EMPTY CHEESE JAR
That’s me. I’m a husk, but I feel good about it. The bandmates and I got 4.5 songs done in the studio and did a fun show in Chicago at the Salt Shed with our friends, Guster. 15 days in a row without coming up for air. Whew! I hit the wall last night around 6pm. I’m not advocating for this kind of marathon working because it’s just not good for you, but in a world of streaming where there are no record advances or money in general you have to find a way to pay to make art. This is one of the things writers at SAG AFTRA were striking about. It’s a bit different but we should not be replaced by machines and we shouldn’t have to work hours where we kill ourselves. If only musicians had a union to turn to who fought Spotify for a fair percentage… but we don’t. And Spotify never asked us what we wanted, or even IF we wanted in the first place.
There is a musicians union, but it does nothing unless you play in a symphony or on TV, and they have no interest, as far as I can tell about the big picture. The majority of us have no backup. (Or healthcare, or savings, or…) Streaming is killing us. It’s that simple. We weren’t in the best position before but now we are just hammered. The pandemic is not helping either, and it isn’t over. It seems it only gone underground; bands are touring and pretending they aren’t getting Covid. I don’t respect that, I think it’s shady and shitty. But there is desperation now. All of us put ourselves at risk daily based on our choices but some jobs funnel you into a container where the risk goes up exponentially. We have no financial safety net so there is no option to repeat covid avoidance. We just have to walk into the fire.
These are things you already know but I’m going to keep reminding people because I have bottomless love for the musicians who tour and for you who come to the show and complete the circuit with us. It all of our risk. I am trying to be the change, though I’m not sure what that looks like yet beyond what I already practice in my own band but I want us all to be ok. A world without art is a world without interested, loving, united audiences. It’s a world without a healthy way to find each other and to celebrate communally outside of sports or religion. No thank you. I don’t want to stop finding you. Because YOU are so worth it.
If any of you are musicians who have found new ways to get by or deal with Covid please share. I love hearing about innovation :)
Excuse the mess! Photo by Paul Rigby
Thanks for this Neko. I try and promote Bandcamp whenever possible, I think it's the best musician helping platform I know of. Covid still wreaks havoc in the music and touring industry, you're so right about that and it's important to remind people who don't realize it. The pandemic stole the last tours my bandmates had agreed to do before they retired and the few dates we did went to paying off debt from cancelled 2020 and 2021 tours.
I feel terrible when I see bands out who have to cancel due to illness, knowing many are getting covid multiple times over but can't afford not to. I'd be risking it too I think if I had the choice because writers and musicians sure aren't making a living from streaming sales.
I’m a big fan of Sidedoor (sidedooraccess.com) which connects artists to hosts/venues directly. That platform may be one of the biggest reasons I got through the worst of the pandemic with my sanity mostly intact. It’s definitely geared to smaller and up-and-coming acts but they facilitate online concerts from bigger acts as well. Plus that, the company is owned by a couple of swell Canadians, Dan Mangan and Laura Simpson.