Regional Differences in the Art of "Hardcore Dancing"

I hate the title "Hardcore Dancing"

I understand that this style of dancing was first done on the east coast at Hardcore shows... but it just begs to be made fun of. And it does get made fun of, by the people that don't understand it and/or do it. They don't understand the appeal of what they see as just swinging your arms and legs around. The same goes for dancers too though. We don't see the appeal of running into each other and rubbing on each other covered in yours and other peoples sweat. This is all kind of deterring from the main idea of of this blog. The main idea is observing different styles based on what part of the country you're in.

It's kind of like different styles of food. Because regional differences in food are so different that they almost seem like different country's. In the south, if it isn't fried, it probably isn't going to be served. In New York City, it's all about world cuisines. Everything from every part of the world is smashed into one city. In the northwest, it is known as a vegetarian, vegan and organic hub. Maybe this is better explained as relating to accents and dialects of the same language. We all speak English, but different accents are sometimes very difficult to understand, to the point were we don't care to speak to anyone of certain dialects, myself included. I am from a place that has a very neutral dialect. So therefore I really hate talking to people with really strong southern or New England accents.

The same goes for Hardcore Dancing.

-I have not been very far east, but watching videos of eastern dancers has given me a tiny bit of insight into their style. They are fast, I mean FAST. And they really don't care whether or not they hit you and break your nose. They seem very inconsiderate of other people, but I am not criticizing them for it. It's what they were shown and what they know to do. They also utilize more of their whole bodies then I've seen anywhere else.

-I cannot really speak for anything in the south. The only thing I've seen is the Florida Two-Step. Which is very spread out and wide. But done to the same down beats we all step to. I would like to know if everything else they do is that spread out.

-The midwest style is something I have recently been witnessing. I am not technically in the "Midwest" but I am far enough into the country that I consider it to be. It's not the pacific time zone, therefore I'm counting it as not the west. Anyway, I have lived in Denver for 8 months now. And I have been to plenty of shows and seen what these kids are all about. Dancers in Denver are very groove oriented. They have special Two-Steps for various parts of the song. not many people cross-step like we do in the Northwest. So I got funny looks a lot. Instead they kick their legs backward in time to the beat. And during bridges that are down beats and are all drums, they move really slow and stand straight up while alternating their legs left and right backward, while keeping them together. Lots of kicking, not so much arms. More adept people do a lot of flips.

-Now to Oregon. There are three different styles in our fine state. The Portland style, the Bend style, and the small group of people that are in a tight circle that make up the Medford style.

A) The Portland style is a mix of East coast and Midwest styles. They dance a lot like the kids here in Denver, but without the different two-steps. And they have the disregard that the East Coast kids have.

B) The Bend style is a very well rounded style. They are up in the air a lot. A lot of jumping kicks, a lot of arm movement at the same time as leg movement. Very fluid, yet choppy. It looks really great in a big group. And makes the dancer seem like he/she has extremely long limbs. Bend dancers have a uniform that compliments their style. Loose fitting basketball shorts help with the high flying kicks. And tight fitting Puma's help with traction on the wood floors.

C) The Medford style, as previously mentioned, is made up of a very small groups of people. There are 5 core dancers that are moving at every show. There are a few others that kind of dance, but not really. I am in this core groups of 5 people. And the rest of them are 4 of the closest friends I have. Our style is very different from Bend or Portland styles. We are pretty considerate of other people and don't like to crowd kill, and we watch behind us and apologize for hitting anybody just standing there enjoying the show like they want to. We don't use a lot of kicks like Bend, and we also like to stay on the ground. Us Medford dancers are mostly arms, but without doing a lot of "windmills". We utilize the entirety of the "pit", we circle it while we are waiting for the breakdown, and when it comes a lot of the moves we do cross the "pit" from side to side. We borrow a uniform from different styles, although to the majority of us don't always stick to it. We borrow pullover hoodies from the east coast, we borrow our Puma's and other tight fitting shoes from Bend, and a few of us wear headbands, borrowed from Portland dancer style. Because their are very few of us that dance, we stick together at shows and we have to fight to dance in our own hometown. It is a constant war between moshers and dancers in our town. They like to slam into us when we aren't harming them in anyway. It gets to the point were we turn hostile towards them and end up kicking them to defend ourselves and to get them out of the way. It almost comes to blows a lot fo the time.

My style has been morphed a lot, I still don't do many kicks. But I am now a lot more groove oriented like the kids in Denver. I have sort of picked up the different types of two-steps, and I can't wait to show my friends how they do it in the Rockies. I will miss the constant stream of shows from good national bands...but I miss my friends more.


This was just my observation and reflection on the different styles of something that is so misunderstood by so many. If you read this, I appreciate it, and I hope you comment with something constructive.