Let it be know, that I do not expect everyone to agree with my rationales below. There are multiple factors that go into my decisions and some are made on the fly and some very calculated. This is not an exact science and your gut comes into play quite often. I will also say that there were several quality bands contact me this year, but I simply didn’t have a slot or they didn’t fit the budget/plan. I also knew that there was always going to be an armchair quarterback that crossed over into dickdom and questioned my sanity. To them, I say the same thing every year. Look at my track record and then book your own festival if you have the balls. I don’t want to hear any shit about I don’t have the money as I didn’t have a dime to my name when I started this thing nor did I know a single thing about how to run a show. It took me four years to break even.
Now..back to the main post….
After not selling out last year (six tickets..grr), the plan this year was to bring in a few names that people knew and top it off with a couple of Finnish headliners. It didn’t quite work out that way……
This was to be the year of Nightwish’s triumphant return. I essentially planned the entire festival around them. It was perfect timing. They were going to kick off their world tour in the U.S. in the fall with the new vocalist. This would give them the opportunity to debut the new lady in a special setting, yet not be killed by the European press or rabid Tarja followers (that essentially come from the Church of Barlowe). I contacted management one week after the festival this year to see what their plans were. I was told they would love to do the show, but they could not commit this early. If I could hold off till December, then they would be ready. I contacted them again late in October just to make sure of things and was told they could not do it unless I booked the show in October or possibly the last weekend in September. I booked the last weekend in September and then proceeded to build the roster around it. It was then that I found out about the Atlanta conventions taking up all the hotel rooms. I scrambled and switched the date to October. I figured this was a slam dunk now and contacted them with the new date. I was then told they could not come later ( a date I will not release) in October. They already had plans made for the year including the U.S. I spoke to their booking agent in the States and he was dumbstruck when he found out himself. He wanted the show to kick off or end here as it made since from a routing standpoint as well as logistical because of the multiple nights lodging that I offer the bands. No dice. I will go on record and say that I do not understand the logic behind their decision at all. On a side note, I had every intention of going after John Two Hawks to join them on stage.
At the same time, I contacted Sonata’s management. They wanted to do the show, but had to wait and meet with the label to determine their future after the new release. I was put on hold.
The first band to be officially confirmed was Redemption. Hell, they were unofficially confirmed prior the festival this year. This was no brainer as most actually expected them to return last year. However, I was up front with Nick long ago and told him I didn’t want to bring him back with Ray in a 2nd slot and he needed another album to justify the bump up to a 3rd. Between the glowing reviews of the sophomore disc and hearing the the new disc, it was a done deal.
My original plan was to bring Pagan’s Mind and Threshold this year as well. Both had new albums coming out and momentum. I knew both would need an upper slot and I would have to deal with that. That led me to consider what the hell to do about the polls and Vanden Plas. I refused to bring back a 4th repeater and the others took priority to me. My rationale is rather simple. “Christ O” is the only disc they will have released since their last PP appearance while PM & Threshold would have two out. That led me to the idea of handing them off to Shane to headline the Showcase. It was the perfect setting for them in that they would be a huge name, an additional prog draw without being a repeater on the main fest, and they could do a proper headline set. I will be honest and say this wasn’t an easy booking. Selling bands on the idea of the Showcase is still rather hard because the reputation isn’t quite there yet. I told the band I didn’t have room for them and handed the ball to Shane to see if he could make it work within his budget. It took over a month, but Shane was able to make it work. Kudos to Shane for stepping up his game.
As for Freak Kitchen, I offered them the slot for the Showcase five minutes after their set ended last year Yes, I stepped on Shane’s toes but for fuck’s sake…that was amazing and I didn’t want to wait 3 years to see them again. Mattias kept his word. Let me say this about Mattias. He is by far one of the easiest and coolest individuals I have ever worked with in the history of the festival. He has made a friend and fan for life as a result and I would do anything to help him and the band out.
So while all of this was going on, I kept getting discs in the mail to sample. I’ll be honest and say that 70% of what I get sucks. However, Claus at Intromental sent me a band called Raintime and said the new disc was amazing. I took it outside on the deck with me and popped on the headphones. My jaw dropped and I was playing air guitar within five minutes and throwing the horns at my cats. My wife looked at me through the window and thought “WTF?” The very next morning, I offered them the opening slot. When you folks finally get a hold of the disc, you will understand why.
