<story><title>Jack White bans phones at gigs for “100% human experience”</title><url>http://www.nme.com/news/music/jack-white-bans-phones-gigs-2227093</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>jonnycomputer</author><text>My goodness, all those people who went to concerts before cell phones must have been so hardcore, taking risks like that.&lt;p&gt;My guess is that if you put your phone away you&amp;#x27;re less likely to hurt from, you know, other people doing the stupid stuff they do at concerts.&lt;p&gt;I understand that people want video, so they can post it, and get their dopa-soc on Facebook, or wherever, but seriously, musical artists (especially the ones who don&amp;#x27;t lipsync their concerts) feed off the audience&amp;#x27;s vibe. Its a two-way, not a one-way. Jack White isn&amp;#x27;t feeling the energy and is doing something about it.&lt;p&gt;I say, Jack should just take out his phone and sit there recording the audience, until the get the hint.</text></item><item><author>maxehmookau</author><text>I agree, the safety aspects of this are shocking and the &amp;#x27;be free of phones&amp;#x27; puritanism is a bit dull.&lt;p&gt;A _very_ strict code of conduct for attendees is something that can (and does) work.&lt;p&gt;Jazz pianist, Keith Jarrett has been known to stop his 4-hour long improvisation sessions in some of the world&amp;#x27;s most prestigous venues mid-flow to dress down an attendee trying to film him. People don&amp;#x27;t make that mistake twice. &lt;a href=&quot;https:&amp;#x2F;&amp;#x2F;www.theguardian.com&amp;#x2F;music&amp;#x2F;musicblog&amp;#x2F;2007&amp;#x2F;aug&amp;#x2F;09&amp;#x2F;keithjarrettsoutburstshouldbeapplauded&quot; rel=&quot;nofollow&quot;&gt;https:&amp;#x2F;&amp;#x2F;www.theguardian.com&amp;#x2F;music&amp;#x2F;musicblog&amp;#x2F;2007&amp;#x2F;aug&amp;#x2F;09&amp;#x2F;keit...&lt;/a&gt;&lt;p&gt;Unrelated, but I&amp;#x27;d be way more on board with this if the DVD of the show wasn&amp;#x27;t £30 afterwards.</text></item><item><author>davb</author><text>I experienced the Yondr phone prison last night for the first time (at a Chris Rock show). While I detest people being disruptive with their phones, I don’t think this is the right solution.&lt;p&gt;From a practical standpoint, it took a lot longer to get into and out of the venue when phones had to be locked up. Checking your phone when you pop out to the toilet meant waiting in a queue to have your phone unlocked, and being kept in a small penned off area. There have been a number of times when I’ve been split up from friends at large venues - not being able to text each other to meet up is inconvenient.&lt;p&gt;It doesn’t work. Unless stewards are doing a thorough search (which would be offputting in itself), people will manage to bring phones in. They did last night. Mine got locked up, my fiancées didn’t.&lt;p&gt;In the event of an emergency, this is a really bad idea. At the extreme end, you’ve got things like the Manchester bombing, where access to a phone would be a useful thing. But more likely it’s a fire alarm and subsequent evacuation, where you end up separated from your group. The venue last night (the SSE Hydro in Glasgow) said that in the event of an evacuation you should not attempt to have your phone unlocked but should leave immediately - sensible but if phones weren’t locked up, it wouldn’t even be a concern.&lt;p&gt;I think the solution is to simply enforce a strict “no phones during the performance” policy. Treat people like adults. If they break the rules, ask them to leave. Last night we were sitting in front of a very drunken, obnoxious heckler. After several people complained, she was asked to leave. This is how many venues handle it.&lt;p&gt;Interestingly, all of the venue stewards last night were wearing Yondr hi vis vests. They seem to be on a major marketing push. I really hope it doesn’t become commonplace.&lt;p&gt;The venue seemed to want to distance themselves from the decision, making announcements along the lines of “At Chris Rock’s request, phones will not be allowed at tonight’s show and will be locked in Yondr cases and given back you you. Consequently, Apple Pay will not be available tonight.”</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>throwaway43532</author><text>&amp;gt; My goodness, all those people who went to concerts before cell phones must have been so hardcore, taking risks like that.&lt;p&gt;I get the point you&amp;#x27;re trying to make, but to me this just reads like gatekeeping.&lt;p&gt;Cell phones &lt;i&gt;are&lt;/i&gt; useful and they &lt;i&gt;can&lt;/i&gt; make people safer. In a world with cell phones not having timely access to one &lt;i&gt;is&lt;/i&gt; riskier. In a world without cell phones it&amp;#x27;s a moot point.&lt;p&gt;The more interesting issue -- which others in this thread are discussing -- is whether the benefits of having a cell phone outweigh the harms people can cause with them, and whether policy can help strike an appropriate balance.</text></comment>
