Getting an audience

[Nicko]

We are playing at a local music venue. The deal is we play Sunday for free, and if we are considered good enough they will bok a regular slot. Personally I think this is a bit f a liberty being taken, but we have been struggling to get gigs and the rest of the band think this is worthwhile.

h venue has asked us t play a cancellation - they gave us les than a weeks notice. That's fair enough I guess, but thy are now indicating that not only will they be judging our performance, but they also expect us to bring a crowd and will decide whether to book us based on our pulling power.

We might get a few family and friends, but bearing in mind this is Sunday gig, and the venue has not advertised the band because we are a late cancellation stand in, I think this is totally out of order. Isn't getting an audience in the venue's job?

[TimR]

Yes ... And ... No.

It should be a partnership but considering you're not getting paid, what exactly is in it for you in this partnership?

I'd ask for £200 and if they like you they can rebook you and pay you more next time.

[Grangur]

This is publicity. Why no name the time, place etc. Maybe folk here can come along?

[EliasMooseblaster]

[quote name='Nicko' timestamp='1470229405' post='3104274']
h venue has asked us t play a cancellation - they gave us les than a weeks notice. That's fair enough I guess, but thy are now indicating that not only will they be judging our performance, but they also expect us to bring a crowd and will decide whether to book us based on our pulling power.
[/quote]

I'd be very interested to know who the cancelled band were, and why they cancelled. It's probably only ringing alarm bells due to a particular chip on my shoulder, back when a local pub took on my sister to do a "trial shift" behind the bar, then told her they didn't really have room to take on more staff and made up any excuse under the sun to not pay her for the trial shift. Given that you're essentially doing them a favour by filling this slot for free, at short notice, and that they now appear to be trying to stack the odds against you, I'd be getting suspicious.

[Nicko]

Yes, that's my thoughts. Maybe they are looking for an excuse not to book us.

[Nicko]

I'm not naming the venue, doesn't do to publicly slag off a potential customer.

[bassjim]

There is a local venue to me........In a previous band I played in we were flavour of the month/year.Especially in this pub. We made demands such as "not only that much money but a free bar as well". They agreed to all of our demands even some Spinal Tap ones.

When said band folded I went in there to ask for gigs for my new venture only to be told by the greedy bastard of a landlord that I would have to prove my/ my new bands worth first and play for £150.00 on a Sunday afternoon.

I can understand a pub not wanting to throw £250 + at a band they have not heard of before and can even let this GBL have his point of view, but to not offer anything at all is out of order.

If its hard to get gigs then I would offer the following: This is wot i done: Say Ok. To prove we are worth it...We will play for 1 straight hour and then go. If you punters like it and if you are busy you can pay a full gigs money to keep us there. The other bonus is you now know what we look and sound like. Hows that?

In my case it was agreed and he paid full whack on the day.

[Trueno]

I know that there are probably different ways of approaching this... but for myself, I'd tell them to **** off.

[TimR]

Music venue?

Are you playing originals? Do you have a live demo?

.

Edited August 3, 2016 by TimR

[uk_lefty]

Agree on the partnership viewpoint. Having been on both sides of this fence it's frustrating when only one party is making the effort. Nowadays with social media it should be easier to get word out to your own followers but the venue needs to be making equal effort through their Facebook, Twitter, local paper and local radio - but being a late change I'm not sure they can get all of those in place in time.
Do they usually have Sunday afternoon gigs? It's a nice idea but its not going to be a world beater unless they have an established Sunday afternoon drinking and listening to live bands regime. Can't imagine it would go down well at a carvery.

[wateroftyne]

Run away.

[JTUK]

Are they a regular venue...do you know the other bands that play there...have you been to gigs there.
All this adds up to what sort of place are you playing.

Pubs, for sure, have a very high turnover of managers/owners etc etc and the market is tough.

I'd tell them straight that we don't do 'auditions' but would also be able to back that up with other known bands and players that
would give them an idea of what they are taking on.

If he wants a free band at short notice..and I get why this is attractive to you.. then he can't expect YOU to do all the work and get everyone there. This is one reason why you don't want to do non-established pubs.

I'd expect the pubs to have 30 or so music regulars and add to the same number you might be able to russle up, you are onto a decent evening.

If he wont accept start-up bands, then why should you accept start-up gigs..?

Too many pubs are chancer venues. I would tend to be on good terms with the pub or have a rapport and they trust what I say..I'm not looking to con them..and neither should they be.
Who needs that..?

[Number6]

Do what you and the band agree to do. In all honesty advice from here will muddy the water.

Edited August 3, 2016 by Number6

[Asambique]

I would just do it, don't think too much into it. The worst you're gonna loose is your time. Treat it as free practice (unless you don't pay to hire practice rooms of cource!)

[mrtcat]

Man I hate this kind of gigging. Are you originals or covers? I could understand wanting an originals band to generate some punters but if its a genuine music venue with regular punters then a covers band is there to entertain the landlord's customers. Yeah the band should be promoting their gig too but the venue needs to do his bit. It's also unfair to judge a band on turnout when it's a short notice booking. Is it really so hard to get gigs in London that you need to play for free?

[lojo]

If you've not been gigging and need one then just do it , it will either inspire you or make you question youselves but both are good things

Having said that , I'd only do it for free if you don't have to haul a pa

[TrevorR]

[quote name='Nicko' timestamp='1470229405' post='3104274']
.

