Getting Down in Old Del Mar

"That crowd was freaking insane," says concert photographer Jennifer Hewett of the August 18 Alice in Chains show at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. Hewett says guitarist Jerry Cantrell was struck in the face by what appeared to be a purse or fannypack hurled from the general-admission audience.

"It was the last song, and when it hit him, he threw his guitar down and walked offstage," says Hewett. "The rest of the band kept playing."

Another attendee says, "A security guard told me it was a bag of weed someone tried to throw onstage to him, wrapped up in something."

Hewett continues, "As far as the crowd, the pits were just insane. I got punched in the face 'cause of some guy. For the most part, everyone that was up front originally left the front after all the pits broke out."

For this show, organizers relocated the fenced-off VIP area so it was no longer between the stage and audience. (Fencing was reportedly torn down by concertgoers at the August 12 Billy Idol show.) Two fences remained on either side of the stage; attendees who climbed them were told to get down by security personnel.

"I saw a guy having sex with his girlfriend from behind as they stood alongside the stage!" says the anonymous attendee. "The band could see everything."