On a rollercoaster

What a weird last 5 days. I've been filled with so much inspiration, and felt so lifeless, and it's gone back and forth for the past five days. Let me tell you about it.

Friday was the best show I've ever been a part of. Not financially, not numbers-wise, but just in spirit. I mean, the numbers were great. 248 paid for an all-Michigan bill in Howell was amazing. But here's the thing. As much positive buzz as La Dispute has in this area, which annoys some people, they've earned it. They've connected with local kids in this area in a way that no other band has. Not Island View Drive. Not Tips. Not The Mathematicians. Not Monte. This band has inspired of a group of kids in an area to be together, to think outside the normal box that you're supposed to live in. It was a total inspiration to be a part of that show, and I truly felt like we were doing something right, like we were making a difference in people's lives. La Dispute has put out a record that's truly a work of art, and they work their asses off to get everything they've earned. And they're so humble.

On Saturday, we brought the La Dispute show to Mac's. That place sometimes is awesome, and sometimes is just depressing. Even with the buzz of 120 or so La Dispute fans in the room, and the amazing positive aura that is Koji, I was down most of the night. It was amazing to see so many friends, and to spend time w/ Koji and the LD boys, but I was so annoyed with the venue. Little things bother me after a while.

Koji crashed with us on Saturday night, and he's such an inspiring dude. He just has an aura of confidence about him, of caring about the world, and about people. The crew he had with him were the same, and he talked so kindly of his hometown of Harrisburg, PA, which he loved more than anything. I tried to see if Howell could be the small town that he spoke of, to see if they were comparable. Howell and Brighton are so hung up on the corporate bullshit, and the money, and the politics, I can't imagine it being anything like Harrisburg, at least the way he described it. But maybe he just sees life differently.

Sunday night, we went to the Mixtape for Stick To Your Guns and Shai Hulud. It was the first of three straight losing shows. But it wasn't the losses that bothered me. Shai Hulud and STYG were great people, but I don't feel their music. At all. The Mixtape is an interesting place, the remnants of a place that I'm jealous of. Skelletones was one of the country's longest-running true all-ages music venues, and it was a mess. The place is dying, quickly, with the new owners in place. JR's a nice enough dude, but he doesn't understand the business, and the heart has gone out of the place. I think Mirf took it with him, which is sad. His goal, upon leaving, should have been to ensure that the place stayed strong once he left. Instead, he made it an ending, leaving JR to try to save the place, with all momentum dead.

Monday, we were at Mac's with Jimmy Robbins and Mark Rose. Both nice dudes, Mark's music was really solid, but it was one of those nights that didn't belong at Mac's. Our venue situation has to be the worst of any promoter at our level. We have lots to choose from, but none exactly have it figured out. The Mixtape is cool, but two hours from here. Mac's is a dump, but we love it on and off. The Crofoot doesn't really have the location for what we're doing, though it's beautiful. And the Howell venues have their issues. I got thinking, based on my inspiration from Koji, on a possible idea for a venue in Howell, an arts center of sorts. We've had our eye on the old LanLords space in downtown Howell for years now, just solely for the location. Howell needs the kids downtown. All towns do. It's good for a vibrant downtown, to have the energy of youth. There's too many issues to make it work (mostly noise issues with the upstairs apartments), but I'm not letting the idea die. I'll find a place someday, and I've got a million ideas for what to do with it, that would be beyond any small venue you've ever seen. It would be amazing, a multi-sensory art experience.

Finally, today was simply a terrible day. From the arguments with agents about overpriced shows to the Oh Sleeper show that did 34 people, I was a miserable piece of shit all day, and I apologize to anyone who was in my path. It was so beautiful out, and I just wanted to hop on the freeway, and drive until I crossed three state borders.

There's a lot of things at work in my brain at the moment. Some are things that'll advance my current endeavors. Some are things that'll stop me from taking on too many projects outside the scope of what we normally do (see compilation CDs, Music as a Weapon battles). I'm working on ideas to eliminate the bullshit bands from our lives (Millionaires, Brokencyde), and start focusing again on local music. I feel like we're so buried in touring acts, that the locals are just pushed to the side. I'd like to build some of the talent in Michigan into local stars, and I think that can be done.

