Last week, our own Ezra Ace Caraeff interviewed local live music promoters to see what they were doing to keep audiences coming to their shows. This article really pricked up the ears of Mercury “Letter of the Week” winner Willie who opined, “WHY DON’T THEY START THE GODDAMN SHOWS EARLIER? JEEZ!” (Obviously this was the nutshell version of what he actually said. Read his full letter!)
DEAR MERCURY—In [Ezra Ace Caraeff]’s piece about recession and the possible effects on the local music industry [“Of Money and Music,” Music, Jan 8], not one promoter mentioned the adjustment to their business thinking that would get me out three to four nights a week: starting shows earlier. Let’s face it, promoters are missing a big demographic of music lovers who simply can’t go out two to four nights a week because shows start too damn late. I wake up at 5 am each morning to go to work. My aging body is steadily losing the fortitude to arrive at a venue at 9 pm, wait around until maybe 10 pm for the openers to begin, and then hope the headliner comes on stage around midnight. Very few promoters advertise a consistent starting time for live music to begin, and rely upon a dependable, yet small demographic of committed folks to support them regardless of lapses in professionalism (starting late, running out of PBR, having shitty service, etc.). I would hope earlier shows would allow venues to concentrate their all-important liquor sales efforts on happy-hour, dinner-time, and pre-midnight sales rather than continue perpetuating the fallacy that the bulk of their sales need to occur from midnight-1:30 am. I went to an AMAZING Saturday night show this past weekend; I paid an $8 cover, bought four drinks, tipped, and purchased $30 worth of merchandise. But when I looked around during the headliner’s third (albeit long) song, there were only about two-dozen people still in the venue at 1:20 am. The venues and artists have the opportunity to make a cultural shift that will increase their viability in a crappy economy if they choose to. It would just take time, communication, and some consistency. I, for one, would be more than happy to support them more often, especially during the workweek, should they make that decision.-Willie
So what say YOU, Blogtownies? Does Willie make sense, or should he move to one of those trailer parks for old people? VOTE!!
SHOULD LIVE MUSIC SHOWS START EARLIER? WELL… SHOULD THEY?
As always, put in your extra two cents in the comments below!
Weekdays maybe, there’s NEVER anything close to a full room after 1 a.m. then. No one wants to headline it, no one wants to play the slot.
I think an even better idea is limiting lineups to 3 bands when starting 9-10ish.
Places like the Doug Fir are already known to being very prompt with their times. And I think a number of venues are pretty good with this matter. And it will just take a little more work to get better. This isn’t Detroit – shows don’t START at midnight and go to 4am. So let’s not worry too much!
Here’s an issue I think is more important: ticket convenience fees. Example: at Wonder Ballroom, tickets are listed at a price (say $20), and if you stop into the Wonder Ballroom to pick up one of those tickets, they charge you an extra handling fee. I can understand having a handling fee for tickets that require processing and shipping (per the Oregon Ballet’s policy). But it’s supremely ridiculous that you can’t go straight to the venue in person and obtain a ticket for the listed price. Stop gauging us, jerks. Tickets to Broken Social Scene are not, as advertised, $20, and they never were!
shows early ALL THE TIME! i would love it. tri-met’s busses don’t run that late and when you have to take 2 busses home after a show it usually means leaving before the band you want to see even plays. also early show means more time to party, watch a movie, whatever. in my fantasy all shows would be over by 12pm.
I would like more venues to explicitly list what time each band was coming on. That’d be a start, at least.
When will everything be right for meeeeee….
Earlier shows on weekdays *would* be awesome… but, you can sleep when you’re dead.
Sleep when we’re dead? Some of us need to be awake to keep our jobs in this crap economy. I don’t like feeling like an old fart at the age of 27!
I think part of the issue here is the bands and not the venue. Many of these bands are traveling from another town, where they played a late show then had to get a little sleep before driving to Portland, getting set-up etc.
That said, I would love to see some earlier shows. I never ever go out anymore to see a headliner. Because I am very old (over 30!) and I turn into a pumpkin at midnight. But I am not the target audience, I guess, being old and having a job that often starts at 7am.
Sounds like an awesome time. Call it the “Early Bird Special” and have some food and drink specials. Perhaps a little bingo and some emo tunes…a fine evening out in Portland.
Make sure you get home by midnight just in case you forgot to Tivo those ‘Friends’ reruns for that night.
I remember this conversation happening tons of times on the old PDX Pop Now e-mail list. Main problem is most places that I want to see a show won’t start the show until 9:30 or 10:00 with at least 2 openers. I won’t even go to Dante’s on a weeknight anymore. If you stick around to see the headliner in entirety you’re not getting out of there before 1:30. That’s not so cool on a school night. Last time I went to a show at Berbati is was almost as bad.
I would go to more shows if they were earlier. I am a working adult and that means I have money and I like beer. I also want to keep my job so there are plenty of times I have to say no because I can’t look haggard at 8:00am when I have to be at work. All my friends are exactly the same way.
We were the people that didn’t care 5 years ago how late a show was…now we still love the music and can’t go.
Also the band needs to sleep is total BS unless they don’t know how to plan a tour. It’s always the bar trying to keep everyone in their joint as close to bar close as they can. Plus the Rose Garden doesn’t seem to have a problem getting people there for a show at 7.
Yay for earlier weekday shows. Advertise that shit in the Merc + food specials to get it rolling. I’ll be there.
Freshmaker = asshole.
And so to bed!
Absolutely. This isn’t the 80’s, people in Portland in their late 20’s and 30’s still want to go out to shows. At the same time we need to be able to attend to the careers that generate the funds we have available for covers, drinks and merch. I think it’s unwise for venues and bands to ignore this and alienate the over-24 demographic. I think that’s based on an outdated assumption, especially in Portland. I voted for early weeknight shows and late weekends. I know I’d definitely like to be able to drop a lot more cash on weeknight shows, but I’m not gonna risk my career by showing up late and bleary eyed to work.
My band Another Fine Mess is playing at 11ish tonight at the Ash St. Saloon. The first band starts at 9:30 PM. I really think if you really like something you will make it work. I actually pay for beers and tix all the time sure you might think I’m just bribing the people to come to my show and we are not good (well there’s a little truth in that ;-)) but for the most part people I know have fallen on hard times. With all that said they always have just enough money for cigs or food. So I propose this have your show, your venue, your music, anything you do and you want people to come as good to a smoker that has that cig after a great meal or sex and I guarantee more people will come.