Paul K Posted December 17, 2009 Author Share Posted December 17, 2009 Nothing yet. Things are just the way they are, and they're only going to get worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul K Posted December 17, 2009 Author Share Posted December 17, 2009 Ha! Positive feedback from The Man; he understands the goal of our mutual success. We're back in the loop, and we're gonna be better than ever. Things are just the way they are, and they're only going to get worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy c Posted December 17, 2009 Share Posted December 17, 2009 Un-freakin-believable! Free download of my cd!. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Dan Posted December 18, 2009 Share Posted December 18, 2009 Ha! Positive feedback from The Man; he understands the goal of our mutual success. We're back in the loop, and we're gonna be better than ever. Awesome! Just goes to show - don't second guess yourself. Communication is a funny thing. It varies depending on BOTH parties of the conversation. OK, next question: What was with the pay? Was that a cut of the door when it was slow or something? Dude, you gotta get WAY more than that!!!! Beginning 2010, we won't even consider playing for less than $450 a head net. Now, I realize we're one of the higher paid bands in the area, but we aren't more than double the average. You ought to at LEAST be getting a couple hundred a piece. Of course that being said - it IS a business, and to get that, you have to bring enough crowd to justify that price. I understand the last show was a little screwed because people may have left since you weren't playing yet. But do the math. Assume $5 cover and a 5-pc making $200 a piece, 200 people and the door would cover you, then they have the profit of 200 people drinking - that's a slam dunk. Technichly they can lose money at the door and still make money. Where do you stand crowd-wise and what kind of payment are you negotiating? I'm sorry, I only ask because I know so many AWESOME musicians who are GROSSLY underpaid just because they don't negotiate properly for more money. I HATE to see it! Dan Acoustic/Electric stringed instruments ranging from 4 to 230 strings, hammered, picked, fingered, slapped, and plucked. Analog and Digital Electronic instruments, reeds, and throat/mouth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_Sweet Willie_ Posted December 18, 2009 Share Posted December 18, 2009 Ha! Positive feedback from The Man; he understands the goal of our mutual success. We're back in the loop, and we're gonna be better than ever. I am honestly surprised. That said, I still don't think I would've taken your route. Peace. --s-uu spreadluv Fanboy? Why, yes! Nordstrand Pickups and Guitars. Messiaen knew how to parlay the funk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ross Brown Posted December 18, 2009 Share Posted December 18, 2009 $100 a head here. We play every weekend. At $450 a head we would never play around here. "When I take a stroll down Jackass Lane it is usually to see someone that is already there" Mrs. Brown Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Dan Posted December 18, 2009 Share Posted December 18, 2009 $100 a head here. We play every weekend. At $450 a head we would never play around here. Don't be so sure. I never used to think bands got what we get around here, now I realize that there are some who make more. If you can draw at least 300-400 people pretty consistently, you can make that. Dan Acoustic/Electric stringed instruments ranging from 4 to 230 strings, hammered, picked, fingered, slapped, and plucked. Analog and Digital Electronic instruments, reeds, and throat/mouth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norwegia Posted December 18, 2009 Share Posted December 18, 2009 $100 a head here. We play every weekend. At $450 a head we would never play around here. The most I've ever gotten paid for a show is 5 bucks a head, and I gave mine up for gas money. D: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul K Posted December 19, 2009 Author Share Posted December 19, 2009 [ OK, next question: What was with the pay? The pay was $5 per person cover charge at the door. 9 people payed, but over 20 people were there at one point. And as I noted, lots of people left after seeing a jazz band. The place is small; 100 people paying the cover would be a hugely successful night. More than that would piss off the fire marshal. Since music is a hobby for me, I don't really look to make big money, as that would require traveling outside this centrally isolated one horse town while still being in shape for my day job Sat. 10:00am downbeat. My goal is to have a good time, pay my drummer and not feel like I was used on the drive home. I'm no gig skank. We'll see how much steam this current effort achieves. It's been hard getting the first gig, but the second ones have been easy. Things are just the way they are, and they're only going to get worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Dan Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 Maybe I'm just lazy. I mean I like to play, but I can get a bunch of friends together and play for them if that's all I want to do. If I can't make enough money to make it at least worth dragging all my shit out and putting forth the effort, then what's the point? How big is your town? You don't have any venues with live music that hold a few hundred people? $5 cover is standard around here, but you're talking about a couple grand at the door if you bring in 400 people, plus they're all in there drinking. Dan Acoustic/Electric stringed instruments ranging from 4 to 230 strings, hammered, picked, fingered, slapped, and plucked. Analog and Digital Electronic instruments, reeds, and throat/mouth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul K Posted December 19, 2009 Author Share Posted December 19, 2009 How big is your town? You don't have any venues with live music that hold a few hundred people? $5 cover is standard around here, but you're talking about a couple grand at the door if you bring in 400 people, plus they're all in there drinking. Ithaca is a city of 100,000, but that's including the students who aren't here 1/3 of the year. In town there are only three venues with a stage and house PA. We've got each of them booked for Jan and the first week of Feb. But that's it. All the rest are places that are actually too small for a drummer to use sticks in. I'm still booking these smaller places to drum up awareness that we exist. The big cities, Syracuse and Binghamton, are an hour drive away. We'd have no draw there