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"Double bookings".... Fuming isn't the word


Modman
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As some of our band mates think that they are on tour with Genesis, we only play parties / functions where the client has seen us and that are booked well in advance, so we have a contract / booking form - this is essentially a checklist to say we will need a few things like floorspace, a set up time and sound check and a running order of the evening, which also allows the client to ask a few questions. to date its also avoided double bookings.

Years ago in a different band we were once double booked at a pub, we split the set up so the other band played, we played and then we did a big jam at the end - making the best of bad job, good fun too.

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[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1434353044' post='2798761']
But a pub running bands once a week is investing £13,000 in a year. they wouldn't do this without thinking it through in any other area of their work
[/quote]

We got dropped by a pub last year. The landlord said he spent £40,000 a year on entertainment and needed to put bums on seats, and we didn't bring enough. Several of his bands didn't. IME cover bands generally don't bring a ready audience, especially when they are doing 80+ gigs a year, but he wanted young local bands who would pack the place with their mates. I really don't see that happening twice a week for 52 weeks of the year.

These places need to generate their own audience for band/music nights who will be loyal to the venue and turn out to see the bands, week after week.

The guy liked us, we did several of his private parties, but his town center pub didn't hold on to the punters for very long. The band is an easy scape goat.

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All the above is sadly too true. It amazes me how little effort venues put in to promoting gigs. We we have had some not even mention it on their website/Facebook. It takes very little effort to do a little promoting, just update your calendar, create a Facebook event and invite everyone who like your page.
Others are the complete opposite, we had one ask for the graphic for our posters so he could get a larger version blown up for his billboard, which fronts a busy rd, also pushing it via social media. A little effort makes a huge difference. I can't imagine why pubs are shutting down these days ...

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We had a Saturday night gig at The Divers in Tobermory on the Isle of Mull, which was taking a bit longer to get to than we thought ... there was a good chance of missing the ferry if we didn't utterly hare it across the mountains on the Ardnamurchan Peninsula in our old van. Fortunately, there was nothing coming the other way and not too many sheep in the road, and we made the Lochaline ferry with minutes to spare.

On arriving at the gig around tea-time, we found a jazz band already set up. Much dismay was in evidence.

To be fair, the landlord stood us dinner and free beer for the evening, put us up for the night (part of the original gig deal), and let us play Sunday afternoon instead.

All's well that ends well etc.

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[quote name='HengistPod' timestamp='1434465474' post='2799866']
On arriving at the gig around tea-time, we found a jazz band already set up. Much dismay was in evidence.
[/quote]

If that had happened to me (and if they hadn't been as nice as they were to you), they'd have had to redraw the map of Mull as half of it would have been vaporised in a massive explosion of frustration and anger ;)

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[quote name='HengistPod' timestamp='1434465474' post='2799866']
We had a Saturday night gig at The Divers in Tobermory on the Isle of Mull, which was taking a bit longer to get to than we thought ... there was a good chance of missing the ferry if we didn't utterly hare it across the mountains on the Ardnamurchan Peninsula in our old van. Fortunately, there was nothing coming the other way and not too many sheep in the road, and we made the Lochaline ferry with minutes to spare.

On arriving at the gig around tea-time, we found a jazz band already set up. Much dismay was in evidence.

To be fair, the landlord stood us dinner and free beer for the evening, put us up for the night (part of the original gig deal), and let us play Sunday afternoon instead.

All's well that ends well etc.
[/quote]

I can't get my head around this...

I'm glad it worked out tho..

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We've given up playing on mull. Every time we arrived , we were told, oh there's a 21st on at such and such, or oh, Skerryvore are playing at such and such! We just got sick of rubbish nights where the booked us knowing something big was on somewhere else. It's not exactly a double booking, but on an island in the west of Scotland, it's as good as!

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[quote name='UglyDog' timestamp='1434707345' post='2801998']
There's really no excuse for it, all it takes is a diary and a pencil
[/quote]

No excuse at all.

They wouldn't book in 2 beer deliveries on the same day, double up on the staff rotas or book in 2 quiz nights at the same time.

