Korn fills the rows

By JOSH HARDING

Now the mark of any good rock show doesn’t lie in the performance. No, no; that’s far too easy to assume. As a matter of fact, it doesn’t lie in the stage setup, the lighting or the sound system, either.

It resides within the audience, more accurately, in a special individual who may very well be the most enduring protagonist of the live rock show; ladies and gentleman, the shirtless drunk guy.

Now I can’t stress enough the importance of this person. It goes far beyond a simple superstition.

Would boxing be the same without the “let’s get ready to rumble” guy? Maybe so, but would we really be ready to rumble?

Local radio station KRZR put together quite a smashing event at the Fresno Convention Center on Wednesday night in honor of the station’s 15th anniversary of on-air debauchery.

The lineup included metal bands Skindred, Chevelle and Breaking Benjamin. Korn, the Bakersfield-based metal group that has had worldwide success in its 10-plus years together, headlined the show.

The arena was packed and parking had spilled well into the surrounding area, but the energy was high as concertgoers of all ages poured into the building.

We were anticipating a good show, with plenty of shirtless drunk guys to bless the concert with good rock ’n’ roll karma, not that the number of shirtless drunks actually correlates with how great a show is.

I’m sure there’s a rulebook out there somewhere.

The concert kicked off with a special set by Fresno band Six Ounce Gloves. The band earned the gig by winning a “Battle of the Bands” Tuesday night sponsored by KRZR. Mitch Gordon, the group’s front man, said the band has been playing together for about four years and has opened for big acts in the past, but nothing quite like the experience Wednesday night.

The band’s next show will be on November 19 at Big Game Studios.

Gordon hopes the exposure will earn Six Ounce Gloves some new fans. The band’s set certainly added to the overall intimate feeling of the show.

Breaking Benjamin played a ferocious set, maintaining the crowd energy all the way through.

Fresno State freshman Jennifer McGuinness enjoyed ground-level seats to the spectacle. Though seating was limited, and she said she and her friends arrived late, they were still able to get some wristbands from a security guard to join about 500 others on the floor level. Now that’s college-level hustling if I’ve ever seen it.

As the band played on, I had yet to witness the shirtless drunk, the belligerent mastermind of the night. I was getting a little worried.

Chevelle took to the stage inspiring many to take to crowd surfing. One by one, people were passed overhead to the front of the stage only to be escorted to the back by the event staff.

Fortunately, no one was seriously injured. American Ambulance paramedic Chris Camarillo stood by to handle the routine cuts and scrapes, happy that nothing major had occurred and that he was able to enjoy most of the concert uninterrupted, Camarillo said he is a huge fan of Korn and Chevelle.

“They pay me to be here, but I would gladly do it for free to see the show,” Camarillo said.

Finally, it had come time for Korn to set up.

The arena was abuzz as people tried to recover from the last set and gear up for the final plunge.

The stage transformed before the fan’s eyes as roadies worked their magic.

Toward the back of the stage, about 50 lucky fans filed into a 25-foot-tall replica of a cellblock, the stage design itself worked into a clever promotion by KRZR.

These fans had won the honor of being prisoners of Korn for the next hour orso.

Chaz Wheeler, webmaster for KRZR, joked that they would probably be safer locked up.

“All the crazies will come out when Korn hits the stage,” Wheeler said.

I wanted to believe him as I stood there contemplating the shirtless drunken guy, the missing variable to this rock ’n’ roll equation. It should not have been a big deal, but it was.

This had been a truly great show so far, all those folks on lockdown in the Korn cage and me; it was nearly complete, lacking only that small but vital part.

Suddenly I watched the crowd move as one as it opened up to expel what I had been anticipating much of the night.

The large pale fellow staggered out into the open, beer in hand, shirt nowhere to be found.

The brilliant spotlights beamed down from above, glistening off his sweaty torso, adding an angelic quality to his drunken aura.

I asked his name and he laughed and pointed at a tattoo on his arm that said “Pit Monster.”

Pit Monster is a resident of Kingsburg and a die-hard fan of both Skindred and Korn.

He said he has seen Korn six times live and has been going to shows all his life.

He gave Wednesday night’s show enthusiastic thumbs up as he showed off his battered knuckles.

I didn’t try to explain to him the vast significance of his being there.

I only looked at him and said “Pit Monster, do you realize that you are rock ’n’ roll?” to which he replied “I’ll drink to that.”