<story><title>Jack White bans phones at gigs for “100% human experience”</title><url>http://www.nme.com/news/music/jack-white-bans-phones-gigs-2227093</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>jonnycomputer</author><text>My goodness, all those people who went to concerts before cell phones must have been so hardcore, taking risks like that.&lt;p&gt;My guess is that if you put your phone away you&amp;#x27;re less likely to hurt from, you know, other people doing the stupid stuff they do at concerts.&lt;p&gt;I understand that people want video, so they can post it, and get their dopa-soc on Facebook, or wherever, but seriously, musical artists (especially the ones who don&amp;#x27;t lipsync their concerts) feed off the audience&amp;#x27;s vibe. Its a two-way, not a one-way. Jack White isn&amp;#x27;t feeling the energy and is doing something about it.&lt;p&gt;I say, Jack should just take out his phone and sit there recording the audience, until the get the hint.</text></item><item><author>maxehmookau</author><text>I agree, the safety aspects of this are shocking and the &amp;#x27;be free of phones&amp;#x27; puritanism is a bit dull.&lt;p&gt;A _very_ strict code of conduct for attendees is something that can (and does) work.&lt;p&gt;Jazz pianist, Keith Jarrett has been known to stop his 4-hour long improvisation sessions in some of the world&amp;#x27;s most prestigous venues mid-flow to dress down an attendee trying to film him. People don&amp;#x27;t make that mistake twice. &lt;a href=&quot;https:&amp;#x2F;&amp;#x2F;www.theguardian.com&amp;#x2F;music&amp;#x2F;musicblog&amp;#x2F;2007&amp;#x2F;aug&amp;#x2F;09&amp;#x2F;keithjarrettsoutburstshouldbeapplauded&quot; rel=&quot;nofollow&quot;&gt;https:&amp;#x2F;&amp;#x2F;www.theguardian.com&amp;#x2F;music&amp;#x2F;musicblog&amp;#x2F;2007&amp;#x2F;aug&amp;#x2F;09&amp;#x2F;keit...&lt;/a&gt;&lt;p&gt;Unrelated, but I&amp;#x27;d be way more on board with this if the DVD of the show wasn&amp;#x27;t £30 afterwards.</text></item><item><author>davb</author><text>I experienced the Yondr phone prison last night for the first time (at a Chris Rock show). While I detest people being disruptive with their phones, I don’t think this is the right solution.&lt;p&gt;From a practical standpoint, it took a lot longer to get into and out of the venue when phones had to be locked up. Checking your phone when you pop out to the toilet meant waiting in a queue to have your phone unlocked, and being kept in a small penned off area. There have been a number of times when I’ve been split up from friends at large venues - not being able to text each other to meet up is inconvenient.&lt;p&gt;It doesn’t work. Unless stewards are doing a thorough search (which would be offputting in itself), people will manage to bring phones in. They did last night. Mine got locked up, my fiancées didn’t.&lt;p&gt;In the event of an emergency, this is a really bad idea. At the extreme end, you’ve got things like the Manchester bombing, where access to a phone would be a useful thing. But more likely it’s a fire alarm and subsequent evacuation, where you end up separated from your group. The venue last night (the SSE Hydro in Glasgow) said that in the event of an evacuation you should not attempt to have your phone unlocked but should leave immediately - sensible but if phones weren’t locked up, it wouldn’t even be a concern.&lt;p&gt;I think the solution is to simply enforce a strict “no phones during the performance” policy. Treat people like adults. If they break the rules, ask them to leave. Last night we were sitting in front of a very drunken, obnoxious heckler. After several people complained, she was asked to leave. This is how many venues handle it.&lt;p&gt;Interestingly, all of the venue stewards last night were wearing Yondr hi vis vests. They seem to be on a major marketing push. I really hope it doesn’t become commonplace.&lt;p&gt;The venue seemed to want to distance themselves from the decision, making announcements along the lines of “At Chris Rock’s request, phones will not be allowed at tonight’s show and will be locked in Yondr cases and given back you you. Consequently, Apple Pay will not be available tonight.”</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>edgarvaldes</author><text>Yep, I don&amp;#x27;t get why &amp;quot;the safety aspects of this are shocking&amp;quot;. Shocking?</text></comment>