Last Saturday, like most other Saturdays, I went to a show I won‰’t name because it was mediocre, but I will mention the things I noticed there. A show that isn‰’t holding your interest is the same as being in a class where the professor is droning on about nothing ‰ÛÓ the only thing you have to do is be hyperaware of the things around you. This state of complete awareness of my surroundings made me notice small pet peeves about venues that I’m usually too entangled in the musical entertainment to care about. The following are my top five pet peeves that most venues can’t get right (in descending order).

5. Bright Colored Lights

This may because I‰’m so used to basements and empty restaurants as venue spaces, but when I see this at established venues it takes away from the experience. I get that they establish ambiance on stage, but I‰’m there to see a musician, not a light show. I don‰’t want to see one of my favorite bands drenched in a harsh red light that doesn‰’t fit the mood of the song. I get annoyed when the lights become overbearing. If your venue has an employee working lights and they use a light, translucent color to gently wash the shadows on stage, go ahead. Have fun with it, as long as its enhancing the show. If I can barely identify the faces on stage because they are masked by massive blue lights, I could have stayed home and listened to the band with my eyes closed to create same effect for less money.

4. Too Much Bass

If I come to your venue to see a punk band and it sounds like an EDM show because of the overwhelming bass, I will be mad. This has happened to me in DC at a major venue and I wondered how in the world that sound engineer got a job. I want to feel the music in my bones, not the floor shaking. I guess this can depend on the type of music being played, but for the types of shows I frequent overuse of bass can impact my outlook.

3. Stage Placement

I‰’ve been to my fair share of different venues. My freshman year, I went to two shows a week at a now-defunct small venue space. No venue layout is more frustrating than the narrow vertically rectangular shaped room with the stage at the top. It makes it almost impossible to work your way to the middle, let alone the front, and it‰’s generally just a nuisance. It also causes the people in the back of the venue to get a different sonic experience than the people in the front, due to the sound being trapped in the front space.

2. Music Between Sets

If I had it my way music between sets wouldn‰’t exist. I know that‰’s not reasonable and people like it so I‰’m willing to compromise: if the venue has music in between sets and it fits the style of the show, it can stay at a low volume. When I‰’m at a big show, I‰’m usually with friends and I want to be able to talk to them between sets. If I have to scream just to tell my friend I‰’m taking a trip to the merch table, I become tired and frustrated. Forcing me to yell every snippit of conversation makes me regret the decision to leave my house that night.

1. Vocal Mix is Too Low

There is nothing worse than not being able to hear a vocalist at a major venue. Nothing. Major venues are supposed to be professional establishments with great equipment and trained sound engineers to mix the band so that the show-goer gets the best experience possible. I find that at 1 out of every 5 major venue shows I go to this is an issue. I did not pay $50 to see a band play instruments while their singer stood there whispering into a microphone. I don‰’t care if the rest of the mix is horrible. I can get over that, but being able to hear the vocalist is of the utmost importance.