What's it like, turn out wise, in venues theses days?

[codamedia]

not being a fan I can't vouch for those scenes however Montreal never did have many venues for local bands to play in. Perhaps a few on St. Lawrence Blvd and Foufones Electric.
Have things changed that much?

I'm not sure of your age... but in my earlier touring days (the 80's) I remember the downtown core was happening. You could catch many bands within walking distance. I played two rooms in those days... the Moustache (near the old Forum), and another that I believe was called "The Maples". It was just past the airport, and close to the water. There was no shortage of fun in that room.

Of course, I don't expect any of those rooms to still exist, and if they did I doubt they're the same as they were. I just remember a time when live music appeared to be alive and well in Montreal.

 

[banditpanda]

I'm not sure of your age... but in my earlier touring days (the 80's) I remember the downtown core was happening. You could catch many bands within walking distance. I played two rooms in those days... the Moustache (near the old Forum), and another that I believe was called "The Maples". It was just past the airport, and close to the water. There was no shortage of fun in that room.

Of course, I don't expect any of those rooms to still exist, and if they did I doubt they're the same as they were. I just remember a time when live music appeared to be alive and well in Montreal.

Lol.Yeah.The Fathers Moustache, I believe.That thrived for awhile. Then Club Soda did well.
Anyways I understand venues are scarce as are gigs to play them, these days, for local bands.

 

[beyer160]

I stopped by the Troubadour in Hollywood the other night to get a drink after dinner- it was a 3-band bill on a Wednesday night, and they had the place pretty full. I'd never heard of any of the bands (and I'm not really current anymore), but I was surprised- maybe people still see bands after all.

 

[banditpanda]

I stopped by the Troubadour in Hollywood the other night to get a drink after dinner- it was a 3-band bill on a Wednesday night, and they had the place pretty full. I'd never heard of any of the bands (and I'm not really current anymore), but I was surprised- maybe people still see bands after all.

Did you stay for any of the music? What style of music was represented, if so.

 

[beyer160]

Did you stay for any of the music? What style of music was represented, if so.

I heard a little of the opener and headliner, and all of the middle band. I heard them described as "psychedelic dream pop". The opener was pretty good. The other bands... not so much.

 

[banditpanda]

Get outta here! "psychedelic dream pop" !!! Ah well... Strawberry Fields Forever.!

 

[cyclopean]

Welp not being a fan I can't vouch for those scenes however Montreal never did have many venues for local bands to play in. Perhaps a few on St. Lawrence Blvd and Foufones Electric.
Have things changed that much?

I haven’t been there in years but I know a few bands who play there.

I saw a great show at Katacombs way back then but I think that venue recently closed.

 

[mfguitar]

I have been based in Buffalo for over 40 years and we are finishing our busiest year ever; not bad for a country band with not one "country" venue. There are more opportunities for live music of all types in the past year or so. The one big change is, for the most part, people do not stay out late. Most of our shows start no later than 8 and are 3 hours, 2 changes I really like. As far as crowds, there are 3-4 party bands here that consistently play to packed houses, we are still a classic rock city. During the summer any place with a patio will do well. Another change is everything is a one-nighter and that pretty much goes for everyone. Even the better tribute bands do not necessarily draw.

 

[banditpanda]

I have been based in Buffalo for over 40 years and we are finishing our busiest year ever; not bad for a country band with not one "country" venue. There are more opportunities for live music of all types in the past year or so. The one big change is, for the most part, people do not stay out late. Most of our shows start no later than 8 and are 3 hours, 2 changes I really like. As far as crowds, there are 3-4 party bands here that consistently play to packed houses, we are still a classic rock city. During the summer any place with a patio will do well. Another change is everything is a one-nighter and that pretty much goes for everyone. Even the better tribute bands do not necessarily draw.