I'd really like to travel and get on the road this summer. I'd like to take Teresa with me, but still be me and do the type of things that interest me. It's going to be an interesting summer.

I'd like to diet, and get more physically active. Today, I should have been outside. I need a bike. It was a perfect day to ride a bike, and I don't own one. If I had a bike, and just put my iPod on, I could knock out ten miles a day.

And finally, I want to continue to grow the business, but start returning to the values I've had for this thing since day one. I feel like I've got dollar signs in my eyes a bit, and I've kind of forgotten what made this a success.

Time to go bike shopping. God bless the internet.

Continuing yesterday's post

Has live music been affected by the "I don't need to pay for anything because I have the internet to keep me warm" thing that I discussed last week?

I just feel like people are apathetic to everything, because they are surrounded by so much stuff, that it's really hard to truly care about anything, because something better comes along the next week to take their affection away.

I remember the sense of mystery that used to go into trying to find out when my favorite band was going on tour. There were no websites to tell me. No blogs. No Twitter. It was just AWESOME when you heard that ad on the radio, or found that date in Metro Times. Now, you know when your favorite bands had stir-fry for lunch. It takes some of the mystique out of it.

I guess I say this because tonight, Thursday, one of the most influential and important bands of this past ten years, just played tonight for a semi-enthusiastic crowd of about 350 (after half the crowd left after Bring Me The Horizon, which might be the suckiest band I've seen on such a huge stage in a long time). Don't get me wrong, there were Thursday fans there. But I think this band has become irrelevant because there's a ton of other bands that now sound a lot like them, and their political thing is kind of buried. And since they toured with bands like BMTH and Pierce the Veil, the politically-conscious kids that dig this band decided that it wasn't worth the $21.50 ticket price to sit through this shit-fest to get to Thursday.

I don't know man. Maybe it was just a bad bill. I just don't see anyone truly get excited for anything, because there's no anticipation anymore. You can get anything you want, as soon as you want it, on the internet, which kills that buzz that used to build about a new record, a new tour, or any sort of announcement. And that buzz wears out faster, too.

I guess I'm getting old and the world is spinning too fast. I just feel like there should be 800 people out there (at least enough to sell out St. Andrews Hall) that would dig Thursday enough to come be a part of what happened tonight.

Three questions about concerts for this summer:

1. Will Blink 182/Weezer (if it happens) sell out at DTE or the Palace (20,000 kids)?
2. Will No Doubt/Paramore sell out the Palace?
3. Will Warped Tour numbers suffer because of the reduction in stages (and the "scene" lineup)?

I'm intrigued to see if these tours, the hottest of the summer for the 15-30 year olds, will do the numbers they certainly would have done five years ago.

The internet has killed, well, everything.

This is a short post. Because very few people will read it. Because everyone else is writing their own blogs right now. Which is sort of the point. Everyone blogs. And therefore, no one reads what everyone writes. Everyone writes music, records it, and releases it. No one listens to it. People don't need to buy anything, because it's all on the internet.

Am I bitter about it? Not really. More than anything, I just see it as being very interesting. The most wonderful times of my life have been spent with people, yet I find myself in front of this screen more often than not. I'm not sure why, either. It's where I "work". But could I do my work without it? Could this business work without the internet? And would it be better?

Thoughts to ponder....

Blogging can be harmful for your health

I just had an interesting email exchange, due to a post I made on a public forum about what I honestly felt about a band's performance that I had booked. It's now led to a broken relationship, which will likely never be mended. That makes me quite sad, but I guess it's OK. I've learned a pretty valuable lesson. The farther I take this Fusion Shows thing, the more I have to realize that the walls have ears. This will be twice that my "big mouth" will have burned a bridge.

