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Music
Jun 02, 2008, 05:45AM

The Opener

Warming up for more established and popular bands is a privilege for a new act, but there are some drawbacks.

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Photo by Faster Panda Kill Kill

Playing first sucks. You get excited to be opening a show, possibly with some (relatively) big name bands, thinking you'll pull a big crowd. It never happens. You're always left sitting around the stage, waiting for people to show up. In a flash, it's 8:45, and you're supposed to play at nine. You see a couple stragglers leaking through the door, getting marked, and just like that they're out of there. "Headliner's not playing 'til 11? Let's go get something to eat." Only at the biggest of shows, where early entrance is a must for a guaranteed good spot in the crowd, will you see people come at eight and stay until midnight. But if you're playing a show that isn’t selling out or even two-thirds full, people just don't care.

A couple of weeks ago, my band Engine played at the Metro Gallery in Baltimore with Wye Oak and Pattern is Movement. Wye Oak (formerly Monarch) has a huge fan base in Baltimore that’s grown rapidly in the past year. They’re being courted by Pitchfork and their debut album was just re-released on Merge Records, a label that’s also home to Destroyer, Arcade Fire, and the late great Neutral Milk Hotel. I figured this well-deserved success, as well as Pattern is Movement's similar popularity in their hometown of Philadelphia, would get people in the door before nine. Although the crowd was decent, the lion's share of people showed up after we played.

We had played a show at the club Ottobar with a headliner of similar popularity (Syracuse, NY's Ra Ra Riot), and the crowd was even thinner. Every band has a beginning, and ours was great: believe me, there are no whines from this corner, and it’d be arrogant and presumptuous to expect to sell out a 300-plus capacity venue within a year of starting a band. We played an outdoor show in northeast Baltimore in mid-May, and the people that were there were more frightened than thrilled. Even so, we had a great time, and the last thing I want to do is complain about it. It’s simply a comment on the structure and status of shows in this city, and I imagine others as well.

Part of the problem is that in Baltimore, shows generally start late (although compared to New York, we’re hardly night owls). The amount of people who want to go out, drink, watch a show, and then drink more vastly outnumbers the people who just want to see a show and be home before midnight. Obviously more adults over 21 make up the city's nightlife than teenagers, but shouldn't there be some kind of compromise here? It's a real bummer when you realize you need to leave in 10 minutes and the band you came to see isn't playing for another hour. Sometimes it makes the entire experience a waste. I get to see three bands I couldn't care less about and not the band I came to see in the first place; things like this make going to shows in Baltimore a real drag sometimes, especially when you're under 21.

You're never going to get an entirely appreciative crowd if you're playing first and early. It's just not realistic. People came to watch the headliner, and not you. This is a good thing to remember. No one cares about you except your friends. You may make some people pay attention and even get excited, and that is usually what I try and do: this is how you build a reputation and a fan base. Everyone needs to start somewhere. But you keep your head out of the clouds. Ninety-five percent of the time, people are going to be bored by your set. They don't want to see you; they want to see so-and-so. And this is what makes it so hard to be a fan and a performer. You have two completely opposing mindsets. One part of you wants people to come early and stay to see you play, but the other half of your brain wants the headliner to play first and for the venue to cut the rest of the bands. But I know I'm in the minority here. I'm not allowed to drink, I don't drive, and I usually need to be home by midnight. Ultimately, in a few years, this problem will go away, but for now, it's just a drag

Discussion
  • I've got no sympathy for Nicky Smith on the driving front--who needs another teenager on the freeway, cellphone in one hand, bottle of beer between his legs--but this is a cool article. Smith ought to feel lucky however that he's playing clubs at all. A lot of potentially great bands never even get the opportunity to be an opener and then give up.

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  • Let me echo the above sentiment: the fact that your band is plugging in and playing (regardless of who is in the crowd) is crucial. When it comes down to it, you play the best you can every chance you have. Have you really rooted around for all-ages venues? I faced the same bar scenario with my college band, but we got creative in setting up our own shows at co-ops, charities/fund raisers and of course people's houses. Don't stop pushing.

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  • Good to see that the responders are supportive. I was told that if one wanted to get into politics, he should start by getting his name on the ballot, even if he can't campaign in a major way. Let the electorate see your name a few times. Same idea for bands as suggested above. Keep getting out there.

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  • Here's a good one: In response to an article about aspiring musicians in 2008 someone makes a Florida recount reference! Ha ha. Also, isn't it great that we survived Y2K? And I really think that Kobe Bryant's going to be a pretty good player in the NBA.

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  • right on nick. i have to start this whole process over again with terradactyls

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  • omg! consider yourself lucky. my mom would never let me go to a show alone in the city.

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  • I guess doing anything when you're a teenager is a pain in the ass. But getting older means getting more responsibilities, like driving. But you can't control your age, and like what Nicky says, you just got to deal with and learn from it as well. By the way, I hear this Engine band kicks major ass.

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  • Do you know how many bands would give their left nut to play The Ottobar? Even the Metro Gallery? If that were the case, we'd have a surplus of one testicle musicians in this town! Consider yourself fortunate that you're able to play for the other bands, bar staff and venue security...at least you can say "We played the Ottobar!" I totally understand what you're saying, and I'd agree with most of it...but I was at that Metro Gallery show and I went for YOUR band and left before the headliner came out. I was also at the Ottobar show to see YOUR band and left before the other bands came on. You might be playing to small crowds, but I speak from experience when I say that while your fanbase at shows might be small, they make up for in passion.

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  • I completely agree Jeff, and like I said, I feel very fortunate to being playing places like the Ottobar at my age. However, it can be frustrating sometimes when crowds are small. But again, I'm not complaining; this is how every band starts out.

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  • yea I saw you guys at that metro gallery show, you were kickass! nice article btw.

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  • Hey kid, at least you live in a city where there are actually a bunch of clubs to play in. Baltimore isn't New York, but it ain't New Paltz, either. Do you have a blog or myspace page where we can hear your band's music?

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  • Where can I get your CD, you guys seem pretty interesting? I have no interest in playing music, but I love to find new, unknown bands, that are also good.

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  • http://www.myspace.com/enginetunes. our debut album, "Fringe", was just released on MT6 Records (http://www.mt6records.com).

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  • Check out a few live Engine shows (both the Metro Gallery and Ottobar): http://www.archive.org/details/EngineBand One of my favorite bands.

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  • "I, for example, got a break when I happened to perform in Florida a few years ago. Of course, you don't have to go all the way to Florida; you could go to Pennsylvania, Virginia, Delaware, etc." Hmmm, I don't know if I understand this all the way. What about Rhode Island? Or Bavaria? I'm not in showbiz like the rest of you guys! Please send help! Alvin and the Chipmunks Reborn from Satan's Asshole refuse to open for anybody besides: Prince, The Rolling Stones, or Miles Davis. However we are willing to let Engine open for us at the Stokesdale Retirement center on June 23rd. Send me your demo.

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  • BillyIdol, for once (or maybe twice) really hit my funnybone with his comments about Bavaria and Alvin and the Chipmunks. BTW, I checked out Engine's myspace page and BaltimoreTaper's right on target. This band is good. Really good. But a word of advice: DON'T give up your left nut to get a better gig. Ain't worth it.

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  • don't be such a whiner kid!! you've got it made.

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  • Dan, it seems like you can personally vouch for almost anything.

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