The bands play it hard and fast go ripping through their sets

[venta]

(It's just dawned on me that I rarely click on cuts when it's not obvious what's behind them. So why should you ? So, behind the below is a request for your thoughts on moshing.)

I've been vaguely pondering for a while about the dynamics of a mosh pit. On the dancefloor is a bunch of people piling around, looking pretty much indistinguishable from a fight, but as soon as someone falls over, people stop to pick them up. Two people might be thumping each other one minute, then singing along arms-round-shoulders then next. What's going on there, then ?

And yes, I do it too. I will happily hurl myself onto the dancefloor for Holiday in Cambodia, despite the fact that a bunch of bruises or someone's elbow in your nose is a fairly likely outcome. Why is this fun ? How many people take the entirely sensible view that no, that hurts, and they're staying a long way away from it ?

However, the reason for suddenly writing about this is that the mother (who's a columnist) (of the journalistic rather than fifth kind) is pondering writing about such things. So, as her part-time research worker, I have been requested to gather opinions.

So, what do you understand by the word "moshing"? My Dad tells me that all the cool kids in Darlington refer to the habit of barging into one another as, er, "barging". And I've known a lot of people use "mosh" to describe the keep-your-feet-still flick-hair-forwards-and-backwards I'm-listening-to-Metallica dance. (So have I just got it completely wrong ?) Would you use the word "mosh" ? What would you mean by it ? What other words might you use to describe dancing styles ?

Does anyone have any idea where the word "mosh" comes from ? And why the word pit ?

"For God's sake, someone teach the Oxgoths to pit!"

- Hatchet, c. 1999

Comments

[venta.livejournal.com]

Any idea when it was you first started hearing it ?

Slam dancing is a much more descriptive name. I like it.

[reddragdiva]

Mid-1980s. US hardcore punk. Rapidly spread worldwide through punk.

[reddragdiva]

Must learn to read. I'm talking about slamdancing itself, rather than calling it "moshing", for which I must confess I have no idea of the timing.

[zotz]

Late eighties, AFAICT. It seemed to come form the punk/metal crossover of the period - fans of Napalm Death et al - and gradually became the default UK term for it, because the metalheads had more professional magazines than we did. And took them more seriously.

[zotz]

I can't find a good dictionary reference online (with cites and dates and things), but OTOH the OED's word of the day is comb-over, so the effort wasn't wasted.

[venta.livejournal.com]

Does that mean you work in an establishment which has an on-line OED subscription ? I'm jealous :(

I wanted to check the OED, but my paper copy is second edition (published 1989), so I didn't expect it to be any help. I may have a look this evening, and will probably find that "moshing" is an archaic agricultural activity or somesuch.

[zotz]

Unfortunately not. I used to. It was great. Especially for showing that the appalling corruption or shocking misuse of a word is actually consistent with the oldest recorded usage of the word in English, which happens an awful lot.

[venta.livejournal.com]

Yes, I've noticed that too :)

If there's anyone reading who does have one (or access to a CD Rom more recent than 2nd Ed.), could they possibly look it up for me, please ?

triskellian, I think wimble said Brookes has one ? Of course, the person we really want is narenek, who works for OED, but he's annoyingly over here on a course instead of in his office...

[triskellian]

Yeah, I was just getting to that idea myself. Hang on a tick...