After Forever was the next on the list. The original plan was to stick them in the 4th slot opposite the night Nightwish played. However, they were another band that just couldn’t commit to anything early so I had to put that idea on hold.
I then switched my focus to power. Virgin Steel was at the top of my want list. They were a domestic band, established, and would get the true power folks excited (and that is something that they haven’t been in a while about the roster). Now, how did I end up booking them in a 2nd slot? It was a matter of balance, draw, and spreading the talent from top to bottom. Like it or not, Jaxx is a good barometer of draw here in the States. VS tanked the last time they played their in terms of attendance. I also don’t honestly don’t see the difference in the 2nd and 3rd slots now as the set lengths are the same. Do I think they could have kicked ass in a higher slot? Absolutely. David would stick that flaming sword right up the ass of the non-believers. However, I played hardball and convinced them to take the 2nd slot because in the end, it's the performance and not the slot that matters. David is one hell of a businessman and understood me when I explained how prog is part of the festival and that throws slots off from what they would be in Europe as a result. Trust me when I say that VS are happy with our agreement as I went not only to the wall, but beyond it to get them in that slot.
In the meantime, the Pagan’s Mind vs. Threshold slot was starting to be a pain in the ass. No matter what I did, it was going to be controversial. I put this on hold a bit longer.
It was about this time that I got the confirmation on Nightwish bailing. I turned my attention to see if I could pull off the Savatage reunion show. I thought I had a chance for a bit, but I’m rather certain that was just smoke being blown up my ass in recollection. I would have loved to have had Jon back in a 4th slot, but Pain ended up getting booked for PP Europe. As much as I love everyone in that band (Chris is my dog!) , I didn’t want to steal Renee’s thunder and attempt to book them for the Friday. It just wouldn’t be right and it would have been risky in terms of flights, etc. It also sucks that Pain is held hostage by the shadow of Savatage as I want that damn gig and it would be bad business to book Jon two years straight.
I checked in on Crimson Glory, but that situation is even worse than Savatage. Next….
Primal Fear was another high on my list. Mat had contacted me several years straight, but I kept putting them off because they had booked other U.S. gigs. The timing was perfect with a new disc and need for a straight ahead ass-kicker. I confirmed them with the idea of the 4th slot, but knowing that I could possibly bump them up if necessary. However, the “Rage effect” really came into play here. They would bring the house down in a 4th slot because fans would be there. I’m afraid that a large portion of the prog fans would have exited early. I needed a band with crossover appeal for that last slot so they point would really become a thorn later on.
Firewind is another band that had been trying to get on the bill for a few years straight. I’ll be honest and say that I thought they were ok, but nothing special until I heard the new disc. That changed my mind instantly and they were a perfect fit in the 2nd slot because I could then balance things out with power in the 2nds and prog in the 3rds.
Communic was going to get a slot this year. There was no question in mind, but it became a matter of where. I had them pegged in a 2nd slot earlier, but moved them down when VS took the 2nd slot. They also filled the “heavy” portion of the bill nicely.
No headliner yet. I emailed Iced Earth and received no reply. I moved on. Of course now its been revealed about the tragedy in Jon’s family so I can understand it. I will get them here one year come hell or high water.
Sonata gets back to me about this time. Confirmed. Whew….. I had a legitimate headliner and could work the co-headline situation a bit easier now. For the record, they built their tour around my show and not vice versa. That’s why I went public immediately as I did.
By now, budget was starting to come into play and I couldn’t go balls out on another big name. I had a 3rd slot, a 4th slot, and a final slot still to go. It was a total toss up which way I was heading but it was time to pull out those balls of steel and cowboy up. Crossover appeal is just as important as big name status when it comes to this festival. That was the key when deciding what to do with PM and Threshold. PM had a ton of momentum based on their last performance, last album, poll results, and overall feel from both the prog and power fans. Threshold is huge with the prog fans, but power fans are just lukewarm to them. That was the ultimate decision in placement. I of course had a history with both bands so it was rather easy to seal the deals.
That left the last spot with no word from After Forever. Did I pull the offer and go after a bigger name? Did I go after another sure thing even if they weren’t a true big name such as Brainstorm? Was the roster strong enough to where I could afford to book anyone in that slot and still succeed? It was risky, but my gut won out as I really wanted AF. I maintain that they are the perfect co-headliner with Primal Fear in terms of status and recognition. They are not the traditional festival headliner for the night, but I do think they are going to keep asses in the seats at the end the night. They would give me a bit of crossover appeal to the nontraditional progpower attendee and diversify the roster nicely. The fact that they have a MONSTER reputation as live band also came into play. If Epica could do as well as they did, then AF would do even better. It took an extra month to get this done and I did not find out until this morning that they were confirmed.