However, at the same time, I had a really positive day. I interviewed with a local high school student about what our shows mean to our community, and I had a local girl "tag" me in a Facebook note, with an amazingly sweet paragraph about how much our shows have meant to her being the woman she is today. Every time I feel like my life is pointless, and some totally slick business dude who's "got it all figured out" on the outside gets me down, someone like Sharon Korzek comes along and reminds me about what the hell I'm doing, and why I'm doing it.

So let it be known. I don't give a flying shit how life is "supposed to work". I don't care about "the way it is". I've chosen the path less traveled, and while I have to model it after other business, Irv and I are different at Fusion Shows. We genuinely care about our communities. We want kids to want to stay in Livingston County, in Lansing, because there ARE things to do.

I refuse to let people drag me into their miserable little holes. I love my life, I love what I do. I'm pretty broke, I don't have insurance, I'm not in great shape. But I'm doing something that I love, every day. It's not for everyone. In fact, what I do isn't really for anyone, but it's important that young people understand, through all the gloom and doom about the economy, you can do whatever it is that you want.

I'm happily married, happily self-employed, and on a comfortable couch, under a warm blanket, in a nice apartment, under a perfectly functional roof, and about to each some pretty tasty chips and salsa. So there you go!

Revelation!

Thanks to a guy that I never really understood, I finally found something out today! I know why music is the way it is. It's simple. 14 year old girls (and boys) buy music. And they buy merch. We don't. So whatever they like is what becomes huge. Like Metro Station. And Manchester Orchestra plays Mac's Bar, sells it out, and then flops at the next level. Or worse.

It's so blatantly obvious, but it has never been said so that I really understood the magnitude of it. I don't buy merch. It's because I have bills, etc. And I'm ruining the future of those bands. It's not that I don't go see the bands I want to. They get less exposure because they sell less, which means they don't have the money to pay for advertising and what not.

I like to have enough faith in humanity that if it were different, and 25-30 year olds were to buy merch, it would be Thrice, Thursday, Manchester Orchestra, Murder By Death, and more would be selling out arenas, and the Metro Station's and All Time Low's of the world would not bother us so damn much.

It's solely our guilty conscience that drives us to "hate" those bands so much. That, and all the "copycat" bands out there that are modeling themselves after All Time Low or Bring Me The Horizon are doing so not because they truly love the music. They see the adoration from the mobs, and the merch sales.

Uggggggghhhhhhhh.

I'm going to buy a CD sometime. Soon. Just buy one. I encourage you all to do the same.

Busy, busy times!

So I just started working as a booking agent for Artistic Services Group from Tampa, Florida. It's pretty exciting to have some resources to work with to help some great bands get noticed. I've always enjoyed booking shows that people wanted to book. I'm working on a tour for one of my favorite bands, Damiera, on Equal Vision. I'm pretty excited about that. And my first signing to my roster was Your Best Friend, another one of my favorite bands. I've confirmed like ten shows in the past few days, with a bunch more on the way. It's addicting.

I'll be able to submit bands for tours with some of the industry's biggest bands. They probably won't get them often, but it's just nice to be on a recognizable level with others that work as hard as I do.

As far as Fusion Shows goes, things are going pretty well. We're advancing a bit, but kind of at a plateau at the moment. We can't get any bigger without really rolling with the big boys, getting radio involved and such. It's just going to take one big gig that we land to get it all rolling. We'll see what that'll be.

Mac's Bar really has the potential to be an amazing club, considering what we've built it into. It needs a little bit more direction, a floor, and for the other promoters to recognize that their shows that do 30 people aren't helping anyone. We've invested money there, and will continue to do so, as long as it continues to be what we need it to be. The Planet's a decent option for some larger shows, but nothing's better than a packed out small club.

Same with the Mixtape Cafe in Grand Rapids, but that's a little bit different story. We haven't established ourselves out there, and it'd be difficult to do in a market that's 2 hours away from me. The Crofoot is the Crofoot. Beautiful room with too many people involved. That place should own the earth right now, but it is slowly pulling market share away from some of the others. The Magic Stick/Majestic doesn't have a lot of great shows coming, nor does the Blind Pig. It's a weird time in the Detroit music scene, but we're glad to sit back, be the B market buyer, and wait for the perfect show to vault us into contender status.

