Live Music Culture

 

Photo from The Rainbow by Kat Chant.

Something I think about a lot is live music culture, and in particular the differences between the culture of the UK and the US. I remember reading an article, although I unfortunately haven’t been able to find it again to share with you, which commented on these differences and truthfully opened my eyes to the reasoning behind a lot of problems we are having in the live music sector at the moment. 

The really important thing to note is that British people statistically don’t attend, on average, as many gigs as American people throughout the year, and in particular this difference comes from the fact that we are unlikely to attend shows by artists we haven’t heard of or don’t massively like. This is, of course, understandable. We’re in a cost of living crisis, and concert tickets and travel cost money. However, this is really affecting the economics of the live sector, particularly with regards to small local venues like The Leadmill (which I discussed in a few articles earlier this year) who face a threat of closure because they simply can’t afford to stay open. The difference, according to this article, was that Americans are more likely statistically to attend shows headlined by artists they haven’t heard of and, through these shows, discover new music. 

Of the people I’ve met in my life, many of them discover music through opening acts at gigs by their favourite bands. So, I would argue that we should all take it one step further and start attending gigs by artists we don’t know all that well if it’s at all financially possible. They’re usually pretty cheap, and not only will this boost the whole music industry, helping the UK develop local talent, but it will also provide valuable experiences for you. You could discover the next big thing and follow them from pub gigs to Glastonbury, or you could not and could just enjoy the experience of live music. 

All in all, there are precious few ways we need to be more like America, but I would argue that this is one of them. Support your local venues and artists, you might surprise yourself.