Admin fee, login fee etc added to the fact that a lot of these clubs are charging extortionate prices for drinks.
It’s the same as the majority of music festivals only the upper middle classes can afford it.
Used to be able to afford a night out and a gig for less than £50 now it’s nearer to £400 when you factor in hotel rooms.
Then when you factor in the above with a large amount of bands that can’t play/sing live…
No point in risking money
newnortherner21 on
The comment about the Council tying a venue up in red tape when someone moved next door and complained was a telling one.
Russian_bot- on
People are tired of being ripped off and this will be a bigger issue as the average person is squeezed further and further
GrapefruitNo8597 on
I played so many gigs in my 20s to mostly empty rooms. I know SO MANY musicians who’ve just given up on gigging altogether. It’s something people are so apathetic about, unless it’s Billie Eillish playing an arena or a fuckin oasis reunion or something, people would much rather pay hundreds for this types of gigs than go to a local venue and spend a tenner on a ticket.
It was hard ten years ago when gig tickets were 4 quid, and it’s worse now.
The only shows people go to in my local city now is atrocious tribute and cover bands pretending to be ACDC or shit like that. Truly depressing
Hanamafana on
As someone who has worked in bars / clubs full time and part time for nearly 30 years I’m not shocked.
Between price rises and bars and clubs just becoming bland and offering little. Taxis have also become bloody expensive and little public transport at night doesnt help with the cost factor.
All that talk of ‘Mickey Mouse’ degrees and pretending this country still runs on steel, but when reality sets in, you won’t hear a peep from those people.
alfiemoonshine17 on
I’m in Pembrokeshire and regularly go to the queen’s hall or dA Valence. Both cracking little gigs with tickets £20 or less.
I love tribute bands as they are generally as good if not better than the original. I did go a bit mental and bought tickets to see Sting at Cardiff castle who was excellent. Food before and it was less than £100!
MoneyStatistician702 on
I feel more people go to watch live music now, for the big bands people are more willing to get that hotel and travel. Bands want to play the biggest venues and maximise their numbers rather than work more for less money. I see people going to watch live music now who never would’ve when I was a lot younger. Pop concerts are much much bigger now
recursant on
I’m fortunate to live close enough to London to be able to travel to a few gigs per year. Locally there isn’t much going on at all.
>There are vast swathes of the country where your only option is to travel an hour and a half.
TBH, that has always been a fact life unless you live in one of the bigger cities. The fast train to London is 40 min for me, but by the time I’ve driven to the station, waited for the train, travelled in, and got a tube to the venue it will be about an hour and a half door to door. Coming back takes slightly longer because there are only slow trains later on.
I honestly don’t see that as a big deal. Sure it would be nice if I could afford to live in zone 1, I could get to all the gigs I wanted, probably even walk to some of them. Maybe in my next life.
AvatarIII on
It’s getting so rare for even moderately big bands to play Brighton, or anywhere south of London since COVID, it’s pretty ridiculous.
aytayjay on
Small venues have at least doubled their gig costs since covid ended. All the bands I saw for £10 in 2019 want £20-£30 since 2022.
There was a burst of gigs in 2021 post covid, now they’ve slowed to a trickle.
Tickets I used to be able to buy direct from the small venue for face value are now only available on-line, delivered by email and with a 12% service fee.
We’re having to drive further and more out of the way to see bands because they’re playing fewer places and the public transport is non existent, so the venues aren’t getting money from drinks either.
On Wednesday we drove an hour to a small venue where we’d paid £28.50 a ticket, they wanted £6.50 a pint and the merch was cash only.
I support small venue live music. I live for small venue live music. We can’t pull money out of our arses to keep things going. I don’t blame anyone who has decided they’d rather spend a couple of hundred making an event of an arena gig twice a year than traipse all over the place.
Flintlockooo on
Stop only listening to Coldplay and Foo Fighters and there are plenty of affordable gigs and tours around if you live in/near a city.
