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:	post by RustedAngel at 2002-10-16 18:54:34

moshing existed before agnostic front you boner.

"MOSHING: THE ART OF EXTREME DANCING
by CurvBall

What makes us jump around like rioting lunatics when we hear a certain band? Why does it provide us with so much enjoyment? Why do the punkers hurl themselves around in a massive swirling pit? What about those death metal types who swing their long black hair around? What possesses an individual to stand by themselves and impersonate a dying cockroach? Is moshing, headbanging, stage diving, crowd surfing and doing the pogo the same thing? Does the mainstream media look at moshing and label it "extreme dancing"? I'd bet my bruised and battered head on that one. I will tell you one thing, this artform, a mindless form of entertainment is something the uninitiated and mainstream people have no appreciation of.
Perhaps the origins go as far back as the dawn of time. Our Neanderthal ancestors used to jump around fires for rain, a healthy crop and praying to stay alive for yet another day without being crushed under the foot of some building sized mammoth. I guess after the one clumsy caveman tripped and fell into the others, another took it upon himself to club the guilty individual. This led to retaliation and after they lay in a sweaty blood drenched pile they realised the amount of enjoyment it brought to their routine and seemingly boring rituals. The following day the rain came, the crops flourished and no-one became a imprint on a mammoth's foot.
The next evening a celebration ceremony had to take place. Music came in the form of loud raucous ranting and shouting and out of time drum beats on rocks and hollow logs. I'm glad not much has changed. Believing that the previous night brought them happiness and good luck, the evening ended gloriously with a mess of bruised bodies, blood and sweat. A new ritual was born. This activity was frowned upon by the elders who considered this new ritual to be far too "extreme" or something along those lines. As time passed the ritual became increasingly popular amongst the young, misunderstood and adventurous. This growth invited new divisions or offshoots to be born. With their firm belief that these rituals brought them good luck, an abundance of food and less mammoth induced deaths, the cavemen unwittingly insured mankind's survival.
The classic swirling mosh pit, all too familiar with South African punk gigs, might have been a by-product of the American Red Indians. Picture the entire clan dancing around the campfire wearing their infamous headsets of coloured feathers, jumping with their knees held high, arms flailing and their mouths chanting. Sounds like a punk gig doesn't it?
It might be a safe bet to say without the American Red Indians influence, we might all be waving lighters at bands like Pennywise and Fuzigish. But how did this "dance" style make it's way into the punk culture? Sid Vicious, notorious bass player of the Sex Pistols, single-handedly started the pogo. Sid didn't like the "teddy boys", '70s jocks, and he wanted a way to enjoy the music as well as to hurt these "teddy boys". Thus the pogo was invented. Sid could have drawn inspiration from a Red Indian documentary he saw on TV one day when he was hammered. Maybe he comes from a Red Indian blood line? Perhaps the Red Indians were the original punk rockers, they did have the first mohawks...
With so much speculation as to the origins of the mosh pit, it's easy to forget what makes us jump around in the first place. The cornerstone, the catalyst, the foundation, call it whatever you want, for a mosh pit is the music. Without the alternative music of today and yesteryear, moshing would not exist. The Sex Pistols made it punk, Black Sabbath made it evil, Rage Against the Machine made it hip hop and today every punk, hardcore, hard rock, death metal, alternative, rapcore band has the power to transform a crowd of people into a pulsing, seething and at times destructively violent mosh pit.
The music pushes its way into a deep dark area we all have inside ourselves and unleashes a primitive force that has been dormant since the beginning days of mankind. There is a caveman in all of us, and most times it takes a few beers and raucous amping music for ancient forces to break free. When you go to your next live show and you're screaming and jumping around like a lunatic, remember that it's completely natural, it's a gift our ancestors left us and we should abuse it as often as we can. Rock on"

taken from: http://www.bluntmag.co.za/coverstory.html

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