Re: Live Audience Attendance: Up or Down in your city?

[Toby G <carpet8@mac.com>]

I'm in Seattle.  Most clubs nearly fill up on weekends, and this is the 
local bands.  I think the bigger rock shows sell out, but nobody plays in 
the 3000 seat theatre anymore.  It's either the 1000 seat Moore theatre, 
small clubs, or a less often arena rock show.  For avant-garde stuff it's 
always a small crowd unless it's King Crimson or something.  Living Colour 
came to town and only 200 people showed up.  Very sad.

t
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Erdem Helvacioglu" <erdemhel@tnn.net>
To: <Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com>
Sent: Thursday, January 28, 2010 12:23 AM
Subject: Re: Live Audience Attendance: Up or Down in your city?


> hey.
>
> the live scene is in a struggle in istanbul too for sure. it is so funny 
> to see that the system has not changed at all. again it is the bands, 
>acts 
> who get supported by major labels or major pr that do get a chance to do 
> touring. if you are doing experimental or a little adventurous music, 
>you 
> do not have many opportunities.
>
> but on the other hand, there is much more opportunity for 
> producer-musicians. if you can produce a rock band, pop act, your own 
> albums, do remixes, and receive commissions from ensembles, festivals 
>then 
> you have a lot of new opportunities that you would not be able to 
>receive 
> before the digital age. you just need to be a engineer, producer, 
> composer, musician, lyricist when needed, that is all. this is the 
> exciting part of this new age for me.
>
> thanks and best to all from snowy istanbul.
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: <chris@christojota.de>
> To: "Loopers-Delight" <Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com>
> Sent: Thursday, January 28, 2010 9:57 AM
> Subject: Re: Live Audience Attendance: Up or Down in your city?
>
>
>> I´m from Germany, and have the same impression than you have for
>> the US, Rick. I think,the live scene is only increasing for some
>> of the well known, hip young acts, like Arctic Monkeys or so.
>> (not so familar with the new names...)
>> But the smaller acts, even quite famous bands  like
>> f.ex. GONG/STEVE HILLAGE BAND (double bill!)
>> who had an audience in Bonn/Germany (close to Cologne) at the Harmonie
>> in November last year of around 350, in Munich and Berlin it
>> were only 200 - are struggling hard to get enough people to the shows.
>> Not to talk about fairly unknown musicans
>> like me. I´m happy having 20 people at my shows.
>> And to even get engagements is very difficult, which you
>> can understand, because most promoters cannot make it
>> affordable with only 10 or 20 people attending.
>> This means for small bands/musicians: It´s not just the breakdown
>> of the CD-sales but also these problems with live-music that makes
>> it hard these days to catch a piece of the cake.
>> www.christojota.de
>> www.myspace.com/christojota
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- 
>> From: "Rick Walker" <looppool@cruzio.com>
>> To: "LOOPERS DELIGHT (posting)" <Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com>
>> Sent: Wednesday, January 27, 2010 2:34 AM
>> Subject: Live Audience Attendance: Up or Down in your city?
>>
>>
>>> Per said,  "The live scene is reported as increasing too, as I hear 
>from
>>> most countries."
>>>
>>> Not sure how it is in Sweden, Per,  but this is NOT the case in the 
>US, 
>>> or
>>> at least in Northern California.
>>>  There has been a rise in the number of live shows compared to how
>>> horrible it was here 5 years ago,
>>> but audience numbers are minuscule compared to what they were in , say 
>>> the
>>> early 80's in Santa Cruz.
>>> In those days,  there were several local bands that could sell out the
>>> Catalyst (809 capacity) with
>>> regularity.
>>>
>>> In 1993,  my band Worlds Collide played the Catalyst once and drew 
>close
>>> to 700 customers.
>>> We weren't asked back because our customers didn't drink enough.   700
>>> people
>>> is a hell of a lot of people.
>>>
>>> Nowadays, you are lucky if you get 50 people to come see a show.   Most
>>> shows have 20-30 people
>>> attending and most people balk at every spending more than $3-$5 USD 
>for 
>>> a
>>> show.
>>>
>>> I have a show this coming Saturday night at the Catalyst with Noise 
>>> Clinic
>>> and I"m afraid of what the
>>> attendance will be.
>>>
>>> Attendance, I've read, nationally, is down even in the 'big bin' shows.
>>> Many groups that used to be able to
>>> sell out the 'big bin' shows are now doubling and even trebling up on
>>> their billings to be able to
>>> make enough draw to justify playing such huge places.
>>>
>>> Tony Levin,  Terry Bozio,  Alan Holdsworth and Pat Mastelleto just 
>>> played
>>> a 200 seat club in Santa Cruz....................The last time Tony 
>came
>>> (with a lineup not nearly
>>> as famous)  he played a 700 seater.
>>>
>>> But Santa Cruz is an anomalous place sociologically speaking, so I 
>don't
>>> know if it is representative.
>>> We have vastly more live entertainment per capita than any place I've 
>>> ever
>>> toured in and we just aren't a very
>>> big city (60,000 plus another 40,000 in our environs)
>>>
>>> What's it like in your city and/or country.  Attendance up or 
>attendance
>>> down at shows?   Indie shows?
>>> Experimental shows?   Up or down?   I"m curious.
>>>
>>
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