"....., we are still a classic rock city."
Heart warming! Of course " classic rock" these days means a lot of different genres of rock to a lot of different people however for this ol' fart I know what it means to me and it warms my heart lol.
Rock on Buffalo. (and whatever it is you country music players call it when you're playing)

 

[Wildcard_35]

Speaking to a full time pro the other day (gigs & lessons) & when asked that question he said " Young people these days aren't interested in live music. They prefer recorded music wherever they hang out."
So I replied " You mean rock bands and blues bands aren't really getting booked that much anymore?"
He said " pretty well". I asked about tribute bands. He said tribute bands still draw at bigger venues but of course you gotta be really good.
Now I'm not in a big " live music" city anyways so was wondering what is going on out there in other parts?

I played a gig on Saturday here in Austin with my band. We played a mix of covers and originals for the singer's birthday. We played for about and hour and change. There were probably 50 or more folks in the place, which is close to the seating capacity. It was a good time. But it did seem like most of the crowd was in their 40s or up. I think it all kind of depends on your "act" and how long you've been around and what your draw is.

 

[banditpanda]

I played a gig on Saturday here in Austin with my band. We played a mix of covers and originals for the singer's birthday. We played for about and hour and change. There were probably 50 or more folks in the place, which is close to the seating capacity. It was a good time. But it did seem like most of the crowd was in their 40s or up. I think it all kind of depends on your "act" and how long you've been around and what your draw is.

I am out of touch these days but I could imagine some of the same "old time" requirements apply. First of all to get a decent following (200-300 per show?) your "act" has to be "juiced". Of course I mean a really good front man/woman as vocalist (I think it goes w/o saying that if you don't have a good singer you might as well call the whole thing off).
Not only does he/she need to sing well they need to be an entertainer as well.
A hot shot guitarist can carry the load but that is probably a limited draw.
No point in getting into all the details here however safe to say that your group will have to be entertaining. Proficiency is no longer enough. Right/Wrong?

 

[bottlenecker]

Speaking to a full time pro the other day (gigs & lessons) & when asked that question he said " Young people these days aren't interested in live music. They prefer recorded music wherever they hang out."
So I replied " You mean rock bands and blues bands aren't really getting booked that much anymore?"
He said " pretty well". I asked about tribute bands. He said tribute bands still draw at bigger venues but of course you gotta be really good.
Now I'm not in a big " live music" city anyways so was wondering what is going on out there in other parts?

I mostly take part in original music shows and venues. I don't know much about how cover bands are doing.
The last show I was at was an experimental jazz show, and the seats were mostly full.
I played a show in october and there was a decent crowd.
Lots of big and little shows here, and they seem to be doing fine. Our only problem is the ongoing ownership and control of most of our venues by ticketmaster/livenation.
There's one bar that's more old fashioned rock and blues, and they were full for a blues jam when I stopped for a drink this past summer.
The outdoor shows here had big crowds all summer.

I haven't been to Montreal for 9 or 10 years, but there wasn't much live music then either. I thought maybe I just didn't know how to find it. I loved the city, but the only music I could find out about was some EDM playing in the park. There's at least jazz there, right? Why isn't there more?

 

[fishermike]

I'm lucky to live in a college town that's also only a couple of hours from LA. We get great bands year-round across multiple venues. Last night I went to my third show in as many nights, with a fourth coming up on Sunday night, all within 15 minutes of my house, and all to packed, appreciative audiences. Going to another great show on the 29th, making it six shows in just the past three weeks. Passed on a free ticket to a Reggae festival tonight just to take a breath and chill with the family. Many of the local venues and promoters handle their own ticketing, so prices are mostly reasonable ($40 to $110 or so) and easy to get as long as you're on the right mailing lists.

Wife and daughter are seeing BlackPink in LA tomorrow night. I also got them tickets for Taylor Swift in LA next summer, haven't decided if I'm going to join them yet. Not a Swiftie myself, but I might have to do it just for the spectacle of it all. Based on the ticketing experience for both of those shows, I'ma gonna call BS on the "young people just want recorded music and have no interest in live shows" thing.

