Encores: An Extinct Idea

I go to a good amount of concerts, almost all of which are with my father, who is in his 50s. These concerts are all kinds, ranging from jazz, to 70s prog (Yes, Kansas), and pretty heavy metal (Opeth, Mudvayne, Lamb of God), and almost every concert he comments on how people just don't cheer for an encores anymore. That Mars Volta concert was the latest example. After the band walked off, people cheered for a little bit, but then people quit. My dad always gets angry, wanting people to cheer and stay. It never happens. He always reminesces about the old days, when people would stay and cheer for twenty, maybe even thirty minutes until the band would come back out. Now it never happens.

What do you guys think? Does the encore exist anywhere anymore?

Deep Purple is a prime example, that encores still exist.


Edited by The Quiet One - September 11 2009 at 17:33

Okay, but I'm not talking about intermissions. I've been to plenty of concerts where the band walks off for a break and comes back out to play, because it was planned all along. I'm talking about when a band is done, the lights come on, and people cheer until the band comes back; basically, it is not planned.

I'm sure true encores occur a lot more with concerts of older bands.

I've never been to a concert without an encore. Weird.

In fact, I thought the thread was going to be about how encores are planned into the program...

J-Man wrote: When I saw Yes w/ Asia they did an awesome version of Starship Trooper as their encore. Not all bands are like that. The Mars Volta are just (if truth be told) a horrible live band

SCABDATES is the perfect evidence of that

There have been encores at pretty much every concert i've been to, except for festival concerts 
The most awesome encore i've seen/heard was when Zappa plays Zappa played "Willie the Pimp" right after "Bobby Brown". Damn, that song rocked my socks off!

by the mid-80s it seemed the encore had become de rigueur, usually built into a band's set list as a part of the show..lost some of the spontaneity but everyone expected at least two substantial encores

Well, I've been going to concerts for many years and I don't ever remember having to cheer for anything like 20 minutes to get a band back on

The first encore is usually something that happens pretty well automatically. Sometimes the band hardly even bother to go off stage! Admitedly the second encore usually needs a bit more audience effort...but not 20-30 minutes...

Encores That I have seen:
Rush
ISIS
Mastodon
Porcupine Tree
The Encore still exists today.........and The Mars Volta are a amazing live band, I dont know what the hell you people are talking about!

What he is referring to I believe the idea is different than it used to be... now its more like an obligatory intermission instead of a "true" encore.. in the past the bands used to HAVE to come back out because the crowds would not disperse until they did... Was a different thing than it is today..

Edited by Plankowner - September 11 2009 at 22:14