Pre-requisite: My First Riot, Part I
So Doris Vespa was a little underwhelming, but still enjoyable. Hopefully I'll be blogging about them again, from a show not filled with metal-heads.
Speaking of which, the next band was the second metal band of the evening, and this time the cops were prepared. I guess a lot of people had decided not to jump the fence during the first band (or had jumped back over? I didn't see it, but that would have been hilarious, especially since it would have been way harder than jumping into the VIP section), but the cops mostly shut them down this time. They were relentless, though, and a few got through here and there.
Also, even though it didn't seem like the mosh pit was any more violent than it had been during Existential Hate, the organizers apparently thought so, and Vicious Circle was interrupted mid-set several times so that the attractive TV-personality-host-girls, with presumably-organizer-frumpy-old-dude leering over their shoulders, could tell the crowd to tone it down or things wouldn't end well. This is when things started to look like they wouldn't, in fact, end well (brilliant deduction, Inspector Xave) - chants broke out at various points in time throughout the breaks between songs, and it seemed like the chiding had antagonized the crowd even more. Nevertheless, Vicious Circle made it to the end of the set, and with no more metal bands on the horizon, things were looking up.
The next band, Rioba, was the one my co-worker MC works with, and they were billed as (i.e. she described them as) a reggae/ska band. On this night, they definitely leaned a bit more toward the ska end of the spectrum, perhaps learning from Doris Vespa's mistake, and it was definitely to their benefit. They were great. Fun music, high energy - they got the crowd into it just as much as the metal bands had. By far the best band of the night. Here's a picture of their 2 lead singers (aside: when I met MC before the show, she was carrying a broom. I asked her why, and she said she didn't know, the band had asked her to bring it. You can figure it out)
Ultimately, this ability to get the crowd into it proved to be their undoing. Or, not really their undoing, as they were able to finish their set, but the festival's undoing. At some point shortly after their set, critical mass was reached. I'm not sure how or why (I mean, I do, but I'm not sure why it didn't happen after Vicious Circle), but soon the fence between the VIP area and the ultra-VIP area (only for bands and those associated with the bands, like MC) was torn down.
Before
After
Astute readers will note that the "before" picture was taken from the Ultra-VIP side. I was one of the first ones through. Good rioting, Dave! Mad props.
Anyway, it wasn't a terribly violent riot. After the wall came down, there was a brief period of beer cans (it's a very good thing they weren't selling beer bottles) and other garbage being thrown at the hosts and organizers on stage, who were trying to calm everyone down to no avail. I don't think anyone was hurt, but I did see one of the host girls get beaned with someone that looked a little heavier than a beer can - luckily, she appeared to be fine.
After that, the concert was over, obviously, even though there was still one competitor left to play, and also the headlining act, a famous band from Bogotá called Aterciopelados who are too accomplished (seriously - look how long their english Wikipedia entry is!) to be eligible for the competition.
So, even though I've said a couple times I don't want to pass judgment on these kids (who am I, someone's dad?) for their musical taste, I will whole-heartedly pass judgment on them now. The riot was beyond stupid. You are willing to ruin a great event because you're not allowed to punch other people in the face? Get a grip. If you think you were somehow "sticking it to the man" by rebelling against the stodgy, middle-aged bigwigs of the event, think again. They're the ones sponsoring a music competition that is FREE TO ATTEND, which features bands who play THE KIND OF MUSIC THAT YOU LIKE, and all they were trying to do was ensure everyone's safety. Now, this is going to happen: 1) nobody will win the competition, because not every band got to play, so it would be unfair to declare a winner. 2) Maybe the prize money will be divided evenly, but who knows if anyone will get anything. And these are local, low-profile bands, and they could really use the prize money. 3) in all likelihood, this competition won't happen again, at least not for a couple years.
In the less immediate picture, this is a blow to the general music scene of Barranquilla. Local bands are the backbone of a great music city, and this festival was the kind of event that could bring a lot of positive exposure to Barranquilla bands. So much for that.
Anyway, after things settled down, people started to calmly (!) file out. I wandered around, and eventually found MC behind the stage with Rioba. We waited around for a while, and then decided it was time to call it a night. MC and her brother hopped in a cab and suggested I do the same, but I had one order of business remaining.
I had to get my belt back.
Despite the excitement of the music, the mosh pit and eventually the riot, the discomfort of my pants almost falling down for 5 hours (how did we do it in grade 4?!) had been at the forefront of my mind all night. MC had all but told me there was no way I was getting it back, but I was less hopeless. And sure enough: within 5 minutes of walking around the stadium I found a belt lady returning belts to their rightful owners. Each one had been tagged, so I found my belt quickly, and was soon in a cab on my way home, comfortable for the first time all night.
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