TECHNICAL MUSIC REVIEW
I haven’t done an opinion piece in quite a while…..between a lot of random emails promoting bands, interviews, album reviews, random streams and everything I put into this site I finally got something to rant about. First off…..this is generalized, don’t get so self indulgent. This isn’t against a certain person, band, group, website, or anything. Let’s face it…..independent music and your local scene is a freaking mess. Yeah there’s some great bands, but there’s a plethora of issues and only THE FANS can make it any better. Promoters are rough……nowadays your average promoter picks up shows, “promotes” them and also makes the band sell ticket. HELLO YOU’RE THE PROMOTER! Yeah, that means more than putting links on Facebook. GO TO SHOWS! Yeah, socialize in real life and hand out fliers. Bring it up at work! Bring it up at family gatherings! Bring it up at school if you go to one! Tell your friends! Is the job easy? Not at all! More than my local scene here in Buffalo have these issues, and more I will continue to rant about without blowing my lid. It’s simple……don’t take on so many shows that you can’t promote equally and work hard at it. Remember the time when promoters would actually sell tickets? And actually promote? It feels like forever, to be honest. Only you can support for your favorite smaller bands and local bands…..tip them, buy their MUSIC that will help too!
Everyone needs your help to survive in the industry even with that music modernization act passing trying to give more moolah to artists who stream their music. If you’re a fan of a band, promote everything online……tell people, invite people to shows NOT JUST ON SOCIAL MEDIA! Talk about what they’re doing and do your due diligence! Wonder why some bands can’t carry on or some shows don’t do well? It’s not ALWAYS the promoters fault…..Stop going to those $50+ shows and check out some random band that might interest you in your local scene. $5 isn’t a terrible cover even $10 to check out original bands! And when you’ve seen some bands, try something new and check out new bands! Switch it up sometimes, and keep that palette fresh. Meet some people and bands, get into your local scenes actively! You can make a positive difference in your local scene by being proactive instead of being inactive…..being that person complaining their favorite band couldn’t continue on or a venue shuts down at least TRY to make a difference.
I have seen far too many good shows with very talented bands with low attendances. Give something a chance for a band you may have not heard of! I was at The Metal’s Halloween show last Saturday, and damn did Rochester bring the heat. There had to have at least been 60+ people at that show give or take! That is like 10 times the amount of your average show in Buffalo. Signed bands with local support, not just a local show…..Alterbeast and Inferi had like 25ish people, Inanimate Existence/Fields Of Elysium/Last Of Lucy had 15ish people at best….Micawber/Ahtme/Lago had a halfway decent turnout with 30+ish people, maybe? There have been worse turnouts we can remember, those are just somer recent shows I have been to that had lower turnouts that should have done much better. If a promoter is handling too many shows, or isn’t into a genre….why run so many shows you can’t put the attention to? Why book random shows and tours you aren’t putting your heart into? It’s frustrating to see so many great bands come through my area, and get god awful turnouts. And some people wonder why many tours skip over Buffalo……Run contests! At least TRY to get people in the door, relying on social media isn’t always the key to success. Yes, there’s many factors into the game but I hope this gets better one day…..eventually…..maybe?
Musicians, lay off the ego and stop being fucking assholes. Wish it could happen, but that too is a pipe dream. Support each other, grow the fuck up. If you don’t like something, don’t be a fucking prick. Yeah, it sucks we all have lives and musicians can’t make a living like they used to. Stay as late as you can, and don’t lie…..be honest for a change. Make friendships, connect, and be a good person……I guess that’s a lot to ask for these days. Too many artists just book it after their set. Check everyone out….you’re there, why the hell not? Not just the concertgoers and promoters, but the bands itself need unity…..it’s been a long time coming. Any scene can relate to these struggles, just not Western New York.
Some people talk about shitty show times. A bill of 4 bands with music “starting” (very loose quotations) at 6pm will be over by 11ish. Maybe we should start shows earlier so everyone can still hang out after and everyone working the next day can still get a decent nights sleep. Then theres the crazy folk that try to show hop and hit up a few shows in a night…..trust me if teleportation was real I’d be all over it. Pick your one show and either stay or spread the love and maybe hit up a few in one night if there’s a lot going on one night. It just pains me to see so many good bands not have respectable turnouts. Maybe this makes me look like an asshole, maybe it doesn’t…..good thing I generally don’t care what most people think anyways. I’m just trying to be honest. I want everyone’s local scene to thrive, and have many bands. I want good turnouts for shows and to check out new bands and music. Trust me, I only want the best for my local scene and wish the best for everyone else’s. Unfortunately, Buffalo is now a cover band town who draws the best. Let’s hope original music regains it’s rightful throne of every genre.
Originally published on Technical Music Review. Republished with permission.