So, in SoCal at least, I'm happy to report that live music is alive and well!

 

[brookdalebill]

I just got home from a sub bass gig at Donn’s Depot.
It was packed!

 

[banditpanda]

I'm lucky to live in a college town that's also only a couple of hours from LA. We get great bands year-round across multiple venues. Last night I went to my third show in as many nights, with a fourth coming up on Sunday night, all within 15 minutes of my house, and all to packed, appreciative audiences. Going to another great show on the 29th, making it six shows in just the past three weeks. Passed on a free ticket to a Reggae festival tonight just to take a breath and chill with the family. Many of the local venues and promoters handle their own ticketing, so prices are mostly reasonable ($40 to $110 or so) and easy to get as long as you're on the right mailing lists.

Wife and daughter are seeing BlackPink in LA tomorrow night. I also got them tickets for Taylor Swift in LA next summer, haven't decided if I'm going to join them yet. Not a Swiftie myself, but I might have to do it just for the spectacle of it all. Based on the ticketing experience for both of those shows, I'ma gonna call BS on the "young people just want recorded music and have no interest in live shows" thing.

So, in SoCal at least, I'm happy to report that live music is alive and well!

Whoa, going great guns out your way! Fantastic.!
Well the " young people" quote was a local musician speaking of the local scene in which he plays and perhaps not ascribing it to say the LA scene. BUT most contributors do seem to be saying audiences are older.....

 

[banditpanda]

I mostly take part in original music shows and venues. I don't know much about how cover bands are doing.
The last show I was at was an experimental jazz show, and the seats were mostly full.
I played a show in october and there was a decent crowd.
Lots of big and little shows here, and they seem to be doing fine. Our only problem is the ongoing ownership and control of most of our venues by ticketmaster/livenation.
There's one bar that's more old fashioned rock and blues, and they were full for a blues jam when I stopped for a drink this past summer.
The outdoor shows here had big crowds all summer.

I haven't been to Montreal for 9 or 10 years, but there wasn't much live music then either. I thought maybe I just didn't know how to find it. I loved the city, but the only music I could find out about was some EDM playing in the park. There's at least jazz there, right? Why isn't there more?

Yeah there is the huge Jazz Festival in the summer and quite a few outdoor venues buzzing.
As mentioned the big acts always do pass thru town.
But as to why there aren't more I really do not know.

 

[bottlenecker]

Yeah there is the huge Jazz Festival in the summer and quite a few outdoor venues buzzing.
As mentioned the big acts always do pass thru town.
But as to why there aren't more I really do not know.

I don't understand why everyone isn't getting hopped up on those fresh bagels and sounding like Bloodshot Bill. Is he just an anomaly? Does he play hometown gigs there somewhere?

 

[banditpanda]

I don't understand why everyone isn't getting hopped up on those fresh bagels and sounding like Bloodshot Bill. Is he just an anomaly? Does he play hometown gigs there somewhere?

Beats me.

 

[cyclopean]

I mostly take part in original music shows and venues. I don't know much about how cover bands are doing.
The last show I was at was an experimental jazz show, and the seats were mostly full.
I played a show in october and there was a decent crowd.
Lots of big and little shows here, and they seem to be doing fine. Our only problem is the ongoing ownership and control of most of our venues by ticketmaster/livenation.
There's one bar that's more old fashioned rock and blues, and they were full for a blues jam when I stopped for a drink this past summer.
The outdoor shows here had big crowds all summer.

I haven't been to Montreal for 9 or 10 years, but there wasn't much live music then either. I thought maybe I just didn't know how to find it. I loved the city, but the only music I could find out about was some EDM playing in the park. There's at least jazz there, right? Why isn't there more?

Montreal has consistently seemed to have strong punk, oi!, and black metal scenes.

 

[brookdalebill]

In Austin, great.
Elsewhere in Texas, good.