12 Comments
What do they expect?
Admin fee, login fee etc added to the fact that a lot of these clubs are charging extortionate prices for drinks.
It’s the same as the majority of music festivals only the upper middle classes can afford it.
Used to be able to afford a night out and a gig for less than £50 now it’s nearer to £400 when you factor in hotel rooms.
Then when you factor in the above with a large amount of bands that can’t play/sing live…
No point in risking money
The comment about the Council tying a venue up in red tape when someone moved next door and complained was a telling one.
People are tired of being ripped off and this will be a bigger issue as the average person is squeezed further and further
I played so many gigs in my 20s to mostly empty rooms. I know SO MANY musicians who’ve just given up on gigging altogether. It’s something people are so apathetic about, unless it’s Billie Eillish playing an arena or a fuckin oasis reunion or something, people would much rather pay hundreds for this types of gigs than go to a local venue and spend a tenner on a ticket.
It was hard ten years ago when gig tickets were 4 quid, and it’s worse now.
The only shows people go to in my local city now is atrocious tribute and cover bands pretending to be ACDC or shit like that. Truly depressing
As someone who has worked in bars / clubs full time and part time for nearly 30 years I’m not shocked.
Between price rises and bars and clubs just becoming bland and offering little. Taxis have also become bloody expensive and little public transport at night doesnt help with the cost factor.
[Who could possibly have seen this coming???](https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/mar/19/arts-funding-austerity-collapse-tories-labour)
All that talk of ‘Mickey Mouse’ degrees and pretending this country still runs on steel, but when reality sets in, you won’t hear a peep from those people.
I’m in Pembrokeshire and regularly go to the queen’s hall or dA Valence. Both cracking little gigs with tickets £20 or less.
I love tribute bands as they are generally as good if not better than the original. I did go a bit mental and bought tickets to see Sting at Cardiff castle who was excellent. Food before and it was less than £100!
I feel more people go to watch live music now, for the big bands people are more willing to get that hotel and travel. Bands want to play the biggest venues and maximise their numbers rather than work more for less money. I see people going to watch live music now who never would’ve when I was a lot younger. Pop concerts are much much bigger now
I’m fortunate to live close enough to London to be able to travel to a few gigs per year. Locally there isn’t much going on at all.
>There are vast swathes of the country where your only option is to travel an hour and a half.
TBH, that has always been a fact life unless you live in one of the bigger cities. The fast train to London is 40 min for me, but by the time I’ve driven to the station, waited for the train, travelled in, and got a tube to the venue it will be about an hour and a half door to door. Coming back takes slightly longer because there are only slow trains later on.
I honestly don’t see that as a big deal. Sure it would be nice if I could afford to live in zone 1, I could get to all the gigs I wanted, probably even walk to some of them. Maybe in my next life.
It’s getting so rare for even moderately big bands to play Brighton, or anywhere south of London since COVID, it’s pretty ridiculous.
Small venues have at least doubled their gig costs since covid ended. All the bands I saw for £10 in 2019 want £20-£30 since 2022.
There was a burst of gigs in 2021 post covid, now they’ve slowed to a trickle.
Tickets I used to be able to buy direct from the small venue for face value are now only available on-line, delivered by email and with a 12% service fee.
We’re having to drive further and more out of the way to see bands because they’re playing fewer places and the public transport is non existent, so the venues aren’t getting money from drinks either.
On Wednesday we drove an hour to a small venue where we’d paid £28.50 a ticket, they wanted £6.50 a pint and the merch was cash only.
I support small venue live music. I live for small venue live music. We can’t pull money out of our arses to keep things going. I don’t blame anyone who has decided they’d rather spend a couple of hundred making an event of an arena gig twice a year than traipse all over the place.
Stop only listening to Coldplay and Foo Fighters and there are plenty of affordable gigs and tours around if you live in/near a city.