Shows you how much some of these guys care about the band nights they put on.

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[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1434353044' post='2798761']
Bad luck Modman, we've had the usual double bookings but never actually on the day. Pubs closing down and not telling anyone is really common too.
[/quote]

We had that a year ago, we found out when we stopped by to drop in posters.

But the worst we've had was last Saturday. A very good friend of Mrs Zero suffers from Crohn's Disease, and one drunken evening in the pub the idea of a fund-raising gig came up. A local venue said they could host it, and provide PA and drumkit, and another three bands agreed to play. Then a couple of days before, Mrs Zero sent a message to the venue asking about dropping off the bass cabs on the Friday. This prompted the venue's manager to send a message to Mrs Zero's friend to say that due to electrical problems which had arisen a few weeks before, they weren't able to have bands in, and anyway she was moving to Birmingham and would be at Download on the Saturday. So two days before the gig, we had four bands and no venue. Fortunately, one of the other local venues was able to fit us in (ironically, it was a venue that said manager had been managing before the one that let us down, and she'd run that into the ground). We finished up having to supply PA and drumkit but that was a small price to pay.

As it happened, the evening was very successful, with four good bands, and the pub almost running out of beer, so the landlady was delighted and would like us to do it again some time. And Mrs Zero was about to unfriend the one who'd let us down on Stalkbook, but I told her to keep her friended so when we find out where she's gone to manage next, we can tell the owners just what an incompetent and negligent manager she is.

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[quote name='UglyDog' timestamp='1434707345' post='2801998']
Good point lojo. Double booking affects punters too,
[/quote]

but I doubt many care which band is at the pub that night... so it works for the pub :mellow:

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[quote name='mcnach' timestamp='1434724202' post='2802240']


but I doubt many care which band is at the pub that night... so it works for the pub :mellow:
[/quote]

I'm not sure , I think 1/3 of a pub gig audience usually have a connection to the band

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[quote name='lojo' timestamp='1434725573' post='2802255']
I'm not sure , I think 1/3 of a pub gig audience usually have a connection to the band
[/quote]

how big of an audience are we talking about? ;)

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[quote name='lojo' timestamp='1434725573' post='2802255']


I'm not sure , I think 1/3 of a pub gig audience usually have a connection to the band
[/quote]

I don't know where you get those figures. We played a bar last weekend and out of about 100 people, I knew about 3 vaguely!

Just to add, it was our local ;)

Edited by ubit
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Sorry I didn't mean it to sound so literal , what I meant was that some pub gigs , especially newer start ups or one offs will often see the band bring lots of freinds , therefore double bookings will effect many

Of course there are bands who regularly play pub circuits where it's either the man and do for a packed pub of strangers to them

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[quote name='ubit' timestamp='1434777072' post='2802704']
I don't know where you get those figures. We played a bar last weekend and out of about 100 people, I knew about 3 vaguely!

Just to add, it was our local ;)
[/quote]

:lol:

that's what I find too :)

most bars with live music around here, people go to have a drink or sixteen while there's live music playing, they don't really seem to choose to go depending on who is playing. Of course, some notice that so and so is playing and make a point of going but the vast majority just go to the bar and see what happens.

Last night, for instance, we were playing at one of the best known music bars in town, where we play about once a month. We're an originals band. There are some people who know us personally and show up, but only a handful. I could recognise a few that seem to follow us around (we gave some of them T-shirts of the band that we just made, I hope next time I see some of the shirts around and makes us feel important :lol:), but the vast majority were just the regular bar goers that would have been there regardless of who played.

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Nothing quite so dispiriting as turning up at a venue, seeing the band name on the chalkboard outside and it's not your band. There's that little ray of hope when it's a Sat that they've had a band on Fri as well and just forgotten to update it. Then you walk in and see a load of unfamiliar flightcases strewn around and the truth unfolds. Only happened a few times to me but it's a bummer. Especially when you know you're not getting paid off and the promise of 'we'll see you right at your next gig here' never materialises. I'm sorry, this is all getting a bit 'creme brulee' now ;)

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