What do you want from live?
I have been unashamedly emotional about the return of live music. I was weeping at my first gig post-lockdown, the marvellous Arlo Parks at the incredible hmv Empire Coventry, actual tears. I then got an overly passionate response to Nova Twins at Godiva Festival, it felt so good to be in the presence of raucous energy and creativity.
It probably shouldn’t be a surprise. On average I’ve been at two gigs per month for the last 40 years and have earned a living (directly/indirectly) from live music for most of the last 30. Being without live music has been a wrench. At the same time, it provided an opportunity to reflect on what the live experience actually is. No amount of exclusive streamed performances or intimate shows came close to replacing it, they filled a gap but they weren’t the same.
I’m prepared to accept that this may be a generational thing. My offspring (in their 20s) can watch TV and Tik Tok simultaneously and think nothing of live tweeting stuff I think they would need to concentrate upon. Furthermore, I suspect that a streaming option should be on offer for most gigs and may be in the future, it’s potentially a solution to the carbon intensive industry of touring and opens up gigs for all – more of which in the next post.
For me though, live is live, it’s irreplaceable. There is nothing to compete with the visceral energy of a live show, the communal experience of being amongst your peers in that moment. Live is the anticipation, the expectation, the surprises and the glory of a gig, not to mention the afterglow when all you want to do is hear it again and reflect upon it with friends.
Unless you have the best technology, all the kit, streaming is simply a version of music TV, and we know how poor that can be. This is not to say that I didn’t appreciate Radiohead releasing full concert videos on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq19-LqvG35A-30oyAiPiqA during the pandemic, I even watched bits of Pink Floyd at Pompeii and revelled in Fontaines DC doing A Hero’s Death in Dublin. The main thing that these three had in common was high production values, which not all can afford – it favours the already famous. In real live situations, the smallest grungiest gig can give the most pleasure. Live confounds as often as it succeeds, the unpredictability is part of the package.
As live returned, so did the spectre of Abba’s animatronics – the Abbatars and their London-based ‘concert’ project. It is hard to criticise something that provides work to legions of my fellow event professionals and great musicians but I’m not sure it’s a great leap forward for music. You could argue that it’s a live experience rather than being a concert, but will it potentially take money out of the market, away from other shows? I think it might, for most of us there is only a finite amount.
Of course, I’m not suggesting that people are choosing between Abba and Amyl and the Sniffers but people already go to too few shows. The bulk of concert goers are attending one to two per year. It is bad enough that, thanks to streaming, the recordings of new artists already compete with all the greatest bands that ever recorded – to bring that to the live market feels selfish. Is it live or a digitised facsimile of the live experience with no glitches, string breaks or surprises and where all the solos are perfect? We need to fight for live like never before – it’s too precious to risk losing it all again.
Freedom come, freedom go
Although Monday 19th July marked Freedom Day in England, for many it’s just a transfer of responsibilities. Most of the rules are not now enforced or mandated by Government, just switched to companies or individuals to create their own interpretations. Alighting at this website you’re likely to be most interested in how this can impact upon events, gigs and venues, unfortunately there is no absolute clarity.
For music venues in particular there are likely to be any number of stakeholders, all hoping to impose their own restrictions – from promoters, agents and artists to sponsors, licensing bodies and authorities. What this can mean, if we’re not careful, is that gigs within the same venue might be subject to different levels of control and restriction. Until September of course, when the Govt wants to impose a no-entry unless double-jabbed plan.
The immediate response is to celebrate reopening, albeit cautiously. No venue, event, promoter, or artist wants to find themself back in an extended lockdown, ever again. Whatever metaphorical or administrative mountain we must climb to be back in work and providing entertainment, we’re obviously going to do it.
Initially it looked like reopening during the rapid spread of the Delta variant would see most caught in a pincer movement with staff and performers side-lined, locked down by default. The steady decline of infection though has helped to calm fears and for every cautious punter there are many more who are eager to be on the dancefloor and in the moshpit again.
Our next hurdle is inevitably going to become the Covid Passport or Vaccine Pass. I’m baffled that this has become a political football when its imposition was such an inevitability that even the barely educated (i.e. me) were writing about it over 10 months ago and again at the end of 2020.