at all, and these are 2:00am towns. It'd be real hard for me to make it to work in decent shape on a Saturday morning from there. There's a couple places in Cortland that have stages, but I'm having trouble getting my foot in the door there. I had one place interested until I asked for $280 for the band; he hasn't returned my phone calls since. Getting the first gig at these incestuous places is the hard part; second gig is easy. This band promotion thing is a pain in the ass. I spend almost as much time doing that as I do playing. Things are just the way they are, and they're only going to get worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Dan Posted December 20, 2009 Share Posted December 20, 2009 yeah, I guess my world is completely different than yours. If I were you, I'd probably focus highly on the college crowd and try to fill the bigger places during the peak seasons. You could probably maximize your income by having different rates during different seasons, and different venues. I've done this in the past, and to some extent now. We've even had different rates on Friday versus Saturday. It all depends on what the market will bear. EDIT.... Actually, You still ought to be able to do OK, even with only a population of 100,000 I would think. We occasionally travel a bit... an hour south or whatever. For instance, we do Mayfest in Perryville, MO. A couple thosand people show in a town with a population of about 8,000. Or Crown Valley Winery in Ste. Genevieve, MO (close to Perryville), where we'll easily pull several hundred people (from surounding areas). The difference is that those are probably big deals for those areas because they are once a year gigs. I guess what I'm saying still, is that it's about marketing. You may have to travel. But if you play your cards right, you should still do alright. PM me if you want. Dan Acoustic/Electric stringed instruments ranging from 4 to 230 strings, hammered, picked, fingered, slapped, and plucked. Analog and Digital Electronic instruments, reeds, and throat/mouth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4DOWN Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 Hi, I'm new to this forum. Did you consider that as the artist you have to try to get to the location you are performing at, to try to make sure you can perform properly? When I was a stage hand part of my job was to carry all of the equipment each gig. Unless the show as at a major arena, But for all other shows, weddings, block parties .. we carried all of the equipment. Then we always traveled early enough to have enough time to set up without the band being rushed. This includes setting up offstage when necessary If you can have a set person to scout the locations and have a firm contact at each place. I sure some of your sets will go easier.. I hope I didn't just echo other comments made here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ross Brown Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 I check out all new venues a week or two before we play them. I go when a band is playing. It does/has help avoid some confusion. Good point. "When I take a stroll down Jackass Lane it is usually to see someone that is already there" Mrs. Brown Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul K Posted December 22, 2009 Author Share Posted December 22, 2009 I also try to check out a venue ahead of time. THis time I wasn't able, as I went on vacation soon after the gig was booked. (FWIW, I still have tan lines. How sexy is that! Tan lines in December. Oh, but I digress. Was that T.M.I.???) I asked the others cats to do a pop-in; boy, that was pointless. And I asked them to bring the usual gear....just in case. And that didn't happen. But we did all get to the venue way too stinkin' early. There was plenty of room for us to bring in our gear, as there were only about four people in the room, plus the band and bartender. But no 'off-stage' area to discreetly set it up, since it's just a bar. Things are just the way they are, and they're only going to get worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric VB Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 I'm no gig skank.You say that like it's a bad thing. What's the 3 things? Money, music, members? As long as you like 2 out of 3 you're doing alright. No problem doing a project if there is no money in it. Success is just reaching your goals. If your goal is to play consistently around town then it sounds like you're there. Part of reaching goals is hard work. And in the music business there's a lot of ... um ... business. And if no one else is willing to lend a hand with that task -- hey, I love gigs where all I do is show up and play, too -- then you get stuck taking care of a whole lotta business, love. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy c Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 I would much rather be a sideman than a leader. Often the leader gets twice as much as a sideman (or a lot more), but the extra money isn't worth it to me when you factor in the amount of time and tsouris that a leader has to deal with. tsouris: Yiddish word meaning: heartburn or the outcome of a stressful situation; as in "I have two hours to find a drummer for a gig. I need this tsouris?" Free download of my cd!. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Bear Jew Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 You must be meshugga. \m/ Erik "To fight and conquer in all your battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists of breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting." --Sun Tzu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
picker Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 Hey Erik, I just saw Inglorious Basterds, and I finally get the "Bear Jew" bit. So, you got the bat? Always remember that you are unique. Just like everyone else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davio Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 You must be meshugga. No...this is Meshuggah: [video:youtube]4A_tSyJBsRQ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Bear Jew Posted December 23, 2009 Share Posted December 23, 2009 Hey Erik, I just saw Inglorious Basterds, and I finally get the "Bear Jew" bit. So, you got the bat? A real Bear Jew needs no bat--I beat people down with a dreidel. \m/ Erik "To fight and conquer in all your battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists of breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting." --Sun Tzu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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