The battle of the bands finals is Saturday, and I think we let that whole project down. We didn't give it enough push, and it's going to be disappointing. There'll be a very good crowd there, but not anywhere near the numbers we've done in past years. We simply didn't push it hard enough. Howell's music scene is a mess right now. Kids only come to see metal acts en masse. There's a small group that like indie and other stuff, but they're so picky, it's just easier to take stuff to other markets. Maybe as this new venue works itself out, things will improve in Howell. I need the ability to just have smaller local shows, to get the locals a chance to play out more.

I can ramble all day about this stuff. It's what I do now. Every day, all day. I've been on this laptop 14 hours a day all week. I like it, but I need to find a way to get out of the house more, get some exercise. If I could shake this cold (yes, I'm still coughing), I might be able to go skate or play hoops. Ugh. Oh well. Back to watching the Wings.

New Year's resolutions?

I've never been one to really spend too much time with the idea of a New Year's resolution. However, as I get older, I guess I should probably start. I'm not going to be able to stick to all of these right off the bat, but maybe I can find some people through writing this to help me. I'm not real good with self-control, but I'm definitely a competitive person, and if I have someone to do something with, I might have a chance. This obviously refers to diet/health kind of stuff.

Anyway, I divided them into three different ones.

PROFESSIONAL
1. Kick it into high gear and start making some real money. 2008 was very solid, and we're in a good place. Keep it rolling.
2. Give my all into the new project. Could be the extra money I need.
3. BF09 is to be the biggest ever! Let's break attendance records.
4. Get our accounting to a much better place, and get into an office.

DIET/HEALTH
5. Start a diet. I've done some research, and my best bet is a volume-based diet, because I love to eat. I just need to find stuff that's good for me that I can eat a lot of. Salads, etc.
6. Exercise 5 times a week. Basketball, hockey, kayaking, hiking, running. I want to get a bike too. I love riding bikes, or at least I used to. Start an actual program, and stick to it! Since I'm home, this shouldn't be that hard. Definitely need some partners on this one.
7. Cut out pop entirely. I love my pepsi and root beer, but it's eating my teeth away, which then eats my wallet away.

PERSONAL
8. Spend just a little bit more of my time and effort to do things for my wife. We love the fact that we don't make a fuss about things, but sometimes, it's nice to surprise her.
9. Get the finances in order. Start making payments on time. Debt is getting less and less, but it's happening too slowly. Need to get into position to get a house in the next two years.

That's a lot, but it's all stuff that I need to do anyway. Happy New Year!

Ready for a challenge...

It's time. I tend to uproot myself every few years, reinvent myself to keep from being stale, from slowly dying. I need to do that again soon. I need to take a big step, in a positive direction. I need to legitimize my music industry career. Right now, it's cute and all, but it's time to hit the next level. And I'm not just talking about putting on local shows. I need to hit the national stage, make people start paying attention. The only way that in two years, I'll be making a good living doing this is by realizing my potential on a national level.

I'm capable of being mentioned in the same breath as some of the people who I field phone calls from now. It's going to take some focus, and some luck, but I'm tired of being the guy who's booking Brokencyde "because it'll be a packed house". Time to use my influence to build the music scene that deserves to be built. And not just in Michigan, but throughout the country. There are bands that deserve a chance. And people who deserve to hear them.

I'm tired, and I'm rambling, but I just know that I'm not content where I am now.

Round two?

Wow, that last post was long. But I have a separate thought. I want a rock club. A real one. In Livingston County. It's not fair for these kids to have to go see shows at the stupid PAC, with a crappy sound system.

I think shows could be so much better with a proper stage, sound system, lights, and a bunch of other stuff that would just make the place so much better.

Ugh. We'll see what happens, I guess. 2009 should be interesting.

The state of things...