Clambering out of Covid has been a series of delays and missed opportunities, many of which are a mystery to those of us who know and acknowledge that it’s an airborne virus. Consequently, a high crowd density in an enclosed space with poor air circulation provides a greater level of risk. The Govt’s latest response to this is that those attending ‘nightclubs’ will need vaccine passes, a motion then bafflingly rumoured to be extended to football stadiums – although conveniently long after Euro 2020 departed our shores. All venue owners must anticipate that this is coming their way and plan accordingly, whilst also managing their own levels of risk.
Fortunately for many there are a wealth of resources provided by the likes of the Music Venue Trust whose work has been exemplary throughout this process. Even without their campaigning and lobbying, their guide to reopening safely is worth the membership fee on its own. It remains something of a mystery though as to why (almost 2 years into this) there’s no definitive or legal advice on ventilation or financial support to do our own work.
As ever we cannot rely on others to help, we must ensure that we’re united against contracts that try to enforce fees when shows are postponed due to Covid, and official bodies that change their minds and regulations every few hours. We also have to kick back against all venues and events being categorised as being the same – they are not. A jazz or classical show in a large airy auditorium is entirely different from a punk gig in a 300 cap club with a low ceiling. The prevarications hint at rules that were relaxed not because of a desire to do so, more that they couldn’t hold us back any longer and didn’t want to offer further fiscal support. The ongoing reluctance to support or endorse any insurance package speaks clearly to the latter point.
Shows and touring are going to be distinctly home-grown for a while, there are few tours that can sustain having cast and crew in quarantine and no signs that exemptions will be offered. With differing laws across countries, the international mega-star tour will be unworkable until 2022 at the earliest. And when 2022 dawns its anticipated that we’ll have the opposite problem, too many shows and saturation for the market and fans.
We also rely on the fans to protect each other which is inherently risky. If you have been locked down for months and have tickets to see one of your favourite acts, are you going to act responsibly even if you feel a bit ill in the days before the show? People are selfish and testing/tracking is currently the only way to ensure the safety of other gig attendees, venue staff and the artists themselves. Artists are going to want protection – witness Fontaines DC having to withdraw from Latitude because they’d registered a positive result, possibly contracted whilst playing a smaller show. Very few are going to take that risk in future.
No-one said it would be easy, it never has been. Maintaining an awareness of the different scenarios and their likely impact on your market has never been more important. Think local, act global and let’s try and put the fun in freedom. As they used to say on Hill Street Blues, 'Let's be careful out there'.
Footnotes -
Government guidance on working safely during coronavirus for events and attractions
Jul 29: Although Music Week believes that Government relaxation of rules for vaccinated travellers is good news for the industry, it remains the fact that it would have to be extended Europe wide (at least) for agents/managers to believe that global touring is viable again. The story includes QOTSA pulling out of Reading/Leeds which proves that point.
Writing for PR
I don't do much PR these days but it's a pleasure to be part of the upcoming success story that is the hmv Empire, Coventry - taking live music to the centre of the city. I always like to write a press release and take pleasure in publications that use my words in their entirety. I recognise that this is often due to the dwindling numbers in newsrooms around the country but the story still has to be good enough and well told to get the results. This was our recent statement.
Empire and hmv join forces:
Empire Coventry strikes landmark deal with legendary entertainment brand hmv
Coventry music venue, The Empire, has today announced details of a partnership with leading entertainment brand, hmv. The venue, which is in the process of re-locating to the city centre, will be known as the hmv Empire in this historic three-year deal.
hmv Empire, Coventry will open on Hertford Street this year following a £500,000 re-development of a former retail site and cinema. Although Covid-19 has delayed the opening by a number of months, this exclusive partnership gives the music venue a significant boost, placing them at the forefront of the national touring scene.
hmv Empire, Coventry Head of Programming, Dave Brayley, welcomed the partnership: "We've had a long association with hmv back to our original site in Far Gosford Street where we co-hosted a number of exclusive performances including a fantastic show with Sam Fender.
"This extended commercial relationship is a great step for us, putting the venue and city firmly on the map with artist, agents and labels".
Patrizia Leighton, Marketing and Commercial Director, hmv, said:
"hmv has had a very close relationship with performing artists since we started selling recorded music in 1921. We wanted to show our support for live music, performers and all those working behind the scenes at a time when that support is more vital than ever.
