[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Line dancing..... (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 1/9/2012 5:52:59 AM EDT
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It had been a while since I'd witnessed this "dancing,' but I went on a first date saturday with a girl to a rodeo and then a dance afterward at the same venue.
The rodeo was boring, except for the little kids riding sheep - that was the most hilarious thing i've seen in a while.  Man, those sheep haul ass, and the kid just buries his face in its wool and hangs the hell on.
As boring as the rodeo was, the dance was even worse; the boredom reduced only slightly by a generous application of booze. The girl I went with is big into lince dancing, along with her friends and just about everyone else there. The band would start a song and she'd let out a squeal and they all clomped out onto the dance floor in their boots and bigass belt buckles. I don't think there can possibly, in the entire world, be a weirder style of dancing. Unless I'm missing something, it looks completely uninspired and rote. Hardly anyone out there was smiling. They just looked like a bunch of wind-up robots, all moving in sync. Is there some hidden fun in this activity? At first I felt conscious of being one of the only people not on the dance floor, but as the night dragged on, I found myself being more and more embarrassed for the people dancing. 
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Though I've never done it, I'd imagine that if you're drunk enough it could be fun trying to do it right. Like a field sobriety test kinda challenge but without the nasty consequences for failure  FWIW, when I lived in WV and the local kids took us "corning", I thought it was the stupidest thing ever...at least cow tipping had some skill involved, but, different strokes for different folks...  Speed |
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Quoted:
It had been a while since I'd witnessed this "dancing,' but I went on a first date saturday with a girl to a rodeo and then a dance afterward at the same venue. The rodeo was boring, except for the little kids riding sheep - that was the most hilarious thing i've seen in a while. Man, those sheep haul ass, and the kid just buries his face in its wool and hangs the hell on.
As boring as the rodeo was, the dance was even worse; the boredom reduced only slightly by a generous application of booze. The girl I went with is big into lince dancing, along with her friends and just about everyone else there. The band would start a song and she'd let out a squeal and they all clomped out onto the dance floor in their boots and bigass belt buckles. I don't think there can possibly, in the entire world, be a weirder style of dancing. Unless I'm missing something, it looks completely uninspired and rote. Hardly anyone out there was smiling. They just looked like a bunch of wind-up robots, all moving in sync. Is there some hidden fun in this activity? At first I felt conscious of being one of the only people not on the dance floor, but as the night dragged on, I found myself being more and more embarrassed for the people dancing. Since moving to Indiana, I've come to appreciate some redneck culture in small doses. The percentage of folks here who wear "cowboy" apparel is small, but measureable. OK, I get the silly hats and the boots. But I still shake my head ruefully at the giant -ass belt buckles. |
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Line dancing was invented so folks could feel comfortable dancing by themselves. Some folks just like dancing when they hear certain songs. For the most part if you're at club, men who like to move to music are at the mercy of that one guy, one gal social norm. If you're not into dancing or moving to music, you're kind of stuck.
For a cultural perspective, most primitive folks don't have this problem. There doesn't seem to be a need for the male/female pairing for the sake of dance. So, in a way, the country folks have figured it out and created a dance for solos. Personally, when I see guys line dancing I think homo. Not true, but not for me. If it's not for you, then you either don't like the music, dancing or you're lacking confidence with your image. However, growing up in the punk seen dancing by yourself was the rule. I started going to gigs at 13 and dancing to the music was part of the ritual. And if you wanted, you could dance with others in the mosh pit but 99% of that was male. Every now and again, you'd get that rowdy chick with tits and so that was the goal to slam the boobs as much as possible. Great fun! Everyone has their own flavor when it comes to dancing and moving. It's neither bad nor good. It's just a human experience from the tribes of Africa, to Native Americans, to those costume wearing country fucks who just happen to be worst dancers at of all of them. 
