Down economy killing local music scene?

[timmer114]

With our local police force parking a block down the road from the taverns every Friday and Saturday night, going out to the bar is becoming less and less fun. Unfortunately here in small town Wisconsin, DUI convictions have become a cash cow.

They keep lowering the BAC limit, it's to a point that nobody is going to get cleaned up to go out, put gas in their car, drive to the bar, pay a modest cover charge and drink 2 beers and go home. It works better here in Madison a college town, where you can have a designated driver and a van full of guys can go tie one on. Even then however, it's going to be a DJ or Kareoke most nights.

The fun days of going out to see a band are sadly fading away around here. Back in the early 90s I tended bar up in Eagle River, a resort town and people partied and live music was doing pretty good. There was/is a local band that made the rounds, and they always pulled in a crowd. I bet they still do, but outside of the resort towns and bigger towns, live music in rural Wisconsin is suffering =(

[tiktok]

Originally Posted by timmer114

They keep lowering the BAC limit, it's to a point that nobody is going to get cleaned up to go out, put gas in their car, drive to the bar, pay a modest cover charge and drink 2 beers and go home. It works better here in Madison a college town, where you can have a designated driver and a van full of guys can go tie one on. Even then however, it's going to be a DJ or Kareoke most nights.

If the goal was to see a really good band, then they would...if the band was really good.

If the band is less than "really good", then folks are going to need to tie one on and hope to get lucky to make the evening worthwhile.

Which part of this equation do musicians have any control over?

[BGTele]

My band has been working steadily despite the tough times but we don't depend on the bar and club scene. That scene is unpredictable in the best of times. We do outdoor
shows in the summer, dances that we organize, daytime shows of all sorts (no driving
home a 2 in the morning). Think outside the box, put out contact info, look the
audience in the eye and talk to them, tell them they are part of this and you appreciate
them.

[CharlieO]

Originally Posted by timmer114

The fun days of going out to see a band are sadly fading away around here. Back in the early 90s I tended bar up in Eagle River, a resort town and people partied and live music was doing pretty good. There was/is a local band that made the rounds, and they always pulled in a crowd. I bet they still do, but outside of the resort towns and bigger towns, live music in rural Wisconsin is suffering =(

Hey Timmer, I've got a hot tip for a band up there that you've got to see, if you haven't already:
http://otisandthealligators.net/band.htm

Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be much on their calendar, but it is winter up there. You people up there just aren't as tough as you used to be. Can't get you guys out to see a band when it's 10 below any more.

[jim_pridx]

Yup....I would suppose that none of us "are as tough as we used to be".....LOL. I would suspect that older age has something to do with that. I remember having to haul my Fender Twin Reverb on a toboggan through a few intense snowstorms just to get my amp to the truck to get to the gig. I'd ideally like to think that those are times of the past.

Timmer, Charlie has been very kind in providing a link to our website - thanks Charlie - but the site itself hasn't been attended to since its initial introduction. Sorry about that! If you'd like to know where we'll be playing, please feel free to send me a PM through the TDPRI, and I can fill you in on all of the dates we have booked.

Ok.....back to the topic......

[prawnik]

Two more truths in a down economy:

1. Drinking at home is cheaper than drinking in a bar; and
2. It is cheaper for a bar to hire a DJ than a band.

[timmer114]

Originally Posted by CharlieO

Hey Timmer, I've got a hot tip for a band up there that you've got to see, if you haven't already:
http://otisandthealligators.net/band.htm

Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be much on their calendar, but it is winter up there. You people up there just aren't as tough as you used to be. Can't get you guys out to see a band when it's 10 below any more.

I saw Otis and the Alligators play in Eagle River at a little bar called Spirit's one night. I helped build the elevated stage they used. I hope the owner paid the band that night. I met my Wife at that show, they did "Big Bill's BBQ" as the Encore. The show rocked, one of my all time favorite gigs I got to see!

[Tim Bowen]

As I earn my living as a musician, none of this is lost on me. While the wages would pale as compared to some of the corporate band jobs I've done in the past, I earned $145.00 (+ unlimited comped drinks) at Saturday night's laid back three hour bar show with my duo. It's not a killing, but it's not bad for playing whatever I wanted to play, as loud as I wanted to play it, in a bar, without ever playing songs that I had absolutely no interest in.

I love full band work, but I haven't booked full band in over two years now. Duo work almost always yields profit, and as my partner and I like to say, "With a duo, there's only one guy to hate!" (less politics). Plus, there are far more avenues for booking single or duo, and I've actually gotten to the point where I actually prefer the scenario musically to that of full band. Obviously, it's cooler as to the financial aspect, but I also think I enjoy the vibe better anymore. Plus, if rehearsal opportunities are limited, it's way easier to do arrangements than with a proper rhythm section, and you can rehearse over the phone or in the parking lot of the venue if push comes to shove.

I shudder to think what my take for Saturday would've been with full band. I'd have probably owed bar tab, much less wait staff tip (which I always forward, regardless of personal earnings).

I have a personal mission statement: If I can't earn $100 profit above expenses for playing live music, there's really no reason to cart gear out of the house. I love music just as much as I did when I started playing in 1967. I'm going to continue enjoying it, regardless. I love it so much that I'll always play. However, it's far more comfortable to hang out at home in the PJ's with a bowl of Cap'n Crunch and watch cartoons or TCM movies and play for grins and giggles than it is to load in and out and do work that is cost-prohibitive. If I'm working, I simply need to be paid for my work, that's all. Doesn't seem entirely unreasonable to me.

[brookdalebill]

I think the economy is only wounding the Austin live music scene.
In an earlier post, I wished for a Wayback Machine.
Now, if I could only find the Cue/Review buttons.