There you have it. I may have left something out and I will add to this thread if I think about it.
Now..back to the main post….
After not selling out last year (six tickets..grr), the plan this year was to bring in a few names that people knew and top it off with a couple of Finnish headliners. It didn’t quite work out that way……
This was to be the year of Nightwish’s triumphant return. I essentially planned the entire festival around them. It was perfect timing. They were going to kick off their world tour in the U.S. in the fall with the new vocalist. This would give them the opportunity to debut the new lady in a special setting, yet not be killed by the European press or rabid Tarja followers (that essentially come from the Church of Barlowe). I contacted management one week after the festival this year to see what their plans were. I was told they would love to do the show, but they could not commit this early. If I could hold off till December, then they would be ready. I contacted them again late in October just to make sure of things and was told they could not do it unless I booked the show in October or possibly the last weekend in September. I booked the last weekend in September and then proceeded to build the roster around it. It was then that I found out about the Atlanta conventions taking up all the hotel rooms. I scrambled and switched the date to October. I figured this was a slam dunk now and contacted them with the new date. I was then told they could not come later ( a date I will not release) in October. They already had plans made for the year including the U.S. I spoke to their booking agent in the States and he was dumbstruck when he found out himself. He wanted the show to kick off or end here as it made since from a routing standpoint as well as logistical because of the multiple nights lodging that I offer the bands. No dice. I will go on record and say that I do not understand the logic behind their decision at all. On a side note, I had every intention of going after John Two Hawks to join them on stage.
At the same time, I contacted Sonata’s management. They wanted to do the show, but had to wait and meet with the label to determine their future after the new release. I was put on hold.
The first band to be officially confirmed was Redemption. Hell, they were unofficially confirmed prior the festival this year. This was no brainer as most actually expected them to return last year. However, I was up front with Nick long ago and told him I didn’t want to bring him back with Ray in a 2nd slot and he needed another album to justify the bump up to a 3rd. Between the glowing reviews of the sophomore disc and hearing the the new disc, it was a done deal.
My original plan was to bring Pagan’s Mind and Threshold this year as well. Both had new albums coming out and momentum. I knew both would need an upper slot and I would have to deal with that. That led me to consider what the hell to do about the polls and Vanden Plas. I refused to bring back a 4th repeater and the others took priority to me. My rationale is rather simple. “Christ O” is the only disc they will have released since their last PP appearance while PM & Threshold would have two out. That led me to the idea of handing them off to Shane to headline the Showcase. It was the perfect setting for them in that they would be a huge name, an additional prog draw without being a repeater on the main fest, and they could do a proper headline set. I will be honest and say this wasn’t an easy booking. Selling bands on the idea of the Showcase is still rather hard because the reputation isn’t quite there yet. I told the band I didn’t have room for them and handed the ball to Shane to see if he could make it work within his budget. It took over a month, but Shane was able to make it work. Kudos to Shane for stepping up his game.
As for Freak Kitchen, I offered them the slot for the Showcase five minutes after their set ended last year Yes, I stepped on Shane’s toes but for fuck’s sake…that was amazing and I didn’t want to wait 3 years to see them again. Mattias kept his word. Let me say this about Mattias. He is by far one of the easiest and coolest individuals I have ever worked with in the history of the festival. He has made a friend and fan for life as a result and I would do anything to help him and the band out.
So while all of this was going on, I kept getting discs in the mail to sample. I’ll be honest and say that 70% of what I get sucks. However, Claus at Intromental sent me a band called Raintime and said the new disc was amazing. I took it outside on the deck with me and popped on the headphones. My jaw dropped and I was playing air guitar within five minutes and throwing the horns at my cats. My wife looked at me through the window and thought “WTF?” The very next morning, I offered them the opening slot. When you folks finally get a hold of the disc, you will understand why.
After Forever was the next on the list. The original plan was to stick them in the 4th slot opposite the night Nightwish played. However, they were another band that just couldn’t commit to anything early so I had to put that idea on hold.
