Uncomfortably Numb

Last night, Hunker Down played at the Lion's Lair on Colfax with One Time Experience, another band from Winter Park. It was nice of One Time to have us play with them. Those guys are great. The gig itself wasn't the best. First, we didn't know what time we were playing. I was told we were starting at 8, then I heard 9:30 and then the soundman at the bar said he didn't want music until after 11. We probably started at around 10:30. The soundman was awful--he took forever and deafened us all with piercing feedback as he tried to get us dialed in. The stage mix was pitiful and he was completely inattentive. The staff at the bar treated the musicians with no respect and threw off the vibe from the beginning. The bar itself was gross; there were bumper stickers inside the urinal in the bathroom. I felt thoroughly polluted by the end of the night. I appreciated playing together with One Time, but I don't want to play again at the Lion's Lair.
It seems that a lot of people "go out" just to self-destruct. The want to "lose themselves" and have fun, but they end up battering their brains into oblivion. They have the dark bar to numb their sight; cigarettes and booze to numb their smell and taste and feeling; and loud abusive music to numb their hearing. The bar turns into a tight room full of Helen Kellers dumbly bumping into to each other and grunting.
Music should celebrate the sense of hearing. A show should awaken your senses, not batter them into submission. I want to end a show feeling more alive and aware; more often than not, people end shows with half the senses they started with. I wish we could cut loose without cutting our heads off.