I struggled with how to put it into words, and I can't really, except to say that I know exactly what el Barto is talking about. My first show was in 1982, in a hockey arena, and I saw most of the bigger bands of the day in similar sized places. There was a vibe to those shows. People looking to be seen, not in a Hollywood way, but in a party sort of way. Beers in the parking lot. Buying tickets for face value in the parking lot and even if it was a scalper it was more organic than some college douche making $100 hawking tix for "Corporate Ticket Express, LLC"TM. First Kiss show, 1983, watching a girl throw her bra at Gene. Then her shoes. Then her panties (watching her try to get them off - thus her throwing the shoes - was worth the price of admission right there). Then her attempt at her shirt (the guy with her put the kibosh on that), which led to her throwing her earrings, then passing out in the front row. Not that drunken debauchery is necessary, but you don't get the corporate types who shelled out $500 for front row doing that. Even the people in the pit, like at Maiden this past summer in Brooklyn, were more... predatory, like they were entitled to be there.
I saw the Black Clouds tour, and it was a theater and it was a very disciplined crowd. There was nothing dangerous about it (in fact, I saw Marlene, Max and Melody walking to their seats, Max sporting an impressive set of shooting headphones for ear protection). I can remember seeing Dio and Twisted Sister in '84 from way back on the floor, and during Dio watching the silouettes of chairs flying back and forth. It wasn't a fight per se, and it wasn't really chaos, but it was sort of reckless.
I don't know; these examples don't do the point justice, and I feel like they will be easily ripped apart, but it's the vibe that goes around it, not the actual events.