It's been a few weeks since I've written in this journal. Strange, too, because I haven't done shit. I've been so lazy these last few weeks. I don't really have a job, other than doing shows. I've slept 10-11 hours a night for the past 2-3 weeks, just because I can. It's been strange. I need to go out and find some work.

Speaking of finding work, I want to comment on the sad state of affairs here in our home state of Michigan. The world as we know it here is all in an uproar to "save the big three", and therefore supposedly "saving our jobs".

The economy of Michigan is wrapped around the big three automotive companies: Chrysler, Ford, and GM. Whether it be folks working directly for the automakers, or for their subsidiaries and suppliers, a large percentage of the lower and middle classes have raised their families on jobs from these companies. I feel very badly for those that have already lost their jobs, and those who will do so in the near future. However, I want to relay to you my thoughts on the potential bailout (which I guess failed, thankfully).

Here's the problem, folks. PEOPLE DON'T NEED MORE CARS. Yes, the demand is there, for SOME new cars, for the rich. We've got enough people to make those cars. And in our free society, if someone wants something, we can make it. No governmental limits, etc. However, in that same society, something else happens. When there's too much of something, demand crumbles, and the industry that relies on that demand goes with it. It's just natural, and you can't have it both ways. We don't need more cars. There's plenty out there. Look at used car lots. TONS of cars for sale. And the big three had their chance. People have been telling them for years, make a more fuel-efficient car. Too late. They missed that boat, and it sailed, sunk, and was turned into a national monument.

The problem is, it's the little guy that's getting pinched. They would have made a pedal start 120 MPG car in a heartbeat, had they been told to. They've known this all along, they've probably seen this coming. You know how you, wherever you work, always know better than the boss? The boss isn't usually the boss because he's the best at anything. It just meant he got to go to college, because he had money. Management is not often an earned thing as much as it is an acquired thing. A lot of people, in all walks of life, get into positions of power without any valid reason.

So anyway, these big guys, with their big money, they didn't listen to the environmentalists that told them "Hey, there's only so many resources on this planet!" They just kept building, and flooded the market with SUV's that get 6 miles to the gallon. PEOPLE WANT BIG CARS! No, rich people want big cars, and they don't speak for me, dumbass! They got their market share, because we all bought on credit, shit that we didn't have the money to own. I did it. I'm in so much debt. If this were the early 1900s, I'd be hosed. For all the things I "own", I've probably actually paid for about half of them. I'm in debt for the rest. I wish credit didn't exist, because as I look around my house, about 2/3 of the things I have, I don't "need".

So now you have millions of people, all wrapped up in an industry whose demand has never been lower, and is getting worse every day. Because who buys those cars? Well, the rich upper class does, yes. But whose car has wheels falling off, rust holes, and failing brakes? It's that same autoworker who's out of a job! Is he going to buy a NEW car? Nope. He's going to buy a used car. A cheap one. That gets good gas mileage, for the next time that the gas prices go through the roof (that's coming soon, don't worry).

So, back to the bailout. Why would the government wants to pump all this "money" (that doesn't even exist, but that's another story) into this industry, that by all accounts is dead. Yes, the common worker needs jobs. I'm not forgetting about them at all. And I hate to say it, but that bailout would be like putting a band-aid over a crack in Hoover Dam. It's just holding back the floods for a minute or two.

So here's where I say we spend all that "money". First, I'll tell you why I'm using the quotation marks around "money". I'm sure you know, but the government doesn't have any real money either. They have the power to create money, without even printing it. They could tell us any number they want. We have 10 bajillion dollars! We have a 200 zillion dollar deficit! There's not even 1/100 of the "money" in this country actually printed. It's all CREDIT! Cash is nearly obsolete. It's getting scary.

