Having had a whale of a time delivering a Social Mobility keynote in London where I took the stage wearing leather leggings (and the doormen outside wore bowler hats - quite the contrast!), I went to Electric Brixton to watch Just Mustard, supported by Theatre; both female fronted bands.
Alongside the wave of nostalgia as I realised that shoegazing is BACK BABY (with a bit of extra groove) and the joy of being stood at the barrier with the bass vibrating in my chest, I felt a wave of revulsion at at the creepy old dude taking endless close-up photos of the female singers.
When bands aren't massive, sometimes the front row will contain multiple generations of family so, as the support act came on, I did wonder "Is that bloke the singer's dad or granddad? He seems incredibly keen to take her photo". But no. Enter Just Mustard and he did the same.
When you've got a pit full of professional photographers, what the hell is a guy doing with his smart phone out trying to capture the perfect shot of the female lead (and occasionally taking the odd photo of one of the male guitarists 'for balance' - you're fooling nobody, I bloody see you).
He wasn't upskirting, or zooming in on the singer's breasts or backsides but it was creepy behaviour.
It made me think how bold you have to be now to be a young woman and front a band. How invasive phones are in that environment and how blatant some men can be in photographing women for....for what? For your own 'special interest'? Gross.
I see now another reason why it makes sense for artists to ban phones at concerts. You wouldn't dare take photos at the theatre or the cinema, so why is this ok in a gig-going environment?
If you want to hear an artist's perspective - this piece on Wet Leg's experiences and why Hester Chambers now covers her face in photos and generally doesn't face the audience is a good one: Wet Leg: Our struggle with fame — and middle-aged men in the front row)
There's also this piece where a journalist calls out creepy behaviour at a Kylie concert: The worst gig-goers aren’t phone-wielding teens. It’s creepy blokes zooming in on female musicians | Music | The Guardian).
When I was little I was desperate sing on stage. And whilst I didn't have the network, knowledge or money to work my way in, I also didn't have the musical talent. And in some ways I'm grateful - today I get to perform in a way that plays to my skills and - vitally - one that feels safe.
Watching musicians play a tight set is inspiring - we should be offering them our attention and respect. And keeping creepy behaviour out of the picture.
So what to do? What the guy was doing wasn't illegal. Some would argue (I wouldn't) that singers are 'fair game'. I'd love to hear people's thoughts on ways to address this.
Soundtrack: Creep, TLC TLC - Creep (Official HD Video) - YouTube
