Sponsoring Primordial to come play in the USA

[JayKeeley]

Hypothetical Questions:

1. If the PowerFest promoters had room to add another band to their roster, say Primordial, would you be (more) interested in attending? Note that PowerFest is scheduled back-to-back with PaganFest in Chicago next May '08.

2. More importantly, would you be willing to help sponsor the band to fly over? This would require buying a sponsor VIP badge to help generate the money needed. The 3 choices of VIP ticket are $250, $500, or $800, although I suspect any $ pledge would be welcomed, provided enough money is collected to fly these Irish bastards over!

:Spin:

 

[JayKeeley]

I'll start.

1. Yes.

2. $250.

 

[unhinged]

...wouldn't give them the skin off my shite



only kidding
nice idea

 

[skyrefuge]

1. Yes. I'll be going anyway, but Primordial would make it a LOT better. I'd thought of posting this idea here too, but then when I read the Powerfest info a bit more, I got the feeling like we'd be to late, like they already have arranged all the possibilities, and now it's just a matter of choosing between them. But I don't really know.

2. Hard to say. I'd certainly be willing to pay more for a ticket...I wouldn't necessarily need a "package" though, since that fanboy-ish stuff isn't that important to me. I guess I'd have to see "here's how much we need in order to make it work" and then decide. I suppose $250 would be too crazy. I'd just have to think of it not as "concert money" but as "philanthropy money". "I support what you guys are doing. Here's $250."

Neil

 

[War Ensemble]

Hypothetical Questions:

1. If the PowerFest promoters had room to add another band to their roster, say Primordial, would you be (more) interested in attending? Note that PowerFest is scheduled back-to-back with PaganFest in Chicago next May '08.

2. More importantly, would you be willing to help sponsor the band to fly over? This would require buying a sponsor VIP badge to help generate the money needed. The 3 choices of VIP ticket are $250, $500, or $800, although I suspect any $ pledge would be welcomed, provided enough money is collected to fly these Irish bastards over!

:Spin:

A question for you JK, would you rather see Primordial as one of the lower bands at the Chicago Powerfest or as a return headliner for Heathen Crusade III?

 

[JayKeeley]

A question for you JK, would you rather see Primordial as one of the lower bands at the Chicago Powerfest or as a return headliner for Heathen Crusade III?

Both? I'll take them anyway I can I suppose, but in the absence of HC III, PowerFest back-to-back with PaganFest is the next best thing.

EDIT: also, I don't know where Primordial would fit in the PowerFest roster but I would hope they would get a good slot. I'm also not sure how many bands can follow their act.

 

[skyrefuge]

A question for you JK, would you rather see Primordial as one of the lower bands at the Chicago Powerfest or as a return headliner for Heathen Crusade III?

What makes you think Primordial would be a lower-slot band at CPF? Obviously it would depend on who else is in the wings for CPF, but in the past, I wouldn't really say that CPF has been any "bigger" than HC.

Neil

 

[EricT]

1. yes (since i'm going)

2. 250(+ depending on cash flow)

 

[Dmanx Pit]

I'm going anyway to Chicago powerfest, but this would definately add to it!

I dunno about contributions, though. No guarntee that your cash would go towards the band you want. But I'd consider it if it meant bringing over some harder to finance bands over here.

 

[JayKeeley]

I dunno about contributions, though. No guarntee that your cash would go towards the band you want. But I'd consider it if it meant bringing over some harder to finance bands over here.

Actually, the caveat here is that the donation would be SPECIFICALLY for Primordial. PowerFest would make room in their roster for Primordial. This money won't go into a pot and be spent on a random band. If Primordial cannot play, you revoke your pledge. Simple.

(Sorry if I didn't make that clear.)

Also, I just got an e-mail from someone willing to consider another $250 so that's $1K already. And this is only via this forum alone.

 

[Demilich]

I'd consider it but I have to buy a car in the next month or two, then I'll be broke for a bit.

 

[JayKeeley]

I guess I'm wondering why you guys feel that adding Primordial to the CPF roster would be an appropriate addition?

Is that a trick question?

 

[skyrefuge]

Also, I just got an e-mail from someone willing to consider another $250 so that's $1K already. And this is only via this forum alone.

Beware that you need to factor in the losses when converting word into deed. I'm sure you could find out what that factor is from anyone who has attempted to turn their website into a "donation"-supported model after a bunch of members say "YEAH Id totaly donate!!!" Or the CPF guys probably even have a good idea themselves by now about what that conversion rate is. But I'd guess it's somewhere under 50%, so you probably only have about $500 so far.

Neil

 

[JayKeeley]

Beware that you need to factor in the losses when converting word into deed. I'm sure you could find out what that factor is from anyone who has attempted to turn their website into a "donation"-supported model after a bunch of members say "YEAH Id totaly donate!!!" Or the CPF guys probably even have a good idea themselves by now about what that conversion rate is. But I'd guess it's somewhere under 50%, so you probably only have about $500 so far.

