Quote from: FreakAnimalFinland on May 19, 2025, 10:51:09 AMI think Helsinki free noise shows might have the biggest % of crowd that has casual noise interests, but in sense that a lot of it is returning audience? I'm sure Helsinki organizer may have more insight about this when seeing what type of people generally come. My assumption is that many of them come back. You might not see them travel to other cities and buy merch, but it is one type of crowd who has level of genuine curiosity for live noise.
I discussed this topic briefly here (last question all the way at the bottom):
https://special-interests.net/main/iron-star-esoteric-pseudoscience/There definitely is a type of scene or audience, that's formed around the noise shows at the Redi shopping mall, at least.
Many of them I don't see at other shows, but they do seem to come to Noise Space regularly. It's a pretty healthy mix of local "scene" guys and others. There's an elderly lady in a wheelchair who's come at least twice now. Others also, in middle age and beyond, completely "regular" looking people, wearing regular clothes. They rarely buy merch, but sometimes you see them buy something, mostly just to support an artist. Usually at the same time they'll ask, where can I listen to more of your stuff online.
Also, teenagers whom I've gotten to recognize from one show to another. As you might expect, they spend a lot of time on their phones between sets, but seem to listen to the shows quite intently. I've mentioned this before, but here goes again: Moozz's "boob" shirts were a hit with the girls in this contingent. Otherwise they don't seem to have an interest in merch.
Once after I had played they asked about my equipment, and how "I do it", so I began to point to different things and explain what they do, and how I connect them to one another. Long before I had finished they had lost interest and drifted away. Only later I realized they probably expected a quick, precise answer, something they could google later and investigate on their own. I have even began to notice some Whitehouse and Atrax Morgue T-shirts with these kids, and last time one of them was sporting the anti-music symbol patch.
There are also often a few weirdos in the mix, and people who clearly are not well. But less than you might expect. Finally, we don't really get the undesirable, demanding and censorius noise tourist there, but that's hardly surprising, given it's a "safe space" type of venue, where almost everything they might object to is not allowed anyway. I've no idea how many of these people would feel comfortable, say, at the Kammio venue.
