This is an interesting, if disappointing read. While I'm not an avid fan of any of the named bands, it's sad to see musicians of any ilk giving up their art. As a musician myself, I know how...
This is an interesting, if disappointing read. While I'm not an avid fan of any of the named bands, it's sad to see musicians of any ilk giving up their art. As a musician myself, I know how difficult it can be to try to hold down a day job and also play live on the regular. It's a really difficult circle to square, and adding a family into the mix all but guarantees that one thing is going to suffer.
I don't blame any of the interviewed musicians for calling it quits on their projects, but it's such a shame that metal music, or really any music that doesn't go mainstream is never going to be enough to sustain the people making it. Streaming is partially to blame for this, of course; it's nigh impossible to make anything approaching a liveable wage with streaming numbers as an indie artist. But I suppose so is the cost of living, the more generalised devaluation of music as an art form.
Anyway, this lands at a time where I am planning to put together a metal project of my very own, and it's given me The Doubt. Not that I ever expect to make a living from music, but it's making me worry for the viability of any project I might start up in the future.
I'm curious if this is reflective of the US experience. Here we have tons of tiny venues for bands to play, even medium sized ones (probably about 300ish people) the next level up (which is where...
I'm curious if this is reflective of the US experience. Here we have tons of tiny venues for bands to play, even medium sized ones (probably about 300ish people) the next level up (which is where "huge" bands like Opeth, Gojira and Devin Townsend play") and then of course your various sizes of stadiums. I'm sure costs are similar, but it also seems like many bands have their own vehicles, whether that's a basic car/SUV or a van, given you can find these things for (relatively) cheap here.
I'm sure the struggle is similar, but I do wonder how it varies from county to county. My brother in law has a band that plays the metal venues and they have yet to make any cash, simply doing it for love of the music and creation. But they're a bunch of single dudes, so it's much easier for them to cope with the time and the expense of it all.
Appreciate you sharing; I hadn’t read this and was especially crushed to see that Svalbard are calling it quits. I write and record drums for a metal band in the US, and while it’s not my main...
Appreciate you sharing; I hadn’t read this and was especially crushed to see that Svalbard are calling it quits.
I write and record drums for a metal band in the US, and while it’s not my main career, several of my bandmates are trying to make it a full time thing (they have a separate drummer for shows and touring). I have the utmost respect for them doing so, but anymore it feels like such an uphill battle. Even decent-sized venues where we sell a lot of merch, we’re headlining, and there’s guaranteed pay on top of the door, once you factor in re-upping merch and setting aside cash flow to account for future production costs, gear repairs, etc., we’re lucky if everyone in the band walks away with $100 a person. If we were landing gigs like that nightly, it might be a different story, but obviously, we are not, and those are certainly the exceptions and not the rule. And even then, I still think it’s a paltry sum for how much blood, sweat, and tears it takes to get to that moment.
It's a real shame. Don't know the other bands, but as a huge doom/stoner fan I do know Orange Goblin. Their 1999 album Time Travellin Blues is absolutely part of the doom pantheon. But, for me,...
It's a real shame. Don't know the other bands, but as a huge doom/stoner fan I do know Orange Goblin. Their 1999 album Time Travellin Blues is absolutely part of the doom pantheon. But, for me, none of their other albums that I've heard are anywhere near as good. So while it's sad, it's not too surprising to me that's they're throwing in the towel, closing in on 30 years later.
This is an interesting, if disappointing read. While I'm not an avid fan of any of the named bands, it's sad to see musicians of any ilk giving up their art. As a musician myself, I know how difficult it can be to try to hold down a day job and also play live on the regular. It's a really difficult circle to square, and adding a family into the mix all but guarantees that one thing is going to suffer.
I don't blame any of the interviewed musicians for calling it quits on their projects, but it's such a shame that metal music, or really any music that doesn't go mainstream is never going to be enough to sustain the people making it. Streaming is partially to blame for this, of course; it's nigh impossible to make anything approaching a liveable wage with streaming numbers as an indie artist. But I suppose so is the cost of living, the more generalised devaluation of music as an art form.
Anyway, this lands at a time where I am planning to put together a metal project of my very own, and it's given me The Doubt. Not that I ever expect to make a living from music, but it's making me worry for the viability of any project I might start up in the future.
I'm curious if this is reflective of the US experience. Here we have tons of tiny venues for bands to play, even medium sized ones (probably about 300ish people) the next level up (which is where "huge" bands like Opeth, Gojira and Devin Townsend play") and then of course your various sizes of stadiums. I'm sure costs are similar, but it also seems like many bands have their own vehicles, whether that's a basic car/SUV or a van, given you can find these things for (relatively) cheap here.
I'm sure the struggle is similar, but I do wonder how it varies from county to county. My brother in law has a band that plays the metal venues and they have yet to make any cash, simply doing it for love of the music and creation. But they're a bunch of single dudes, so it's much easier for them to cope with the time and the expense of it all.
Appreciate you sharing; I hadn’t read this and was especially crushed to see that Svalbard are calling it quits.
I write and record drums for a metal band in the US, and while it’s not my main career, several of my bandmates are trying to make it a full time thing (they have a separate drummer for shows and touring). I have the utmost respect for them doing so, but anymore it feels like such an uphill battle. Even decent-sized venues where we sell a lot of merch, we’re headlining, and there’s guaranteed pay on top of the door, once you factor in re-upping merch and setting aside cash flow to account for future production costs, gear repairs, etc., we’re lucky if everyone in the band walks away with $100 a person. If we were landing gigs like that nightly, it might be a different story, but obviously, we are not, and those are certainly the exceptions and not the rule. And even then, I still think it’s a paltry sum for how much blood, sweat, and tears it takes to get to that moment.
I wish you luck in your upcoming metal project!
It's a real shame. Don't know the other bands, but as a huge doom/stoner fan I do know Orange Goblin. Their 1999 album Time Travellin Blues is absolutely part of the doom pantheon. But, for me, none of their other albums that I've heard are anywhere near as good. So while it's sad, it's not too surprising to me that's they're throwing in the towel, closing in on 30 years later.
Edit: give it a listen! https://youtu.be/ZNpDmKHAjeE?si=8OY03PWKv55zroYz