“As Coventry celebrates being the City of Culture for 2021, and as we celebrate our 100th anniversary, hmv’s sponsorship of this incredible new venue will help cement live music’s place at the heart of Coventry’s cultural scene and introduce music fans to new bands and artists. Together with the hmv Empire team, we’re looking forward to offering amazing live experiences as the country comes out of lockdown.”
Empire founder, Phil Rooney, is delighted to have hmv on board: “When we first thought about commercial partners for the Empire, we were keen to avoid the usual lifestyle and utility companies, we always wanted a brand with a strong musical heritage and there’s none better than hmv.
“Growing up in Cov, the hmv in Hertford Street was the one place you were guaranteed to find me every weekend. To think now that we’re going to have a premier entertainment venue in the centre of the city, carrying the name of this iconic music retailer, it just blows my mind”.
The sponsorship, which runs until 2024, is hmv’s only venue naming deal in the UK and includes the potential for artist showcases and unique album launch events, bringing a host of names to Coventry. Shows already confirmed at the hmv Empire include Tom Grennan, Arlo Parks, Roy Ayers, Maximo Park, Jimmy Carr and a number of events curated by Specials frontman Terry Hall as part of the City of Culture.
Subject to further Coronavirus restrictions the hmv Empire, Coventry is due to open with a socially distanced performance from the comedian, Al Murray, on June 11th.
So far we have gained coverage from Music Week, Complete Music Update and a number of industry titles plus significant social media andall the main local news outlets including a breakfast interview with BBC Radio CWR. When we have the branding in place and the venue is closer to completion, we will look to execute a 'reveal' which will be staged for TV and online use.
The future’s so bright…..
Events at the end of the pandemic
By mid-February I’d read so many contradictory reports and surveys about how to resume live events and concerts that I’d begun to doubt if we’d ever be able to open a venue again.
An example of the conflict is summed up in two German studies – one claimed that the transmission risk at indoor concerts was negligible, provided that good ventilation, social distancing and face masks were in use
At the same time the Germans were celebrating this ‘win’, another report suggested that the risk of aerosol spread was reckoned to be higher if you sing in certain languages, like, er, German.
Promoters and venues were already well aware that the risk factors are hugely dependent on a number of issues, from type of venue to genre/style of show. A seated, socially distanced performance in an airy, high-ceilinged hall would be entirely different to a standing gig in a sweaty basement. The trouble was that governments and licensing bodies were insistent upon treating everything the same.
So, whilst we could have some hope that cultural events were safer than schools there was little public clamour to test that proposition. Yet in the UK, after months of barely acknowledging that the sector exists, we were finally given a glimmer of hope and, astonishingly, actual dates. It looked like a plan, which was astounding for all those who had been asking for evidence of one since before Christmas.
Naturally the dates came with caveats, but they were enough for some festivals to go on-sale and sell out, almost before the PM had stopped speaking. The following week produced future amazement as industry experts like the Music Venue Trust noted that the plan looked to be based on data rather than guesswork. The predicted roll out of the vaccine and continuing expected fall in infection rates make these dates likely to become a reality.
Whilst I see few people clamouring to hit the May deadline for restricted capacities, July and beyond look like reasonable expectations. The industry will have its own caveats of course, the most notable being insurance. Where EU governments and some others have stepped into the void where commercial firms fear not tread, UK authorities are more tight-lipped. Perhaps the upcoming budget will give us a better steer, but I fear the chancellor is keener to tighten the purse strings than keep the coffers open.
Talent may be another thorny issue in 2021. The UK may relax but that possibility seems unlikely across Europe. If you’re an international artist and dependent on the economies of scale that multiple shows offer, flying in for one or two UK shows might not cut it. That’s if you’re even able to escape your own country’s restrictions.
On that basis the future looks more optimistic, as long as you like British artists. Frankly, since everyone seems to be straining at the leash to be released, this looks to be less of an issue than it normally would be. New UK acts may thrive on those festival slots that may previously not have been available and, as Brexit & Covid restrict their ambitions, popularity may well have to start at home. Bring it on.
Passport to Freedom
The road to recovery for live events
This is Christmas, what have you done?
For most of us in events and subsidiary industries, the answer for 2020 is likely ‘not enough’. Many of us started the year well before seeing all the work crumble and disappear in March.