I then switched my focus to power. Virgin Steel was at the top of my want list. They were a domestic band, established, and would get the true power folks excited (and that is something that they haven’t been in a while about the roster). Now, how did I end up booking them in a 2nd slot? It was a matter of balance, draw, and spreading the talent from top to bottom. Like it or not, Jaxx is a good barometer of draw here in the States. VS tanked the last time they played their in terms of attendance. I also don’t honestly don’t see the difference in the 2nd and 3rd slots now as the set lengths are the same. Do I think they could have kicked ass in a higher slot? Absolutely. David would stick that flaming sword right up the ass of the non-believers. However, I played hardball and convinced them to take the 2nd slot because in the end, it's the performance and not the slot that matters. David is one hell of a businessman and understood me when I explained how prog is part of the festival and that throws slots off from what they would be in Europe as a result. Trust me when I say that VS are happy with our agreement as I went not only to the wall, but beyond it to get them in that slot.
In the meantime, the Pagan’s Mind vs. Threshold slot was starting to be a pain in the ass. No matter what I did, it was going to be controversial. I put this on hold a bit longer.
It was about this time that I got the confirmation on Nightwish bailing. I turned my attention to see if I could pull off the Savatage reunion show. I thought I had a chance for a bit, but I’m rather certain that was just smoke being blown up my ass in recollection. I would have loved to have had Jon back in a 4th slot, but Pain ended up getting booked for PP Europe. As much as I love everyone in that band (Chris is my dog!) , I didn’t want to steal Renee’s thunder and attempt to book them for the Friday. It just wouldn’t be right and it would have been risky in terms of flights, etc. It also sucks that Pain is held hostage by the shadow of Savatage as I want that damn gig and it would be bad business to book Jon two years straight.
I checked in on Crimson Glory, but that situation is even worse than Savatage. Next….
Primal Fear was another high on my list. Mat had contacted me several years straight, but I kept putting them off because they had booked other U.S. gigs. The timing was perfect with a new disc and need for a straight ahead ass-kicker. I confirmed them with the idea of the 4th slot, but knowing that I could possibly bump them up if necessary. However, the “Rage effect” really came into play here. They would bring the house down in a 4th slot because fans would be there. I’m afraid that a large portion of the prog fans would have exited early. I needed a band with crossover appeal for that last slot so they point would really become a thorn later on.
Firewind is another band that had been trying to get on the bill for a few years straight. I’ll be honest and say that I thought they were ok, but nothing special until I heard the new disc. That changed my mind instantly and they were a perfect fit in the 2nd slot because I could then balance things out with power in the 2nds and prog in the 3rds.
Communic was going to get a slot this year. There was no question in mind, but it became a matter of where. I had them pegged in a 2nd slot earlier, but moved them down when VS took the 2nd slot. They also filled the “heavy” portion of the bill nicely.
No headliner yet. I emailed Iced Earth and received no reply. I moved on. Of course now its been revealed about the tragedy in Jon’s family so I can understand it. I will get them here one year come hell or high water.
Sonata gets back to me about this time. Confirmed. Whew….. I had a legitimate headliner and could work the co-headline situation a bit easier now. For the record, they built their tour around my show and not vice versa. That’s why I went public immediately as I did.
By now, budget was starting to come into play and I couldn’t go balls out on another big name. I had a 3rd slot, a 4th slot, and a final slot still to go. It was a total toss up which way I was heading but it was time to pull out those balls of steel and cowboy up. Crossover appeal is just as important as big name status when it comes to this festival. That was the key when deciding what to do with PM and Threshold. PM had a ton of momentum based on their last performance, last album, poll results, and overall feel from both the prog and power fans. Threshold is huge with the prog fans, but power fans are just lukewarm to them. That was the ultimate decision in placement. I of course had a history with both bands so it was rather easy to seal the deals.
That left the last spot with no word from After Forever. Did I pull the offer and go after a bigger name? Did I go after another sure thing even if they weren’t a true big name such as Brainstorm? Was the roster strong enough to where I could afford to book anyone in that slot and still succeed? It was risky, but my gut won out as I really wanted AF. I maintain that they are the perfect co-headliner with Primal Fear in terms of status and recognition. They are not the traditional festival headliner for the night, but I do think they are going to keep asses in the seats at the end the night. They would give me a bit of crossover appeal to the nontraditional progpower attendee and diversify the roster nicely. The fact that they have a MONSTER reputation as live band also came into play. If Epica could do as well as they did, then AF would do even better. It took an extra month to get this done and I did not find out until this morning that they were confirmed.
There you have it. I may have left something out and I will add to this thread if I think about it.
