I'm thinking about male performers here, you know.
Its like this, while I recently did some research on Hardcore in the first half of the eighties, I couldn't help noticing, that most of the singers liked to perform topless; also, that there were hardly any girls in the audience, but this is a different matter.
Anyway, I became aware that, not only do most of the bands I go to see, perform fully clothed, it would be generally unthinkable for them to take off their shirts. Too old and too nerdy probably. Also, for some strange reason, many of the bands I like, have at least on female member and I think the topless act is more common amogst all boy bands. I could be wrong here, but it always seemd a rather jockish thing to do in my view.
Some people can get away with it and some can't, yet by and large I find it somwhat inappropiate, unless it is done on an outdoor festival where half of the audience is topless as well.
Also, I would like to find out who did it first. I mean, everyone has this image of Iggy performing topless, but he wasn't the first, was he?
Who was it then?

i'm pretty sure that it was george washington who pioneered this sort of behavior.

Not Crap, when necessary. House shows, Converge in a place the size of your living room, David Yow anywhere, etc.

Going shirtless for 5 people who don't care who you are should be reserved for Oxbows only.

I can understand why drummers do it. Though I'm a drummer and I don't think I ever would. Generally it's just for tossers who want to show you their chest.

And Iggy who hasn't worn a shirt since 1958.

alright, you're talking about male performers, which is a little...whatever, i'll overlook that for now and wait for someone else to make a homoerotic joke.

the first *real* concert i ever saw (outside of the ridiculous boys2men show i was taken to when i was 10) was blur supported by the dandy warhols when i was a freshman in high school. zia from the dandy warhols performed topless and i think that's when i fell in love with live music.

shirtless laydees? not crap.
shirtless doods? no opinion.

Pantsless is a far more enjoyable way to rock it on stage.

this is kinda homo-erotic

well, yes, Henry Rollins said so in Punk Attitude about the whole hardcore scene. Like all those sweating bodies touching each other, acting out like tough guys.
Funny though that Mike Bullshit of GO! fame was the first openly gay hardcore singer.

tallchris wrote:Pantsless is a far more enjoyable way to rock it on stage.

I agree. Somewhere there exist photos of tallchris and I rocking in Olympia with trou dropped.