MOSH PIT

The mosh pit is that boiling mass of sweaty humanity tumbling around in front of the stage – basically a large-scale game of chaotic wrestling.

To outsiders, it can look completely insane, violent or even dangerous. To the initiated, it is pure catharsis – a way of paying the band back for all that great music through raw energy and unfiltered joy.

It is not about fighting or knocking people down. It is about connection: feeling it in your body while you throw yourself around with hundreds of other happy maniacs. COPENHELL’s crowd are absolute pros at creating world-class mosh pits – but if you are new, keep these rules of thumb in mind:

1. Don’t enter the pit if you are too drunk to stand up. Mosh pits are like traffic in Copenhagen: chaotic, intense and if you don’t keep up, you will get completely run over.

2. If someone falls, stop immediately and pick them up. Don’t stop to think about it – you should react on pure instinct. Nobody gets left behind in the dust!

3. Keep your knees and elbows in. This isn’t a fight, and nobody likes ’crowd killers’. Don’t slam into people who have no chance of staying on their feet. A good mosh pit is like a dance – wild, yes, but everyone is invited.

3B. There are exceptions, especially at hardcore shows where the vibe is different. American-style pits can be… different, so if everyone suddenly spreads out and starts flailing like rabid chimpanzees, then that is probably what is going on.

4. Don’t grab or yank people around, and keep your hands off other people’s vests or clothes. Just throw yourself around like a wild, soft bowling ball like everyone else.

5. If you insist on standing absolutely still in “your” square meter of personal space right in front of the stage, be prepared for some territorial breaches. If you are ready to sell your right arm for a guitar pick or a setlist, or you want to see your face on the big screens, be prepared for the chaos around and behind you.

6. If you are easily provoked by physical contact or have a short fuse, the pit isn’t for you. Go in smiling, deal out plenty of hugs and remember: If you are not having fun, you are doing it wrong.