Mayhem (Very Long)

[firerat]

I started writing this this morning as memories were coming back to me. I'm sorry if it's a little long and drawn out, but my fingers wouldn't stop typing.

Some of you may remember I was asking in a previous post about dosing up some friends for a metal show.

http://forums.mycotopia.net/general-...rt-dosing.html (Suggestion's On Concert Dosing)

Well yesterday was the day and what mayhem it turned out to be!!

We ended up getting there a little late due to my friends moving like sloths in a pool full of glue. But not too late. We only missed like half of the first band, Whitechapel.

Well we get in the gates and wander around for a bit getting an idea where everything was. It was like 97F outside and no shade anywhere. Thank god I remembered to put on the sunblock. SPF 30 baby.

I ended up only bringing enough boomers for my buddy and I (which in hind sight was a good idea) so once we were familiar with the surroundings and bought a few bottles of water, we each popped 2 grams and made our way over to the stages. The non trippers were all going in the pits so we split off from them.

There were 2 stages facing one another with about 100 yards in between them. As soon as one band would finish, the next band would start. This made it a PIA if you had to use the bathroom or something.

Anyways, we watched the last few songs of Whitechapel, then about face to see Behemoth coming on stage. It's only been about 15 minutes since we took the boomers, so nothing yet.

Towards the end of the Behemoth set I started to feel the tremors that tell me it's time for lift off.

Behemoth leaves the stage, and now it's Godforbid. These guys came out blasting!! And the boomers started to take hold. Every song seemed to be faster and more intense. (as was that sun) People were headbanging, there was a great pit going, and there was me and my buddy, just staring, sucked into the music.

The set ends and everyone turns around to see the next band. I, being lost in the chaos, thought for a second "OMG they are all turning on me!!"
It was only for a second, but what a scary feeling.

The next band was The Black Dahlia Murder. Neither I nor my buddy had any interest in seeing them, so we decided to refill our water and take a breather. Even just standing in the hot Florida sun will take a lot out of you.

We took it easy for a bit, listening to the music in the background, watching the filthy people walk by. There was a booth selling some really cool macabre art that had me staring for a while. Maybe a little too long considering the odd looks I was getting from the cute blonde running the booth.

After the Black Dahlia Murder left the stage, All That Remains came on. Another band of no interest. The temperature dropped at least 10 degrees due to the storm that was threatening, so we made our way to the other stage, where Job For A Cowboy would be next, and sparked a doob.

Now I don't know if it was due to the smoke, the heat, the music, or the overall intense atmosphere, but the trip was starting to intensify. I was feeling very animalistic, like a predator searching for prey. I was pacing around, staring at people and I think I may have been snarling a little.

The area around the stage started filling up with more and more people. Before I knew what was happening, Job For A Cowboy started their set.

Uh oh.

I grabbed my buddy and we vacated to the back of the crowd in a hurry. I don't think pitting while tripping in this heat would have been smart. So much for a predator on the prowl huh.

Once we found a good spot to chill, we sparked another doob and zoned into the music again. Great set!!

When Trivium was taking the stage, I for whatever reason, thought I'd pop another .5 just to make things fun. Waste. Did nothing.(or so I thought) Oh well.

Trivium was nothing to write home to mom about as I figured. Interesting band just not my cup of tea. About half way through the set, we went over to the other stage to chill out. Cannibal Corpse were next and they are just sick!!

I started getting that animalistic predatory feeling again. My breathing started to get faster. I was making fist so tight my knuckles turned white. I look over at my buddy, and without saying a word, knew he was in the same place.

Cannibal takes the stage. We were kind of towards the back of the crowd when it happened.

MAYHEM

The first song starts and we snap. The two of us, tearing through the crowd heading for the pit.

My mind was in 2 places. One part was screaming STOP!! Don't go in there!! You have a bad back and you're gonna get hurt!!

But the other part was just growling. No real thoughts. Just blood red agression.

This part won out.

We got to the pit and just went batshit crazy. Slamming around like animals. I was in a zone and it felt gooooood!!! I haven't done this since I was a kid (and sitting here at the compuer with ice on my back and all my muscles sore as hell I remember why). The set probably lasted about 1/2 hour, but to me felt like an eternity.

The set ended and most of the people that were there were heading to the main stage, where the rest of the show would be taking place.

I was just standing there, staring off into space. I was sore, filthy, and my shirt was shredded.

What just happened? Am I hurt? Why does this feel so good.

My buddy was sitting on the ground rocking back and forth. I walked over to him and asked him if he was ok. He just looked at me, chuckled, and said Whoa. We both started laughing our asses off, not really sure why.

The first band on the main stage was Bullet For My Valentine. Or, as we put it, bathroom break. We did our business, and then went and sat at a picnic table for a while.

The rest of our crew showed up minus one. Apparently one of the guys got overheated and was sitting in the medical tent. Good thing I didn't give him any boomers. They kept asking us what happened. They saw us heading to the pit during Cannibal, but lost us after that. Neither of us said a word. I'm sure they all got a laugh from that.

The main stage bands played considerably longer sets than the other bands, and had a 10 minute break in between bands, so we had a while to chill out. We found a shady spot and sparked another doob. My heart rate had finally slowed down, and I was breathing normal again.

