that they would like to dance to the bands music. At the same time though, many people would like to watch the band and enjoy the bands performance. At hardcore shows, hardcore dancers generally take up a lot of space right in the middle of the dance floor. Now seeing as it is a dance floor, this may seem OK, but generally these bands are playing in smaller venues where the dance floor is really just the open space in front of the stage where everyone who wants to watch, dancing or not, has to stand. When hardcore dancers occupy this space, it is very distracting and takes away from the bands performance. It is hard to enjoy yourself and the band when you have to be worried about getting clocked in the head by an errant roundhouse kick or flying fist. Also because they occupy such a large area, it is hard to get in the area in front of the stage, leading to people who just want to watch to form a large perimeter around the sides of the venue, sometimes the front, and the area in the back behind the hardcore dancers. By doing this, unless you are in the middle of the hardcore dancing madness, you don't get a very good spot to watch the show.
The violent nature of hardcore dancing is also quite troubling. No one wants to attend a concert and leave with a black eye, concussion, or worse. Hardcore dancers doing flying kicks and throwing random punches in every direction frequently hit innocent bystanders. No one should have to worry about their personal health or safety when attending the show. Even though hardcore dancers generally don't intend to hurt anyone, more often then not, someone does get hurt.
Hardcore music is fun and exciting. While people should have the right to express themselves any way they want to the music (which admittedly is aggressive in nature), hardcore dancers should take into account that hardcore dancing does affect other people. The dancers look silly when they dance this way. Hardcore dancing distracts from the bands performance and sometimes can make a normally enjoyable experience miserable. Hardcore dancers also need to realize that they are putting other people in danger of getting hurt when they are not paying attention. Also, if an errant kick lands on someone with little patience, the dancers themselves may end up getting more then a dirty look from the person they hit. Hardcore dancing doesn't need to be abolished, but perhaps the dancers should start taking other concertgoers into consideration.