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Quoted:
Line dancing was invented so folks could feel comfortable dancing by themselves. Some folks just like dancing when they hear certain songs. For the most part if you're at club, men who like to move to music are at the mercy of that one guy, one gal social norm. If you're not into dancing or moving to music, you're kind of stuck. For a cultural perspective, most primitive folks don't have this problem. There doesn't seem to be a need for the male/female pairing for the sake of dance. So, in a way, the country folks have figured it out and created a dance for solos. Personally, when I see guys line dancing I think homo. Not true, but not for me. If it's not for you, then you either don't like the music, dancing or you're lacking confidence with your image. However, growing up in the punk seen dancing by yourself was the rule. I started going to gigs at 13 and dancing to the music was part of the ritual. And if you wanted, you could dance with others in the mosh pit but 99% of that was male. Every now and again, you'd get that rowdy chick with tits and so that was the goal to slam the boobs as much as possible. Great fun! Everyone has their own flavor when it comes to dancing and moving. It's neither bad nor good. It's just a human experience from the tribes of Africa, to Native Americans, to those costume wearing country fucks who just happen to be worst dancers at of all of them. Great post, but whenever the subject of line dancing comes up, I feel compelled to point out that it isn't strictly a country thing. As in the last line dancing thread, I present Marcia Griffiths Electric Boogie (also known as the Electric Slide) as exhibit A. |
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A buddy of mine from Engalnd told me that our line dancing came from the English court style of stylized dancing, sounded plausable to me. But yeah, lots of people like it and why not, looks like fun.
On the other hand my neighbors whom I like alot, really good people, their idea of a fun night is to drink and sing Karoke, I lasted about ten minutes. |
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Line dancing was invented so folks could feel comfortable dancing by themselves. Some folks just like dancing when they hear certain songs. For the most part if you're at club, men who like to move to music are at the mercy of that one guy, one gal social norm. If you're not into dancing or moving to music, you're kind of stuck. For a cultural perspective, most primitive folks don't have this problem. There doesn't seem to be a need for the male/female pairing for the sake of dance. So, in a way, the country folks have figured it out and created a dance for solos. Personally, when I see guys line dancing I think homo. Not true, but not for me. If it's not for you, then you either don't like the music, dancing or you're lacking confidence with your image. However, growing up in the punk seen dancing by yourself was the rule. I started going to gigs at 13 and dancing to the music was part of the ritual. And if you wanted, you could dance with others in the mosh pit but 99% of that was male. Every now and again, you'd get that rowdy chick with tits and so that was the goal to slam the boobs as much as possible. Great fun! Everyone has their own flavor when it comes to dancing and moving. It's neither bad nor good. It's just a human experience from the tribes of Africa, to Native Americans, to those costume wearing country fucks who just happen to be worst dancers at of all of them. Great post, but whenever the subject of line dancing comes up, I feel compelled to point out that it isn't strictly a country thing. As in the last line dancing thread, I present Marcia Griffiths Electric Boogie (also known as the Electric Slide) as exhibit A. Wow, I had no idea that Will Smith was a dancer for Marcia Griffiths back then. 