When Bullet finished, we made our way to the lawn to find a good spot for the rest of the show. We found a great spot center stage towards the back.

When Killswitch Engaged came on stage, buddy asked me if we should take some more, and I figured fuck it, why not. So another 1.5 down the hatch.

Killswitch put on a great show. There was a giant inflatable Rockstar Energy can in the middle of the lawn the got torn to shreds and had the security guards in their yellow shirts running around like ants after you smash their hill. Great stuff.

The tremors and rapid heart rate was coming back, but not in the animalistic blood thirsty way it was before. It felt more like I was a god peering down at a chaotic landscape of madness and mayhem.

And then Slayer took the stage.

The lights, the roar of the crowd, the pyrotechnics, and then of course the awesomeness of the music of Slayer had me just standing there staring in awe. (probably drooling as well) I absorbed every intense note. Held on to every word coming from Tom Araya's screaming mouth. It made me feel electric and powerful. I could feel the bass and drums from my head to my toes. The insanely fast guitar riffs ripped through me like bullets from a machine gun. It almost felt like fire would come out of my finger tips and lightning from my eyes. INTENSE doesn't even touch it.

When the set was over I sat/fell to the grass and just stared. There was an incredible fireworks display going on before my eyes. Someone was talking to me, but it sounded like the mom from the Charlie Brown cartoons. I glanced to my left as sure enough buddy is sitting there doing the same exact thing.

We sat there like that for a few and someone passed me a joint, which I stared at for a while until they took it from me.

My designated driver Turk asked if I wanted to stay for Marilyn Manson to which I quickly said no. I don't like Manson and he will drive this incredibly powerful feeling I'm having into the ground.

We got up, and walked to the car. Turk had to keep guiding me back on the path because I was drifting into lala land. We got to the car and had a cig before we got in to go home. He drove and talked to me, but I don't think I responded much. I just stared out the window a let the strange thoughts run through my head.

He dropped me off and I managed to make it inside. I stripped down took a shower, and crawled into bed quietly as not to disturb the missus. It took a while to fall asleep. The bizarre thoughts were still there as were some of the fireworks, but eventuall I drifted off.

MAYHEM ladies and gentlemen.

[Scratch]

Sounds like a good time.
Except for the jumping in the pit
and comming out with your
shirt shredded part.

[BuckarooBanzai]

Nice tale, man.

Slayer is in my top 5 bands I've ever seen live. They are absolutely fuckin' amazing. Melodic dissonance is your friend!

Nice tale. I woulda hung around for Manson, though...

[wildburr]

Wow dude that must have been intense. I would have never gone into a mosh pit to begin with no less on shrooms. good report.

[firerat]

I didn't plan to end up in the pit. It just sort of happened.

Like I said, I paid for it yesterday. I was soooo sore all day and had a headache that wouldn't quit.

I would have stayed for Manson, but his style of music conflicts with the music I'd been listening to all day and I feared it would make me feel different. I dunno if that's true or not, but I wasn't exactly thinking clearly at the time.

Check this out. I snapped a random pic with my phone of the crowd. Look towards the top. That was going on all day long while the bands played.

[catdaddy]

Thanks for sharing- sounds like a great day!

[MLBjammer]

Firerat, you are nuts! That was good reading. I would freak the fuck out in that metalhead crowd. I once got in a mosh pit at a Primus show, which is uncharacteristic of me. I am a Deadhead/Allman Brothers freak. It was my only moshing experience, needless to say.

I am glad you had a good time, though!

[HughMorrisLee]

very nice

[boots420]

nice. sounds like quite the interesting experience. def intense.

[Stryker636]

Reminds me of when I went to a local Metal show high as hell on pot and shrooms. I wish I wouldve of did a little more shrooms though but i decided to share with my girl lol and she noticeably tripped harder than i did lmao. But anyway we got there and decided to hit up the weed(we had already taking the shrooms about 5 min earlier) and we listened to the first band which had a really short set sadly cause they were great. Then the trip started to hit haha. During a mosh pit i was in, I looked up at the band playing and the lights were spectacular and i remember standing still forgetting i was in the pit and then im on the ground laughing my ass off. Then I just remember laughing a lot and seeing some kaleidiscoping visuals on the walls here and there, the lights at the show probably attributed that a lot haha. Then we had a wall of death, and as high as i was i decided to stand in the middle hahaha. Then I remember the singer saying stuff about the one side was this and the other side was that and then hes like "and kill the guy in the middle." Again i busted out laughing. And then i remember looking at the people on either side of me and for some reason i thought i was a viking or night or something alike and thinking the people around me was peasants from a village, The hes like like 3.2.1 gooooo and i get slammed haha. And surprisingly to everyone, even myself i was probably the only one the didnt fall. after the show ended me and my girl went outside and laid in the grass staring at the stars. I remember her saying something like "The spaceship is a star cloud" or something like that. And I remember thinking about it laying there and realizing it made perfect sense, but now it oddly feels like it does still but i somehow I cant figure it out haha then we went home. I remember it taking awhile for me not to still hear the music playing, laying in the bed. The closed eyes visuals were feint but i could still see them and they were choreographed to the music playing in my head. Then i went to sleep and the next day i was delighted with the wonderful memories of it.
Anyways nice story bro, brought back a memory that i havent thought of in awhile haha
PeAcE>