Touting For Trade

London Fields # 39
First published Inpress, Melbourne on 16 May 2007
NB: Each column has a name, but these do not appear in print; printed versions may differ slightly to those displayed here

It seems to me that there are four big issues facing the live scene in the UK: its popularity, the threat of closure to some mainstays of the scene, ticket touting (scalping) and the imminent introduction of the smoking ban.

It remains to be seen how the complete smoking ban, which is being introduced in England on 1 July 2007, will impact on the live music scene. Virtually all larger venues have a ‘No Passouts’ policy, which means that smokers are likely to leave it until the last minute before entering the venue. This is bad news for support acts, and will also hit the takings of the venue's bars. While gigging will be more healthy and pleasant for most of us, further repercussions may remain unknown for some time yet.

While you’d think the current resurgence of the live scene would ensure the future of music venues, last month the Hammersmith Palais closed to live music, and it will shortly be demolished. The Spitz is in peril, and a proposed redevelopment of the Tottenham Court Road area threatens the Astoria/Mean Fiddler complex.

For years, the image of the ticket tout has been the same. A parka-wearing pack animal that hangs around in all weather outside tube stations or the venue itself, reciting the age-old mantra "Got any spares? I’ll buy or sell. You need a ticket? You got one to sell?" A mate likes to toy with them, but they’re hard nuts, and more than once I’ve been threatened when selling a spare ticket at cost to another punter, as it’s affecting ‘business’.

But eBay has made it easy for anyone to tout, and is attracting people with little or no love of music, with the lure of money for nothing. So while more folks are going to gigs than at any time I can recall, part of the reason it’s become harder than ever before to get tickets through normal outlets is that up to a third of gig tickets are resold. So concerts will sell out in minutes instead of hours, but almost instantaneously dozens of pairs of tickets will appear on eBay.

Now some measures have been taken, such as the pre-registration required for Glastonbury or the recent Arctic Monkeys tour, and Arcade Fire kept some tickets for door sales only on each night of their last tour. Up until now, the government has only taken action when internet auction sites allow reselling of free tickets, such as Live 8, or the upcoming BBC’s Radio One’s Big Weekend.

It’s the disparity between the rock industry and the rest of the entertainment world that causes the real problems. Scalping is banned at football matches, and touts face fines up to £5000 if caught selling outside a football stadium. Theatres make provision for ticket resale, by offering a returns service [and make additional money for themselves in the process]. Some theatres check eBay on a daily basis and try to locate and cancel tickets if they’re being sold on to third parties.

But when it comes to the gig punter, all such considerations vanish. Recently I bought tickets for a sold out event in Birmingham, and when it became apparent that I’d be unable to go, there were four options of getting rid of them. Two of these I could rule out immediately - I didn’t know anyone who wanted to go, and I wasn’t willing to scalp the tickets on eBay. So, I posted on the band’s forum, and also on Scarlet Mist, a website set up to allow fans to sell tickets on for face value, without incurring any fees. While I disposed of one of the pair via Scarlet Mist, I ended up nearly £40 out of pocket by doing things the ‘right’ way.

Earlier this month, the government convened The Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee, whose eleven-members will look into the whole issue of event ticketing. It’ll be interesting to see if this makes any recommendations that may change the current situation. I have a sneaky suspicion it will. After all, someone’s bound to realise that these rip-off merchants aren’t paying tax on their earnings.

© James McGalliard 2007

A Rough Guide

London Fields # 21
First published Inpress, Melbourne on 14 December 2005
NB: Each column has a name, but these do not appear in print; printed versions may differ slightly to those displayed here

"Does Camden Town really exist?" she asked me. It’s just after Faker have finished their final gig of their UK Tour [bottom of a bill of three acts on a quiet Wednesday night], and I’m talking to a 19 year old who’s only been in London a few weeks. "Well, I think I was there the other night", she continues, "but I can’t be sure if it was real or if I dreamed it…"

Camden used to be fabulous, a weird hybrid of Fitzroy and St Kilda. But no more - now you can’t get five paces without the ubiquitous offers of "skunkweed". It’s a journey to a destination, not a place to hang out in. Hoxton’s a much better bet, if you can cope with the coolsie factor.

Then she asked, "Are the Carling Venues the places to go?" The Melbourne equivalent would be "Can I catch upcoming acts cheap at The Metro and The Palace?" Some Aussies come to London and choose to live in SANZA share houses, get their news from TNT (a magazine for Antipodean travellers), and the Metro (a freebie morning tabloid, produced by Express Newspapers), go to Aussie pubs, and listen to JJJ on the internet. (By the way, SANZA is a horrible TNT-created acronym – lumping together all English conversant Southern Hemisphere travellers into the one basket – South Africa, New Zealand and Australia. Eek!). And of course, this lot go and see Aussie bands. In fact, now that you get pints in Melbourne pubs, some of them may as well have never left Australia at all.

But in deference to those seeking more, and as a Yuletide special, here are some handy hints which you may not find in your Lonely Planet or Let’s Go, especially for those who are making travel plans for a UK trip in 2006.

Gig Tickets. Beware of the sting of booking fees and postage costs – even though normal ticketing agents, a £12 ticket can easily jump to a £20 outlay. The trick is to buy in person, where possible. You can get tickets at face value for all Mean Fiddler venues from the Camden Ticket Office or Astoria box office, and the same applies at the Academy box offices for their venues. Of the agents, Stargreen are the best by far – reasonable fees, and friendly people. For some venues [Barfly, Scala] there is no place to buy without fees, so it’s a case of shopping around for the best deal. But don’t take too long as gigs are selling out in minutes, snatched by those hoping to turn a quick profit on eBay. To stand a hope, sign up for ticket alerts [Get Live, Ticketmaster, and Ticketweb] as these often offer gig presales.

Mailing lists are a great way to save money and find out what’s happening. Sign up to those from The Barfly, Plum Promotions [for The Marquee, Water Rats and Betsey Trotwood] and The Social. Check the websites for Bugbear Bookings [for Dublin Castle and The Hope and Anchor] and Up All Night Music for bands further down the pecking order. To save money, check the HMV and Virgin Megastore websites for free instore appearances. Join Artrocker – if you want Aussie bands, you could have seen Wolf & Cub, Love of Diagrams, Sinking Citizenship, Die! Die! Die! and The Grates, all for free in the last year alone. To find out what’s new, listen to BBC 6Music, or try XFM in the evenings. Also keep an eye on the websites Drowned In Sound, Sounds XP and Club AC30.

For a comprehensive 'What’s On', there’s nothing to beat Time Out. NME is no longer worth buying, but is worth flicking through for the live ads. Get The Guardian on a Saturday for The Guide. Try reading The Independent to get an overview of where you are, and what’s happening in the world. Eat at a caff and read their copy of The Sun – with three million copies sold a day it’s a window onto aspects of British life. As for music shopping, HMV is huge, and tempting, but Fopp is cheaper. There are some great second-hand shops, but you can find them for yourself…

Finally, don’t spend all your time in the capital; London is not the British Isles, or even England. Try living in Bristol, Manchester, Glasgow or even Dublin. They all have enough to offer that’s unique and interesting, and are large enough to get many of the acts that people stay in London to see.

I know a few people who have gone back to Melbourne because this place just really got to them after a while. It’s like surfing with really big waves – when things are going well, the rush is incredible, but when you get dumped it’s ten times worse than anything you’ve experienced before. The overriding thing is not to let London drain you of your creativity and spark. When you feel it’s time to move on, just do it.

Good luck and happy travels!


© James McGalliard 2007