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Was this guy there?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVxI9bV9TQA |
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Quoted: As in the last line dancing thread, I present Marcia Griffiths Electric Boogie (also known as the Electric Slide) as exhibit A. Holy hell. |
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Quoted: I line dance...not a fan of it but I'll do it. However, two stepping , triple two step and texas two step swing are among my favorite to do on the dance floor and it is a way to get a woman in bed afterwards. The two step always struck me as walking (and oddly, at that) set to music. |
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line dancing is a spectator sport grab a beer, belly up to the dance floor and watch the women..... 'bout it When I was a bit younger, line dancing was for the ladies only. Not many straight men participated. When a "line dance song" would come on, the men would promptly exit the dance floor and proceed just as NUC described above. |
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As in the last line dancing thread, I present Marcia Griffiths Electric Boogie (also known as the Electric Slide) as exhibit A. Holy hell. I used to own a sound system primarily for running live bands. I'd take the occasional DJ gig if I couldn't fill a date doing live music. Keep in mind, I started out working for country bands, so I was quite familiar with line dancing. One time, a lady booked me to DJ her husband's birthday party. They were black, as were all the other partygoers. I was the only white guy in attendance. I was fucking shocked when they requested the Electric Slide. I had never expected it, I didn't have the song, and it embarrassed the hell out of me. That was the day I learned that line dancing isn't just something that lame white people do. |
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Line dancing was invented so folks could feel comfortable dancing by themselves. Some folks just like dancing when they hear certain songs. For the most part if you're at club, men who like to move to music are at the mercy of that one guy, one gal social norm. If you're not into dancing or moving to music, you're kind of stuck. For a cultural perspective, most primitive folks don't have this problem. There doesn't seem to be a need for the male/female pairing for the sake of dance. So, in a way, the country folks have figured it out and created a dance for solos. Personally, when I see guys line dancing I think homo. Not true, but not for me. If it's not for you, then you either don't like the music, dancing or you're lacking confidence with your image. However, growing up in the punk seen dancing by yourself was the rule. I started going to gigs at 13 and dancing to the music was part of the ritual. And if you wanted, you could dance with others in the mosh pit but 99% of that was male. Every now and again, you'd get that rowdy chick with tits and so that was the goal to slam the boobs as much as possible. Great fun! Everyone has their own flavor when it comes to dancing and moving. It's neither bad nor good. It's just a human experience from the tribes of Africa, to Native Americans, to those costume wearing country fucks who just happen to be worst dancers at of all of them. Great post, but whenever the subject of line dancing comes up, I feel compelled to point out that it isn't strictly a country thing. As in the last line dancing thread, I present Marcia Griffiths Electric Boogie (also known as the Electric Slide) as exhibit A. Yes, Country Line Dancing is actually a sub-genre - and part of an overall country "image" that is quite intriguing, really. "Normal" line dancing rarely includes a specific wardrobe, for one - and tends to be much more limited in its repertoire. There is usually the electric slide, and one or two sings that actually tell the crowd what to do. There isn't the whole culture of memorizing dozens of dances for different songs. The NASCAR-tracked country bars, where couples race counterclockwise, two-stepping, is a fascinating thing as well. I always feel like an anthropologist in 19th century New Guinea or something when I go to those places - a complete fish out of water trying to understand a very foreign culture. |
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Line dancing was invented so folks could feel comfortable dancing by themselves. Some folks just like dancing when they hear certain songs. For the most part if you're at club, men who like to move to music are at the mercy of that one guy, one gal social norm. If you're not into dancing or moving to music, you're kind of stuck. For a cultural perspective, most primitive folks don't have this problem. There doesn't seem to be a need for the male/female pairing for the sake of dance. So, in a way, the country folks have figured it out and created a dance for solos. Personally, when I see guys line dancing I think homo. Not true, but not for me. If it's not for you, then you either don't like the music, dancing or you're lacking confidence with your image. However, growing up in the punk seen dancing by yourself was the rule. I started going to gigs at 13 and dancing to the music was part of the ritual. And if you wanted, you could dance with others in the mosh pit but 99% of that was male. Every now and again, you'd get that rowdy chick with tits and so that was the goal to slam the boobs as much as possible. Great fun! Everyone has their own flavor when it comes to dancing and moving. It's neither bad nor good. It's just a human experience from the tribes of Africa, to Native Americans, to those costume wearing country fucks who just happen to be worst dancers