pietruszka Posted December 9, 2012 Share Posted December 9, 2012 I've just played a gig with my original band 'Chloe & The High Tides', now we know what the promotor is like so in a way I suppose we only have ourselves to blame. But he is the biggest waste of space going, the usual exploiting non paying prick. There is a poster in the venue we played with every live act on this month, and I mean every act. Except the one today, our gig. What a waste of time it was, not a single person there. Doing these gigs does nothing for us and I've asked the singer not to do any more gigs for this person. I urge anyone in the north east to not use this promotor and stay as clear from him as you can, being a public forum I can pm anyone who wants to know. And breath. Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wooks79 Posted December 9, 2012 Share Posted December 9, 2012 PM me, I'm nosy, and may be gigging more in the north east when I move back. What venue was it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted December 9, 2012 Share Posted December 9, 2012 It's funny how so many promoters never bother to do what their job title suggests, PROMOTE. but then even the arduous task of printing a few words on a piece of paper and sticking them on a wall is just way too much to ask of anyone I'm sure... In my opinion in situations like this it should be the band only that get paid because they did their part, and the promoter did not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pietruszka Posted December 9, 2012 Author Share Posted December 9, 2012 Exactly, but this guy is raking it in. You leave feeling really demoralised. I'm in a foul mood as a result to. I'm watching 'Dial M For Murder' and having veggie sausage rolls to wind down. Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted December 9, 2012 Share Posted December 9, 2012 If the gig is poorly attended, how is he raking it in..? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted December 9, 2012 Share Posted December 9, 2012 [quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1355097360' post='1894119'] If the gig is poorly attended, how is he raking it in..? [/quote] If he's booking loads of gigs all in a short space of time and getting a small fee from every venue, then even if he has way too many to promote properly (or just can't be arsed) then he could be making a reasonable amount of money I suppose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pietruszka Posted December 10, 2012 Author Share Posted December 10, 2012 [quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1355097360' post='1894119'] If the gig is poorly attended, how is he raking it in..? [/quote] Just as chris said really. He'll have a deal with venues whereby he gets live music in and they give him a set fee. One gig we did for him was the usual no one turning up, we cheekily asked the manager how much he was getting and it was over £100 with nothing going to the bands. And he wasn't even there. Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truckstop Posted December 10, 2012 Share Posted December 10, 2012 Well being a sunday I'm not surprised the place was empty! More to the point, you don't have any mates or anyone interested in your band? In my opinion you can't rely on the promotors for anything and you really need to grab the bull by the horns if you want to get any sort of following. You gotta get some flyers printed, give out free CD's, get some presspacks sorted out, good website etc. Youve spent money on gear and rehearsal space, but it doesnt stop there! People need to be aware that your band exists and I gave up on promoters a long time ago. The thing to do, is to try and get gigs supporting other local bands that have a small following. Do this by socialising with said bands, drink where they drink, rehearse where they rehearse and make sure you have good promotional aids to help you along. Even better, is to get hold of other local bands and arrange a small gig at a local venue yourself and charge a nominal amount to keep the venue happy and to encourage attendance. See if someone here won't hire you their PA rig get some flyers printed and canvass your market a couple of weeks in advance. If you want to be taken seriously, you have to take yourself seriously! Have faith in your product and get it out there yourself. The hard work doesn't stop when you've written all your songs! Truckstop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted December 10, 2012 Share Posted December 10, 2012 if he gets paid a small fee by the venue..and nobody turns up, then that will not last long at all, so from that POV, I wouldn't worry about him.. but the thing that bands get most nervous about these days is not getting enough people in. Bands themselves will not survive in pubs on that basis so homeowrk is required, doubly so when tickets are involved. But sure, you are going to have to determine what agent/promoter is worth working with. Our rule is not work for anyone doing anything we can do ourselves... as we rather keep the fee but that does mean the bands taking a lot of responsibility. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pietruszka Posted December 10, 2012 Author Share Posted December 10, 2012 [quote name='Truckstop' timestamp='1355124474' post='1894254'] Well being a sunday I'm not surprised the place was empty! More to the point, you don't have any mates or anyone interested in your band? In my opinion you can't rely on the promotors for anything and you really need to grab the bull by the horns if you want to get any sort of following. You gotta get some flyers printed, give out free CD's, get some presspacks sorted out, good website etc. Youve spent money on gear and rehearsal space, but it doesnt stop there! People need to be aware that your band exists and I gave up on promoters a long time ago. The thing to do, is to try and get gigs supporting other local bands that have a small following. Do this by socialising with said bands, drink where they drink, rehearse where they rehearse and make sure you have good promotional aids to help you along. Even better, is to get hold of other local bands and arrange a small gig at a local venue yourself and charge a nominal amount to keep the venue happy and to encourage attendance. See if someone here won't hire you their PA rig get some flyers printed and canvass your market a couple of weeks in advance. If you want to be taken seriously, you have to take yourself seriously! Have faith in your product and get it out there yourself. The hard work doesn't stop when you've written all your songs! Truckstop [/quote] With the greatest of respect Truck, we do advertise our gigs, we've played the Cluny in Newcastle both the main hall and the smaller Cluny 2, both to excellent crowds and have supported touring bands there (Ahab, Elliot Brood), again with excellent crowds. the gigs we've done off our own back