We might get a few family and friends, but bearing in mind this is Sunday gig, and the venue has not advertised the band because we are a late cancellation stand in, I think this is totally out of order. Isn't getting an audience in the venue's job?
[/quote]

Well, if you do decide to do the gig, short notice or not, judged on attendance or not, you should currently be promoting the heck out of it. Every band member's Facebook page, Twitter account. Every Internet forum you're a part of. Because, if you can bring along some punters then it makes the likelihood of future paid gigs greater and the chance of a wasted afternoon being a patsy for the landlord smaller.

So a "hey, I'm doing a gig this Sunday at... Come along and check us out" post on here might, as others have said spark some BChatters to come along, say "Hi" and have an informal bass hang. You'll never know if you don't try.

[JTUK]

The difference between pubs dates now and 20 yrs ago, for example, is any pub can put on music with hardly much thought...so they do.
A large town on a sat night can have 9 pubs doing music so pubs expect bands to draw and with social media it is so much easier.

But pubs are always too much work for the money so make sure your reasons for doing them suits you and works..

[PaulWarning]

I'm afraid this is only a question you and the band can answer, too many factors to take into account, originals or covers? how desperate are you for gigs? is it a good music venue? how likely are you to get future bookings? it's a long list and depends on your bands circumstances, we wouldn't do free gigs but we might have 10 years ago

[blue]

[quote name='Nicko' timestamp='1470229405' post='3104274']
We are playing at a local music venue. The deal is we play Sunday for free, and if we are considered good enough they will bok a regular slot. Personally I think this is a bit f a liberty being taken, but we have been struggling to get gigs and the rest of the band think this is worthwhile.

h venue has asked us t play a cancellation - they gave us les than a weeks notice. That's fair enough I guess, but thy are now indicating that not only will they be judging our performance, but they also expect us to bring a crowd and will decide whether to book us based on our pulling power.

We might get a few family and friends, but bearing in mind this is Sunday gig, and the venue has not advertised the band because we are a late cancellation stand in, I think this is totally out of order. Isn't getting an audience in the venue's job?
[/quote]

Building a fan base of people that will show up to your gigs on a consistent basis takes time and a strategic plan.

Unfortunately how good you are has little to do with anything at the local level.

Blue

[mep]

We recently filled a cancellation for a Sunday afternoon /early evening gig at an established pub. We agreed to do it for a reduced fee and if all went well then full payment for the future. We had very little notice and were not expected to bring a crowd. We did manage to bring almost a dozen which helped. As it was not advertised there were less than usual which is the problem of the venue not us. Doing it for anything less wouldn't have gone down well. There is a local pub that offers free slots on a Sunday to try out bands but we are not that interested or desperate to play there. Good luck deciding what to do.

[ezbass]

Are you doing anything else that Sunday? If not, treat it as a rehearsal without having to pay any studio fees. Use social media to advertise as much as possible, friends and family are your draw when getting going, they will still be faces the venue's management have never seen, so a good thing. Knock together some posters for the venue to display to show you mean business. If you don't get any bookings from the gig (at that venue), well that's that and you did your best and hopefully had some fun. However, it might also pay off and there might be other people there who know other venues and will recommend you (this happened to my band). Ultimately you either want to do it or would rather do something else. Are the venue taking the pee? Yes, probably, but 'twas ever thus. If you do do it, enjoy it for what it is and don't constantly be thinking how you're being taken for a ride.

[pjb13.bass]

It was indeed [i]ever thus. [/i]We all like to think we have a line in the sand that we won't cross but the reality is, for most of us, that line shifts depending on time and circumstance. I think the thing to bear in mind is that many venues, particularly pubs, are not really band friendly, rather they are businesses and money is their main, if not only, driver. Good luck whatever you decide.

[TrevorR]

[quote name='ezbass' timestamp='1470295812' post='3104776']
Are you doing anything else that Sunday? If not, treat it as a rehearsal without having to pay any studio fees. Use social media to advertise as much as possible, friends and family are your draw when getting going, they will still be faces the venue's management have never seen, so a good thing. Knock together some posters for the venue to display to show you mean business. If you don't get any bookings from the gig (at that venue), well that's that and you did your best and hopefully had some fun. However, it might also pay off and there might be other people there who know other venues and will recommend you (this happened to my band). Ultimately you either want to do it or would rather do something else. Are the venue taking the pee? Yes, probably, but 'twas ever thus. If you do do it, enjoy it for what it is and don't constantly be thinking how you're being taken for a ride.
[/quote]

This! So very much This...! Make the gig work for you and make the very best out of it!

[TimR]

[quote name='ezbass' timestamp='1470295812' post='3104776']
Are you doing anything else that Sunday? If not, treat it as a rehearsal without having to pay any studio fees. Use social media to advertise as much as possible, friends and family are your draw when getting going, they will still be faces the venue's management have never seen, so a good thing. Knock together some posters for the venue to display to show you mean business. If you don't get any bookings from the gig (at that venue), well that's that and you did your best and hopefully had some fun. However, it might also pay off and there might be other people there who know other venues and will recommend you (this happened to my band). Ultimately you either want to do it or would rather do something else. Are the venue taking the pee? Yes, probably, but 'twas ever thus. If you do do it, enjoy it for what it is and don't constantly be thinking how you're being taken for a ride.
[/quote]

Yes. This is what I meant by 'What's in it for you?'

Get some people with video cameras (get a few different people to video a different of the band each) and record the audio, you can produce a pretty good video from decent sound and cut in video from the different sources.

Next time you're looking for a gig take a tablet with the finished video on it to show the booker.

.

Edited August 4, 2016 by TimR