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July 18th, 2010
-Why No One Wants to See Your Band, and Why It Isn’t Personal
Written by: Sierra Christman
There seemed to be some kind of widespread panic in the media this month when it was reported that lackluster concert ticket sales have caused many artists to cancel numerous tour dates, and in some cases, entire tours. My response to this inexplicably shocking news was:
“Well, duh.”
It seems to me that when most artists can’t vend even a $10 CD, an artist selling a concert ticket for $150 stands little to no chance of selling all available seats, but the industry doesn’t seem to have followed the same vein of logic. Rather, because of the lagging album sales the past couple years, artists, record labels and concert promoters alike have put their heads together and come up with precious few ways to make up for the lack of funds flowing into the music industry. The number one idea being, mainly, more live shows.
Unfortunately for everyone involved, this has lead to a gluttonous inundation of live shows with ticket sales quickly surpassing the average $20-$40 mark. The law of supply and demand still holds true here, folks; when the supply of artists offering evenings of musical entertainment goes up, the average ticket buyer can afford to be more choosey, and with ticket prices ever higher (thanks to all those surcharges and online “convenience fees”) the audience has to be more selective. Frankly, I don’t have the money to see, for example, both Christina Aguilera and The Eagles at 50 bucks a pop, and really, we all know that they’ll just tour again next year, so what are we really missing?
Here we are then, between a rock and a hard place. As the consumer, do I want to spend the money to see a brand spankin’ new show, like Aguilera’s newest latex-laden album, or do I want to stick with my tried and true oldies faves, The Eagles? Sure, I may have seen the Hell Freezes Over DVD a hundred times already, but at least I know I’ll get my money’s worth. Can I afford to risk feeling like I just paid to see something I’ve already seen, or should I deal with feeling like I’ve flushed my hard earned scrilla down the drain with an act that I might be less than positive about? (Seriously, latex, Aguilera? Jumped on that Gaga bandwagon a bit late, haven’t we?)
You see my dilemma. So, in this position, I might choose to save my money and vacation days and opt for the Costco, music-in-bulk experience of shows – the festival. Ticket sales for Coachella this year were stellar, despite the hike in ticket prices from last year. Additionally, the lineup was better than a handful of singular artist tours, so it’s no wonder that kids were more than willing to line up and shell out serious dolla dolla bills, y’all, for the trifecta of musical success: reunited bands of yore, popular acts in the now, and new young’uns just earning their stripes and riding their soon-to-be waves of fame and fortune. Many acts, both new and established, are still enjoying the benefits of their triumphs at Coachella.
Granted, I may have lamented before that festival lineups this year have been less impressive than in years past, but when faced with the options at hand, it makes more sense financially to take my chances with 15 bands as opposed to 3, because festivals carry a higher probability of seeing a good performance.
Possibly the saddest and least encouraging part of this news is that it indicates a loss of interest in new and underground, independent bands. With less money to dole out, kids are less likely to take a chance on music they’ve never heard before, perpetuating a cycle of mainstream familiarity. The Gagas and Biebers of the world will still do well, while it may be increasingly difficult for the lowly garage band to book a weeknight show at the Whiskey. Fortunately, there’s still the internet and the freedoms of social media, great as equalizers of talent in the industry, but not necessarily the best capital earning mediums available.
So to all you musicians, bands, concert promoters, record labels, industry execs and the like, I offer you some advice on behalf of the audience, the listener, the consumer: give us a better product, perhaps, at a reasonable price, and we will happily wait with bated breath for concert tickets to go on sale, and most willingly pay full price.
Unless, of course, we can get a better deal on Craigslist.
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