have been well advertised and again we've had a decent amount of people attend. But every gig for said promotor, no one turns up. We played the Hoppings fair, it's the largest travelling fair in Europe. Theres queues of traffic everywhere and the car parks are full, yet there was no more than 10 people at the stage. I didn't see anything about live music for this event advertised at all. We do take ourselves seriously to, we have the backing from a few radio stations which have had us air play in the U.S. I'm not sure how venues keep hold of this guy, but the gig we did last night was the only one not advertised in the venue. No one knew there was live music happening and this particular venue is well known for live music and is always busy when there is music on. Even our singer lost it a bit with the sound man and told him "get your promotor to pull his finger out and advertise his gigs. You're ok you get paid, we don't even £10 for the band." He looked like he'd heard this a lot. The sad truth is, theres very few promotors prepared to take on anyone else, I've come across venues where they won't talk to you if you're not with an agent and this bloke is the only one giving us gigs. But theres no point in doing them as no one turns up. Also, there are new bands forming all the time which take the place of those who suss this knob cheese out. Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wateroftyne Posted December 10, 2012 Share Posted December 10, 2012 He's been around forever, so he's clearly found a model that works for him. Personally, I think these multi-band showcases are a hiding to nothing anyway. One of the original bands I'm in did a couple with him, and we realised pretty quickly there was no point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truckstop Posted December 10, 2012 Share Posted December 10, 2012 I meant no disrespect at all mate, I assumed you were a start-up band seeing as you were taking gigs from a guy that clearly has no interest in promoting bands or the live scene where you live. Sounds like you have your foot in the door a little at the moment and gigs like that really kill the momentum don't they? All I'm saying is, is instead of relying on promoters, do the legwork yourself! Truckstop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pietruszka Posted December 10, 2012 Author Share Posted December 10, 2012 [quote name='Truckstop' timestamp='1355144995' post='1894536'] I meant no disrespect at all mate, I assumed you were a start-up band seeing as you were taking gigs from a guy that clearly has no interest in promoting bands or the live scene where you live. Sounds like you have your foot in the door a little at the moment and gigs like that really kill the momentum don't they? All I'm saying is, is instead of relying on promoters, do the legwork yourself! Truckstop [/quote] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doddy Posted December 10, 2012 Share Posted December 10, 2012 [quote name='Truckstop' timestamp='1355144995' post='1894536'] All I'm saying is, is instead of relying on promoters, do the legwork yourself! [/quote] True,but if a promotor wants to put you on a gig then it becomes their job to do all of that. After all,the clue is in the name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted December 10, 2012 Share Posted December 10, 2012 I'm going to be a cage fighter. What do you mean [i]fight[/i]? In a [i]cage[/i]? You must think I am an idiot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pietruszka Posted December 11, 2012 Author Share Posted December 11, 2012 [quote name='Doddy' timestamp='1355152238' post='1894667'] True,but if a promotor wants to put you on a gig then it becomes their job to do all of that. After all,the clue is in the name. [/quote] Doddy, you are right! And this is the point I'm making with said bloke, what he really is is a booking agent as that's all he does. However, we had a gig last night with a new promotor called 'Need Music'. It more than made up for the night before, the room was full, people were talking, drinking, enjoying themselves, listening to music etc. A great relaxed atmosphere. We were called for an encore, were very well received and sold a few CDs to. I think we'll be keeping hold of this one as the gigs with him are worth doing. He has genuine kind words about us and is always keen to have us back, plus he advertises the night well and uses venues people want to go to. I'm happier now! Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barefootbassplayer Posted December 11, 2012 Share Posted December 11, 2012 I think the term promoter has lost its meaning down the years, I remember gigging ten years ago when decent venues would have a booking agent and a promoter. Booking agent would sort the bands out, promoter would get it advertised in the local rags, posters in the venue etc. Now people who are really just booking agents call themselves promoters without taking on that role. However, one thing I will say. In all of the original bands I have been in, we have always seen it as our responsibility to get people through the door. Advertising ourselves, facebook events, friends, families, drunks from the local pubs down the road...even though we have been fortunate enough to work with some great agencies who do promote their venues. The only thing I ever expect from a promoter is to put bands on the bill with us who will work just as hard to bring their own crowd with them so we can play to new people and they can play to ours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted December 11, 2012 Share Posted December 11, 2012 The term seems to be blurred these days. Many a booker/events organiser ..call them what you want, simply take the fee from the venue to fill up a slow night. It doesn't much matter what constitutes the 'crowd' as long as they have numbers in the bar that they wouldn't have anyway. If the 'acts' bring a few more alomg the way, then that is a bonus. A twist on this very old theme, is 'agents' nights where they will advertise for auditions ..and therefore the acts will be free and these nights all add up to numbers inthe bar. Whether these agents actually get gigs elsewhere for these acts or whether the venue books them theirselves doesn't really matter as long as the gravy lasts... A good and straight booker would perpetuate and build on this work by gettings a rosta of acts to book out, but you'd have to follow them a while to see what their plan is.. But sooner or later we come back to the age old issue of value .... and who gets it..because somebody will... or that is the plan. IT seems to me that the promoter in the OP must have some sort of working model or else he wouldn't survive..?? So I'd put that one down to the fact that some 'relationships' don't work and you move n.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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