Organizing and promoting shows

Bouncer depends on the type of show. Legal liabilities depend on your location, especially if alcohol is involved. Do they not have basements where you are? House/basement shows seem to be where music scenes start...

Apparently the lack of venues has something to do with the difficulty in getting a cabaret license in JC.

basement house shows

pro: no cost to rent venue, no need to worry about all-ages/21+/carding issues, small and intimate therefore you dont run the risk of losing money on a show.

con: your neighbors, who will more than likely call the cops because of noise/swarms of people/trash/parking. you run the risk of being fined for violating zoning & permit laws, not to mention potentially getting busted for minors drinking on premises. if you dont like throwing parties period, dont have a show. tons of people you dont know will be up in your shit.

lodges/rented spaces

pro: venue with zoning! parking. possibly has liquor license/catering. space for dancing! possibly has PA system!

con: costs money. all-ages/21+ restrictions, for the most part. might be difficult to work with.

things to ask, if you choose to put on a show at a lodge/venue

- cost to rent the space
- what comes with renting the space [pa, staff,soundperson, etc etc]
- security: do they provide? is it required? is it an additional fee? can you bring in your own?

make sure to get this stuff in writing & agreed upon. i hate it when venues tell you, after the fact, that there's hidden charges.

also, make sure when you advance the bands, be very clear about what's going on. you've seen plain parade's advances -- we explain how they're getting paid, when they're getting paid, how equipment gets shared, if they're running late, how they're not allowed to bring road flares, what happens if they damage equipment/property, etc etc. this will spare you many arguments after the fact and if there's a problem, you can refer to the document.

let me know if you have any questions. always more than happy to help!

you can also send emails to booking agents and post your contact info on resource websites like BYOFL [byofl.org] and whatnot. make connections with college radio kids.

http://www.fitzlive.com

maybe you can get some ideas from there... i duno?!

alcohol: if you choose to serve, the venue will earn the profit, not you. [im assuming youre looking at having the show in a lodge/non-house show]

Consider, though, that it's those college kids are the ones who are in the frat-rock etc. bands.

otherwise, focus on other things, like being able to get a good lineup of bands, not spending an arm and a leg on house costs, promoting the show well enough to get a crowd [50 ppl min.] without any major disasters.

- making sure bands arent playing eight billion local shows to ensure the best draw possible. [you should politely ask for any band on this bill to refrain from booking other local shows one week before and one week after.] because plain parade does at best 4 shows a month, we have a "one month rule" [2 weeks before and after]. there are a lot of folks in the scene who criticize us for it [if they hate it they dont have to play with us] but we're just trying to give the bands the best show possible and if that means a touch of exclusivity, so be it. in the end, the bands get great bills and a better payout at the end of the night.

- get it on the concert calendar of local radio & newspapers, flyering record stores, telling whatever local blogs/messageboards exist; guilting friends and family

- making sure a show runs on time -- not just for your bands sake but for the audience as well. equipment sharing really helps here, even if its just a drumkit.

- equipment storage. is there a separate room for bands to stow equipment? if not, is the space large enough to accomodate equipment? if its small, then you're going to need a plan of attack for stowing stuff, which once again may or may not include equipment sharing.

- capacity of venue. this is IMPORTANT. you don't want to pack people in way beyond capacity limits. its dangerous and could get you or the venue fined [should cops break up the show]. capacity is also a good way to determine the number of bands on your bill. more bands, more equipment. i cant believe it took us a year to realize that we could only do three bands without losing our minds at tritone. but at a space like the m-room, we can stretch out and do four. unless you are putting together a hardcore show in 1985, there is no reason you should ever construct a 5 band bill.

- there is no science to constructing a bill but my personal guideline is to never let the number of touring acts outweigh the locals, unless those touring bands have a guaranteed draw of *at least* 50 people, which is usually not the case [no matter how much their press kit, agent or myspace friends count claims otherwise]. for a three band bill, one touring act is enough. four band shows can get away with two. i also see the inclusion of touring acts as a networking opportunity for everyone involved. if they get along well, they have new friends in a town and the local, should they ever want to tour, have a connection elsewhere. [you didnt think i booked AA with l0w sk13$ only because they fit together musically, did you?]

- feel free to invite your crafty friends along to sell their wares at the show. its a nice thing to do, you know?

thats about all i got for now. oh, dont forget lots of change and music to play in between sets! feel free to check our site for other ideas or things to think about:

http://www.plainparade.org/booking.html

- guest list. we do 3 slots per band, plus a house list with three slots. we discovered early on that if we totaled up the number of people on a guest list and multiplied it by our admission price, we'd get a number that was in most cases equal to our total house costs. its not very generous but since we're financially responsible, we have to limit our risks. so if its by keeping guestlists trim, fine with me. some clubs like to do one per band member but that favors all those 6-7 person bands. we automatically list local writers who preview our shows -- if they want to review, they have to submit a request beforehand.

[an aside: this is how our half-off cards came into practice. folks in bands could give them to their friends they couldnt list, and they could still see the show at reduced admission. it also benefits people who frequently attend our shows -- pay full price once, then pick up a half-off card before leaving each show from then on and always get in for a discount. no longer do they have the excuse of price being a factor for NOT attending something.]

- publicizing the show to writers. send your initial press release out one month in advance. make sure to contain every useful piece of information. here's what ours looks like [apologies for the utterly horrible band bio]:

_____________________________
SAT 12/25
At Tritone (1508 South Street)
http://www.tritonebar.com/
10PM, $7, 21+

XXXX (Mems. of Asteroid #4, Rifle Choir)
http://www.XXXX.com/
XXXXX is a new group brought together by the member's personal twists of fate. The band, consisting of X (guitar/vocals), X (guitar/vocals), X (bass/vocals) and X (drums/vocals) was conceived during a one-day studio session in the Autumn of 2005. The session was set up by the latter three, all of which had played together in Philadelphia shape-shifters the Asteroid #4.

X had recently fronted another Philly band, the short-lived power-trio known as Rifle Choir. X, X and X, all being intrigued by X's soulful singing, playing and writing style, had
invited him to work on a spontaneous recording where X presented an unfinished song structure and the other three added their own flavor. The result was an organic sound that seemed to cosmically combine all four of their influences and playing styles, yet captured a sprit and originality that they had all been searching for.

The day had been such a success, that all four decided to get together again to work on additional songs that continued the same process. The new group had an instant chemistry that was made apparent by a batch of material, that to them, seemed to evoke similarities of when Dylan and the Band locked themselves away to create the Basement Tapes.

>>> Press Contact: X

i could go on for days about this. hit me up if you have any more questions.

A dry venue/event is pretty much the kiss of death around here. I never get blitzed at concerts but I honestly can't imagine going to see a slate of local bands in a dry venue.

and you know there are folks out there, including myself [i dont drink], who enjoy seeing shows where the sole focus isnt getting fucked up. but thats a wholly different discussion for another thread, OK?

I've been promoting gig and club nights in North Herts since about 2006 and it's great (if financially risky) fun. Recently it's been really hard though - I can't seem to get people off their arses. Other times I've failed by only booking a small venue and then booking an (unknown to me) ridiculously popular act. Huge attendance, tiny room. Woops! Anyway, I'd like to hear more tips and stories from promoter Ilxors.

q[one of the biggest independent concert promoters in philly happens to focus solely on all-ages shows in a church basement.]q

Heh, this has changed a little.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3fo_lAn15Y