Hey everyone! I've gotten into my fourth decade without ever really needing to book a show. As a drummer in a seldom performing band, it just never really came up.

Currently I'm trying to change that for two primary reasons

1. I'm leading a band and would like some people around here to hear us.
2. With two local colleges and a pretty large community of artists and musicians I feel like there's some untapped potential in terms of having more bands / artists in from out of town, and would like to help make that happen.

So far I've been reaching out to venues to book some dates, with some success. I'm also reaching out to bands that I like through public email addresses, bandcamp contact forms, or DMs on social media (depending on what's available and what seems most appropriate.)

As I haven't really done this before, I'm a little afraid of fucking something up, or coming across as the amateur I am. So please, hit me with your advice on booking shows -
Etiquette, Norms, Rules of Thumb, Dos and Don'ts, etc....

And if you want to come play a show in Ithaca, NY please hit me up!

I can guarantee that others will provide more substantive advice. However, if you have a bar/pub in mind that has live entertainment, patronizing that place a few times and striking up conversations with staff there (best during off-hours) is a great way to get the ball rolling. It's all that I've ever had to do, though my band didn't have aspirations that would necessitate something more than finding a venue to allow family/friends to see us play live.

Yeah - I've absolutely done this to some extent , and it's allowed me to make connections with some venues that seem to be working.
It's a little complicated by the fact that I no longer drink, but luckily there are a few non-traditional venues that are good fits.

In this day of awesome technological possibilities, get ready to handle all of this work in a fuckin' facebook IM feed.

Step up your Insta game

penningtron wrote: In this day of awesome technological possibilities, get ready to handle all of this work in a fuckin' facebook IM feed.

ChudFusk wrote:Step up your Insta game

Eww.

Good luck, BrendanK.

I am sort of in the same boat as I have not played in a band that played out in over a decade and just started playing out at the start of the summer. This is what I have learned in the last few months booking things in Chicago.

Two of the shows were booked the traditional way. The venue listed an email, wrote an email with a bandcamp link. Two weeks later got an email back putting us on a bill they put together.

One of my favorite venues replied to an email, but instead of putting together a bill asked if we wanted to put together the gig. So we had to find other bands to play with. Talking to others, I think this is something more common than I knew. So having a "package" of 3 bands is something you should be prepared for with some venues.

Being we are a new band and my family has health issues and COVID concerns are a big deal to us still, I dont get to go out and see shows that often. In the olde days I'd be a 3-5 shows a week talking to people, making friends, having fun, very organically. Not so much anymore unfortunately. So my short list of friends in bands couldn't play the date for various reasons, I had to reach out to bands via bandcamp or emails provided. Half the time I got a polite "no", often times I would hear back from bands like a month later, "sorry dude, this went into junk and we didnt see it." So, I often followed up with DMs on Instagram, which got decent results.

I am sad to say I have had good luck finding likeminded bands on facebook groups.

Amazing what a phone call can do. A good pitch on the phone that is researched and planned out, goes a long way. Also I think a phone call helps them get a read on you not being a total psycho or worse a flake.

Gear share. Some bands like this, some do not, discuss all details before the show. (Cab and drums usually)

Most places seem to frown on bills greater than 3 bands.

Any "weird" instruments it is good to let the sound or front of house staff know what to expect.

As soon as you are done, get your gear off the stage as quickly as possible.

Hang around for the other bands.

People seem to hate mixed genre shows?

Be wary of places that ask for how many followers you have on Instagram, Twitter, etc.

Hearing no a lot can start to feel personal, it's not. If you dont hear back from a venue/talent buyer, it is ok to email them again after a bit. Depends on the place, some like you having specific dates, others like "we will play whenever", just gotta figure it out. Reach out to bands that have played places you want to play ask about experiences, etc.

You can always ask your bandmates for help.

Owen wrote: Wed Aug 09, 2023 7:03 pmYou can always ask your bandmates for help.

That's the funniest thing I've ever read on this forum

Hey, I think I just confirmed my first show! And two more in the works!