Between all of us here at the Tone Deaf offices, we’ve seen a fair few gigs. It sort of comes with the territory, after all. Yes, the legends are true, working in music can get you free access to gigs and we’d be lying if we said we didn’t take advantage of that particular job perk.
But even between all of us here, even counting all of the free gigs and the ones we paid for (yeah, we still have to do that sometimes too), we’re concert amateurs compared to “Britain’s most dedicated headbanger”, 32-year-old Jeffrey Johns.
As Western Daily Press reports, Johns has been to more than 5,000 gigs, as many as ten a week for the past 13 years. Yes, we know you were prepared to scoff at Johns’ reputation and then we dropped that little statistic on you. We’re sorry.
Johns, who has Asperger’s Syndrome and dyspraxia, and battles with bouts of depression, went to his first concert when he was teenager and was immediately hooked. Over the years, he’s found live music helps him with his conditions.
He now attends shows every day of the week and will sometimes even see two different shows in one night. His ubiquitous presence in the Bristol live scene has made him something of a local celebrity and his presence at your gig is a rite of passage for bands in the area.
“I always find that I have some common ground with people at gigs and that makes it a lot easier to communicate,” he tells Western Daily Press. Indeed, fans have no problem communicating with Big Jeff, as he’s affectionally known, often coming up to him and starting a chat.
“It has helped me to feel a part of the community and realise that I can go out and meet other people and that I don’t have to be on my own all the time. I know that everyone there is going to be there for the same reason as me and that puts me at ease,” he says.
At six foot four, Johns is a gentle giant who’s become renowned for his fervent head-banging, enthusiastic swaying, and his undying love for noise. His signature pose is right at the front of the mosh, eyes closed, arms flailing, and body swaying.
It’s not just locals who consider Johns’ presence at their shows a mark of honour. Even globetrotting artists like Haim, Flying Lotus, Foals, and Bloc Party have hailed him as a legend, indicating not only Johns’ stature in the scene, but his eclectic taste.
“Different types of music have different effects on me,” he says. “Sometimes I’m completely hypnotised into sleeping and sometimes it really energises me. I generally veer more towards alt. rock than anything else – it’s my comfort zone – but I would like to experience more classical music if I could afford it.”
Johns’ voracious appetite has led him to concerts from some of the biggest touring artists in the world, including David Bowie, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Cypress Hill, The Beastie Boys, Muse, Blur, Moby, and even the Sugababes.
“In Bristol the choice is overwhelming, and most of the venues are really close together so I often walk from one gig to another on the same night.” So what does the schedule of the man who’s seen more gigs than all of us put together look like?
Well, according to Johns, who volunteers at inclusive arts charity Art and Power, he goes to at least five gigs every week, but the figure is normally closer to 10. As for those wristbands scaling up his forearm? He goes to at least 10 festivals each summer.
[include_post id=”449611″]
Naturally, it’s hard to keep track of all the acts he’s seen. “I do forget which artists I’ve seen live, but if they’re really really good then they always stick out in my mind,” he says. “Some people invite me to their gigs and I get in for free, but I still have to pay for a few – it would be completely bonkers if I didn’t.”
“When I can afford to pay for a ticket, it makes me feel as though I have the right to enjoy it more. I’m constantly tired but it’s worth it.” Of course, his celebrity status has its downsides, too.
As Noisey notes, one of his major pet peeves is drunken 14-year-olds coming up to him at gigs, yanking on his shoulder, and yelling, “Hey look, it’s Big Jeff!” But he doesn’t let it put him off sticking to his strict, 10-gigs-per-week schedule.
“I can’t really say that I’ll keep on going till I’m dead,” he admits, “but I wouldn’t be that surprised if I did actually end up dying at a gig, to be honest… I reckon that would probably be the best way to go.”