For my part I was in Melbourne working on the first event in a planned series of concerts following the F1 circus into different countries. It was ambitious but we’d negotiated with promoters, commercial partners and venues worldwide; everything looked great. We’d planned and designed our bespoke stage with environmentally friendly touring in mind, we even built it ready for event one – March 13 & 14, Albert Park. On Friday March 13th that was cancelled and, as we dismantled it, we assembled in production offices and bars and watched our summer shows tumble one by one.
Everyone has a similar story to tell. The great bonfire of the live events industry, spring and summer 2020. Many of us were optimistic that some of the later summer events might be rescued and that by the time of peak touring, Oct-Dec, we’d be back to normal. It hasn’t happened and even the 2020 shows that were pushed into corresponding time slots for 2021 are looking dubious. Some of this may depend on your location but, from a UK perspective, there’s little cause for optimism.
Whether large-scale touring can resume, with giant productions being hauled across continents, seems doubtful. As I scribble these words many borders to the UK are closed and lorries litter the M20 and Kent countryside. The solution that they’re suggesting for that problem is the only one likely to rescue the 2021 festival season: testing.
I originally wrote of this a few months ago, since when the UK Government has rolled out wider, general testing for cities such as Liverpool and schools in London. There remain some doubts about the reliability of the ‘quicker’, lateral flow or lamp tests but the standard PCR is highly regarded, and results can, in some cases, be produced in under 2 hours. A promoter’s willingness to hand over half his festival site to become a testing facility is unlikely but, given the pace of vaccine roll-out in the UK, there may be few other options to save 2021.
Whether the Govt will make generalised testing more available in the future months is open to question. There’s no doubt they’d have to sign off on any plans to resurrect live events and give substantial reassurance of no further instantaneous tier systems. One potential route is for Governments to provide ‘insurance’ to promoters as none will be available/affordable commercially. Testing and vaccination go hand in hand towards greater immunity and a combination is essential for us to be able to move forward.
There’s been a lot of kick-back against a ‘Covid passport’ for some justifiable civil liberty issues, but whatever name it goes under there seems little chance that artists, crew or audience will be allowed to stage or attend large capacity events without a recent clear test or proof of vaccination. The sooner we start to plan for this eventuality the better state we’ll be in. The campaign to save 2021’s concerts has started, who’s listening?
Footnote.
This is always going to be a rapidly evolving scenario. The US view has them banking on mass vaccination and a return to live by September:
The vaccination prospect seems optimistic and September feels like a very long way away. Also, how will you know who’s had it?
The Guardian reported of the slow pace of British vaccination which, at current rate, would take about 5 years to cover the country.
We should have additional reservations over how similar industries have been treated. The travel industry lobbied for testing and clearance to travel for months with apparent apathy from the Government. Then the policy was dumped on them with very little notice or detail on execution.
Culture war, what is it good for?
Happy Pogues day everyone!
It’s the most wonderful time of the year, that annual event when people, usually spurred on by click-bait media organisations, lose their minds over whether Fairytale of New York should be censored. Previously it may have been known as the day when radio stations started playing Christmas songs (a month & a bit prior to the date) and we’d all ruminate over whether it was ‘too early’, but now we have a real argument to get our teeth into.
In some senses it’s a more orderly and less divisive re-run of the Christmas vs Winter Festival or ‘war on Christmas’ debate favoured by the ‘red tops’ and right-wing shock jocks which blighted the start of festivities for many years. At least we can sing-a-long to this one.
The decision over whether to clip or obscure some lyrics which can be construed as homophobic and misogynistic is one of changing and challenging cultural norms. What may have been acceptable once upon a time is not always going to be the case and all media outlets have to be sensitive to the times and opinions of their audience.
Culture wars demand that we pick a side and defend it but there are instances, and this may be one, where it is possible to see both sides. When this argument bubbled up again last year, I was minded to reflect that you must always consider the context, particularly in a work of art. The questionable lyrics are exchanged in the setting of an argument, one conducted by characters in a different time and place. This being the case, a fixed mindset benefits no-one and there are rarely any good reasons to willingly cause offence. I might defend your right to express an opinion but choose not to share it with others, and certainly not broadcast it.
This time around the BBC are executing their right to straddle both sides of the fence as befitting an impartial broadcaster. The decision - playing different versions dependent on the choice of station - seems rational in many senses, in that it changes the use relevant to the market the station is serving and their respective attitudes. It also allows the debate to fester, which in turn promotes the fact that the Christmas songs have started up again. It’s a win-win in a situation that rarely produces a positive outcome.