at of all of them. Great post, but whenever the subject of line dancing comes up, I feel compelled to point out that it isn't strictly a country thing. As in the last line dancing thread, I present Marcia Griffiths Electric Boogie (also known as the Electric Slide) as exhibit A. Yes, Country Line Dancing is actually a sub-genre - and part of an overall country "image" that is quite intriguing, really. "Normal" line dancing rarely includes a specific wardrobe, for one - and tends to be much more limited in its repertoire. There is usually the electric slide, and one or two sings that actually tell the crowd what to do. There isn't the whole culture of memorizing dozens of dances for different songs. The NASCAR-tracked country bars, where couples race counterclockwise, two-stepping, is a fascinating thing as well. I always feel like an anthropologist in 19th century New Guinea or something when I go to those places - a complete fish out of water trying to understand a very foreign culture. I was 20 when I finished at the Art Institute with high hopes of working in a recording studio. Instead, my mentor and guitar teacher hired me to run sound for his country and western band. He definitely wasn't the country type, but worked it anyway for the steady gigs and relatively decent money that C&W music afforded. Even though country wasn't my scene either, I soon found myself frequenting places like the Silver Star in Lindsay, TX (now apparently the Texas Spur according to Google), and W.W. Fairfield's (it's still there). As weird as the culture still seems to me, there's a degree of consistent kindness in the C&W world that doesn't seem to present itself in other genres. The people are generally mellow and easy-going, with less of the rock star attitude which one might find elsewhere. I've run across some pricks, of course, but the country scene generally possesses a low degree of entitlement culture. There is usually an honest willingness to work for a good show and a good time. It seems like a foreign culture to me as well. I'd take a country gig over a rock gig any day of the week, however, despite the fact that I'm a rock-n-roll guy at heart. |
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I do it twice a month or so at the local western bar. My SO is into it so she teaches me at home.
It's fun after a certain amount of drinks, and you can actually follow along, or lead the dances. But after too many drinks, you think you look go O'd when in fact you are falling over. |
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Since moving to Indiana, I've come to appreciate some redneck culture in small doses. The percentage of folks here who wear "cowboy" apparel is small, but measureable. OK, I get the silly hats and the boots. But I still shake my head ruefully at the giant -ass belt buckles. East of the MIssissippi, and north of the Mason/Dixon line. I don't get it. There's one person in Indiana who doesn't draw my scorn for dressing like that. Denny Reichard, at Sand Burr Gun Ranch, in Rochester. I don't know why, but he gets a pass with me. ETA: line dancing is definitely not a caucasian, country-western invention. has nobody ever seen or done a line dance to Strokin', byClarence Carter ? |
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I don't like it. However, it seems a lot more traditional than freestyle/individual couples dancing. Certainly bears more similarity to medieval dances (admittedly more complex ones) than getting out on the floor and "shakin it."
It looks absolutely foolish to me, and so do all the medieval dances I have seen. ETA: Look back through time to square dancing, across the ocean to morris dancing, etc. Line dancing probably represents the last of one of the oldest style of dancing around. |
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Since moving to Indiana, I've come to appreciate some redneck culture in small doses. The percentage of folks here who wear "cowboy" apparel is small, but measureable. OK, I get the silly hats and the boots. But I still shake my head ruefully at the giant -ass belt buckles. East of the MIssissippi, and north of the Mason/Dixon line. I don't get it. There's one person in Indiana who doesn't draw my scorn for dressing like that. Denny Reichard, at Sand Burr Gun Ranch, in Rochester. I don't know why, but he gets a pass with me. Western clothes makes no more sense south of the Mason Dixon line than they do in the North. It rarely makes sense out west. It is a costume for the most part - clothes purchased just to go out, and loosely designed to reflect traditional western work clothes. I expect entertainers to dress a part - audiences that do always weird me out. It is like a bizarro version of Saturday Night Fever. I have been tempted to by a full-out Mariachi outfit or Charro suit and wear it to one of those places. I have to admit, some women really make the look work - then again, some women make any look work. |
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I do it twice a month or so at the local western bar. My SO is into it so she teaches me at home. It's fun after a certain amount of drinks, and you can actually follow along, or lead the dances. But after too many drinks, you think you look go O'd when in fact you are falling over. But after too many drinks you don't really care. I'm sure I look like a fool when I try it but I don't care. You don't know 99% of the people there anyway and will never see them again. I've never had a friend comment about how bad I am later on...if they are good friends they should have had too many drinks at that point anyway and won't remember. So my take on it is just go out and enjoy yourself.
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