Neil

Of course.

I'm not going to over complicate this, I'm simply attempting to see if people are willing to pay extra to have Primordial come over. Nobody is obliged to commit yet. If and when the band are contacted, and likewise agree to flying to Chicago to play the fest, then I imagine the CPF guys will follow up with us to see who's willing to fork cash over.

I suspect that right now, the CPF guys are testing the water to see how much interest there is in Primordial. If there's a good response to a thread like this then I suppose it entices them to investigate further.

I don't know anything about CPF, having never been, and I don't know how they decided on their current roster but I do have the impression that they would be willing to shift things around if Primordial become a likely contender.

 

[skyrefuge]

I suspect that right now, the CPF guys are testing the water to see how much interest there is in Primordial. If there's a good response to a thread like this then I suppose it entices them to investigate further.

Ah, ok, cool. I wasn't sure if you'd already contacted them, or if this was still entirely hypothetical.

Neil

 

[skyrefuge]

I feel like it shouldn't be up to the fans to have to foot the entire bill for this kind of thing, that's why we have organizers and promoters and record labels.

The fans have ALWAYS footed the bill for these things, and that will never change. It's not like the organizers and promoters and record labels have a rich old uncle that they get all their money from. That money originally comes from "the fans", either through purchase of sound recordings, or concert tickets. The only difference with this is that the numbers are shifted around a bit. Rather than tens of thousands of fans each contributing a small amount of money by buying CDs, it's small groups of fans contributing larger amounts of money in a "sponsorship" scheme.

I think it's great that the CPF guys are attempting this scheme, because it's rather innovative and could become the way things are done in the future. We're now in a situation where there are so many bands out there dividing attention, that it's extremely difficult for any single one of them to build up a nationwide fanbase (especially in a nation as wide as the US). Putting Primordial on a bus simply may not be economically feasible, because outside of a few select cities in the US, they may not draw more than 20 people. So the concept of a "tour" could be disappearing for bands like this. Their fanbase may just be spread too thin. (see Green Carnation, Therion.)

The solution is to concentrate that dedicated fanbase in one location, and give that fanbase the chance to pay a premium to see a band they might not otherwise have a chance to see. The Internet allows such die-hard fanbases to congregate, but before now, it was difficult for those fanbases to translate their desire into action, even if they had the money. Because, they're just fans, and don't know shit about organizing a concert. But now the CPF guys have essentially set themselves up as "concert brokers" ("tell us which band you want to 'buy', and we'll take care of it from there"). That's a situation that's never really existed before, so I'm really interested to see how it will work.

Neil

 

[JayKeeley]

Ah, ok, cool. I wasn't sure if you'd already contacted them, or if this was still entirely hypothetical.

Neil

I have contacted them, and it is still entirely hypothetical. (I would not have started this thread without their knowing).

 

[JayKeeley]

I feel like it shouldn't be up to the fans to have to foot the entire bill for this kind of thing, that's why we have organizers and promoters and record labels. We already have to pay for travel, food and hotel costs, in addition to fest tickets, merch, and CDs, so why the hell should the burden be on the fans to pay out of pocket for band costs? Primordial is on fucking Metal Blade records, I'm sure the label can pull a couple thousand bucks from the latest Dying Fetus drivel to put Primordial on Paganfest or CPF or whatever.

I agree with your sentiment, but it isn't happening. Metal Blade are not throwing money at Primordial, but fans have an opportunity to help the band come over and play in the USA.

Heathen Crusade is a different story entirely IMO because the interest is on such a micro level that the ONLY way to ever see these bands in the states is to pay their way over personally.

Yeah, I can't confirm this, but as I understand it, CPF is in the exact same boat as HC.

 

[circus_brimstone]

I'm sure the label can pull a couple thousand bucks from the latest Dying Fetus drivel to put Primordial on Paganfest or CPF or whatever.

Dying Fetus? Not on Metal Blade. I guess you meant As I Lay Dying?


Why don't some of you guys email Metal Blade requesting this kind of stuff? It may not do any good, but why not try? I'd be surprised if any of you already have.

 

[Haughm]

A Primordial / Agalloch / another dark band (Novembers Doom? Daylight Dies? Negura Bunget?) US tour would be pretty sweet and financially worthwhile if it was done sensibly (like in decent venues, without 6 local openers per show, etc). I’m guessing more than 20 people would come to see that each night. Or fuck it, kick us off and put Wolves In The Throne Room or Ludicra (– bands who can actually tour for more than a week and a half at a time) on the bill.

Of course, given the opportunity…and if the timing was right (i.e. late summer ’08 or something), we’d do our best to be a part of a package like that. Even if it was just one of the coasts. We are overdue for an East Coast jaunt.

But I agree with TheGreatDeceiver; this is the job of labels, promoters, and such. It shouldn’t be the fans’ responsibility. I think it is pretty pathetic that Metal Blade hasn’t given Primordial at least one good US tour yet.

JH