That Christmas is often known as a time for consternation and celebration, of tradition and turbulence possibly reward the song’s legendary status: it reflects the mood of the times, it is universal, and it is loved. If we remember nothing else each year it should be that The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl created the definitive Christmas anthem and caused almost everyone else to give up trying. Happy Christmas your arse.
Testing Times
Covid 19 and the live events industry
In the popular events industry, we’ve rarely benefitted from Government intervention; we prefer to advise them than the other way around. We get on with things ourselves and work with local licensing bodies and authorities for the best outcomes. Governments just get in the way, with their infinite bureaucracy and leaden-footed methodology. Those in concert and event production are proudly autonomous but that same independence is punishing many of us who have slipped through the treasury’s ‘safety net’. The question is not whether we trust the authorities to get things sorted quickly enough (we don’t), rather is there something we can do to speed up the process?
How to re-start concerts and events
Next year the most important pass you’ll get won’t be the ‘crew’ laminate or ‘AAA’, it’ll be your Covid passport, the certification that you’re coronavirus free. It will inevitably come to this, those who are allowed to work & travel and those who are not. You may legitimately argue that if you’re allowed on a flying tube of metal with as little vigilance as a simple temperature check then we should be able to do the same with mass gatherings. Sadly, it’s unlikely to be that simple and we all know that socially distanced shows aren’t going to work - not only do the numbers not add up but you’re still at the mercy of locally enforced lockdowns as experienced by SSD and their socially distanced arena. No one can or will insure you against those risks which means that the solution is testing. All event attendees are going to have to arrive pre-tested and clear, with evidence to prove it – or you’ll have to provide testing on site.
Right now this sounds daft. Government is struggling to get results for people within 48 hours, lab capacity is non-existent, but we are not Government and our industry is too important for us to wait around for them to get their act together. If nothing else, we’ll need to have next year’s festival shows on-sale in the next two to three months and we’ll need a way to reassure ticket buyers that the shows will go on.
In 2020 we won’t just be in the business of shows, we will also be in the testing business.
Testing, testing…..Lamp Testing?
It’s no secret that the UK Government has failed to make test and trace work. We can do better. We already create mini cities with their own eco systems to stage big shows. In 2021 this will become greatly expanded to give more space to testing. Naturally the process will have to give instantaneous results, but we are very nearly there. I was alerted by friends in the movie industry to the possibility of a Covid test result within 30 minutes.
It hasn’t been widely reported but the methods and the costs seem promising. Perhaps at scale it’ll become even cheaper and faster, more efficient. Of course, we’ll need people to take and process the tests, but those services are being discussed, it’s a conversation we can already have – drop us an email when you’re ready.
Perhaps the only realistic way of starting events again is to put the onus on the attendee. Either they turn up with a clear Covid result or evidence of immunity and failing that they have to pay for a test to ensure they can get in. Correctly communicated to meet statutory conditions or event safety restrictions it should overcome any significant issues. We should not underestimate people’s desire to resume normality and start having fun – the quantity of ‘pop-up raves’ proves that.
Just as there are no omelettes made without broken eggs and no festivals staged without sore heads, there are significant logistical challenges, but it has to be better than another year without gigs and festivals. With our industry on its knees, that is just unthinkable.
Note (Oct 2020): The Events Industry Forum, Association for Independent Festivals and Association of Festival Organisers have published a draft document to assist festival promoters and organisers during the pandemic. It is sensible and comprehensive. They anticipate further updates as the situation evolves.
Boots (UK pharmacy) has also introduced a nasal swab test producing results in 12 minutes at a cost of £120. This is potentially a vital step forward for event organisers. The test uses technology developed by LumiraDx.
The UK Govt's 'moonshot' programme which is partly operational in Liverpool uses a version of the Lamp Testing referenced above.
THSH & Staffordshire Uni
We are delighted to be assisting Birmingham Town Hall and Symphony Hall with their Q4 marketing and working at Staffordshire University on the Broadcast Journalism Degree course. It's a busy time of year!
The rock revival?
The nature of our work relies heavily upon the rock genre, it's where the bulk of our experience lies. The last few blogs have referenced our hope for a rock revival. Let us pray!
The older record buyer
We can all become obsessed by demographics but in this blog I pose the question 'has the industry decided that the over-30's don't buy singles?'.