Has the internet (twitter, facebook and fan sites) spoilt concerts?

I ask as we are all (most of us) moaning about the set lists. I would say I am half moaning about the same songs being played and half moaning about the band not changing the set list enough if they are playing the same venue for 2 or 3 nights. God help those who have bought 4 or 5 tickets for different nights at the O2 if what’s happening in America is anything to go by. But I digress…

In the old days when I first started going concerts there was no way to know what the band played in previous shows unless you bought a bootleg (normally months after gig), went to other shows or read a review in a music mag.

When the band rolled into town every fan in the house didn’t know what was coming and when.

Now we follow twitter and facebook and all we do is moan (me especially!) when our fav songs are not in the set list or we see loads of the same songs from the nights before.

So has the internet ruined the concert? I’d like your views please……………..

It has taken some of the fun out of not knowing what songs the band might play but the concert experience hasn't changed for me. I still almost always seem to have a great time at the shows.

Perfect example for me is KISS. I saw KISS three times on the Alive 35 tour and virtually nothing was changed each time. I came out of the arenas each time saying I cannot wait to see them again.

It's easy to say yes, and to some extent, it's probably true. But at the same time, what it should be doing (and what it does for some bands) is it makes it better. They all know many people look online and see what the sets are. They should embrace it as an opportunity to challenge themselves as artists and mix things up a bit. Pearl Jam, Dave Matthews - Examples of bands that do this. Bon Jovi - Too damn lazy to even try.

yes and no, it´s sad to know the main set when i´m at a show, but at the same time its a sort of a force to look at the setlist after each show.

Yes, let's blame all evil on technology!

Ice

It depends on the person. I'd wager 98% of a typical audience would have no idea what previous set lists have been so their experience wouldn't be tainted. Then you have the people who scrutinise every show and can start predicting set lists, that's when the live show becomes a different experience than it should be.

So yes, for the small number of people that follow every show feverishly it has been spoilt.

It has ruined it for me. I would have preferred not to know, but it's not possible not to look

I definitely see where you're coming from. Maybe they're playing the same set every night, but I'd say at least 85% of the crowd doesn't know what the setlist will be. And even for the remaining people who did check out what kind of set they'd be playing, I'd say only a small handful of people would actually be disappointed (read: most of this forum's members)

Aloha !

Not really. If I'd go to Amsterdam I'd get the set. I'd then to 4 other shows in Germany, and I'd have the same result as looking up the set before I'd go to see the shows in Germany.

It's not like people who don't check the set won't expect the big hits anyway. This is the first tour with regulars in the set that weren't regulars before.

Salaam Aleikum,
Sebastiaan

Has it bollocks. For casual fans it's great to see what they are playing before going to a gig so you can make sure you listen to the more popular live songs, and as a diehard fan its gives you something to bitch about.