But anyway, back to the industries we bail out. Actually, screw the industries. Here's where we help. Auto workers. Bring your ID card to your local college. You get free, government subsidized training (which pumps money into schools for all you teachers out there!) for the following much-needed industries: service (think of how much work Habitat for Humanity could get done with technically proficient people that are being PAID by the government to help), technology/computers (still plenty of jobs there), road construction, and more. Sadly, you don't get to pick fancy occupations like marine biology and all that. We need your skills, and you need a job. So we'll pay for you to learn these occupations, and you can take your same lunch-pail work ethic to those places that you're still needed.

Those of you that went to the factories, drank on the job every day, went home and beat your families, and generally sucked at life, well, you're out. You should stop sucking at life. But if you are a good person, a hard worker, and truly want to "bail" yourself out of your situation, you're digging this idea. And if you're a service industry, helping the ever-increasing needy, you could use the help! Especially people who can swing a hammer and don't mind some dirty work. Lord knows us college graduates don't want to get dirty. We want to sit in a high-rise office and get paid six figures for doing next to nothing, or we want to cook at a fancy restaurant, or whatever. We don't want to really work.

Finally, to the auto workers. Thank you for your hard work. I truly feel for your predicament. I've chosen the live music industry as my place, at least for now. If live music, tomorrow, became a thing of the past, I don't know what I'd do. I'd look for help. I'd probably feel sorry for myself. So I feel you. I hope you get back on your feet. I know what it's like to live paycheck to paycheck, and to put the rest on credit, with the hope that "someday" you'll catch up, but knowing that it'll probably never happen.

I'm scared for the current generation. We've made our bed. Kids don't know what life was like before Visa and Mastercard. It goes for all walks of life. Some kids have never listened to a CD. Never had basic television. Never paid cash for their clothes. Never ridden in anything smaller than a Yukon. Never lived in anything less than a 4000 square foot house, that dad bought when the auto industry was sweet. Now he works 2 jobs, mom works 2 jobs. They're foreclosing on the house soon, and WE DON'T KNOW WHERE WE'RE GOING TO PARK OUR YUKON! Not to mention our corvette, and our 57 inch TV! And the yacht, where do I put the yacht?!?!? This 4 car garage, man, we're going to miss it!

I'm inspired by some of the kids I see at our local concerts. Some of them get it. They understand that you don't need new cars, new clothes, the latest video game system, or the new cell phone on the market. They know that life is the best when you simply can find places to have a great time, and give back to your community. It doesn't have to be through official channels. Simply being supportive of a local business, buying a band's CD, checking out a local coffee shop or clothing store. That all makes such a difference!

Part of me wants to use the crazy organizational skills that I was blessed with to actually go to these small businesses, the local owners of shops in downtown Howell, downtown Brighton. Get them out of the silly place that their heads are at these days. Do you really think a billboard that you're paying $2000 a month for on I-96 will get more business into downtown Howell? Marketing people will hate me for this, but as with most things these days, the best marketing is FREE. Music is becoming free. News has become free (see dying newspapers). I could pay some marketing firm a million dollars to market my city. I could run ads in every coupon book. But what really works, just like the most successful concerts I run, is simply a grassroots movement. Word of mouth. It's a mindset. If we all were to "Think Indie", as is the motto of one of my favorite bands right now, Manchester Orchestra, then these local restaurants, the clothing stores, and the others would have a chance! If we spent our $25 for two dinners at Border Cantina instead of Chili's, that money stays in the county!

I don't know, I guess I've just had a lot of time to think lately. I'm such an entrepreneurial spirit, I don't know if I ever really want to work for anyone else, ever again, at least in the usual punch in/punch out way. I have a lot to offer, but sometimes I wish that money was cut out of the equation. I put in my work, to better this world, and then I can just go to the community cupboard, grab a bite to eat when I'm hungry, and all would be OK. That's getting a little hippie, I know.

But I just want to know, when did it get more complicated than that? Whose idea was it? I'm sure this wasn't the way it was supposed to be.

I'm going to go support the local kids in their version of "A Christmas Carol". Then see some friends and cheer on my fantasy football team. And then grocery shopping. Then home with my wife. It's going to be a good day. Then, tomorrow, the job search begins, but not through the traditional ways. I need someone who needs what I can offer.