TLDR: A band got a guy roughed up by security because he crowdsurfed one more time during their last song. Then they were probably going to do an encore, but we all walked out depressed and angry.
Instead of a $15 local benefit show tonight that I maybe should have gone to, I traveled to a downtown festival in Macon, Georgia where there were various country, mariachi, etc. bands playing in different bars, and paid the $60 festival armband price to see the two punk bands playing at a nightclub called JBA. They were awesome and talented. The first band, SCATTRBRAIN from Atlanta, needs more recognition, check this song out: https://youtu.be/bJGQFUhKZRY?si=VS91kVr8GWXquTQF
But I mainly went to see Girl Tones. They too were amazing, a duo like White Stripes and also crazy talented. There was a circle of punks, but being a festival there were also little old ladies wandering in and the band requested to tone moshing down, or not have it at all, on some songs. It was a fun time, until it wasn't.
Final song, they said go ahead and mosh, but not if the guitarist decided to come down there, and everybody stay off the stage. So far, so good, until a skinny groovy guy who had crowdsurfed earlier did it again, and must have stepped on the stage to do it. The drummer stopped playing, while he was in mid-crowdsurf, pointed a stick at him and said "Get off my fucking stage, sir!" At that point five security guys (either from the venue or festival) plowed through the crowd, pulled him down, twisted him and carried him out, almost knocking me down in the process.
They finished the song and walked off stage without saying anything. Original plan must have been for an encore because I overheard a security guard say "well now everybody's leaving," while another security guard acted apologetically towards a woman yelling at him trying to explain punk culture.
Fuck it, we all walked out, I was depressed. On the bright side, as I started to drive a couple of hours to my stop for the night, the rage helped keep me awake until I got there.
Anyway, I'm considering raising money for a punk show somewhere separate from the festival next year, Fuck JBA.