Is live music in SA dying? (because music venues are)

Tings n Times in Hatfield has been supporting live music for over 15 years. In December 2011 it had one last free gig and shut its doors. There is another Tings still open in Waterglen, but so far it just appears to be a restaurant, and not a host of music like the original. Unit 11 in Durban was the go-to venue for live music for more than a year, and they had their last night ever on the 27th of December 2011. Burn Nightclub, also in Durban, is set to close on the 31st of March this year. 

 

What is strange about Unit and Tings, is that they didn't really have a problem with attendance, especially towards the end. They sold out their last few nights, and then they shut their doors for good. Instantly the subculture that was formed at these venues over time is threatened with extinction. 

 

For all three venues, it appears the problem was financing. Foremost, venues need to pay rent. They need to pay popular bands that come from around the country, stock bars, and maintain equipment. Unless the venue owner has a bottomless pit of cash, or there are significant philanthropic sponsers on board, the cash has to come from the door. Conservatively, door fees are usually R30 or R40. This clearly wasn't cutting it for these venues. 

 

 

The irony of the situation is the momentous size of these farewell gigs. People rallied in their droves to support the venue, as if they'd only realized at the last minute that it was worth saving. In the case of Unit 11, it was too late, and a fine music establishment was lost. Now bands in Durban don't have a place on the map to play that is reliable. They'll have to take whatever they can get, and let's face it, Durban doesn't have much left to offer. 

 

 

 

Death of three major music venues in South Africa (two of them in Durban). 

 

This all raises some questions about audiences. They're willing to part with some money for a farewell gig that promises to be an amazing historical night, but had they gone on a more regular basis, they would have kept a venue going and ultimately been able to attend an unlimited number of great nights, being treated to live music from around the country. Can audiences not afford to spend R40 or R50? Well, they can afford to pay for Origin Nightclub's steep entrance fees and equally steep drinks prices. This also begs the question of whether people want to watch live bands, or would rather be immersed in a more interactive experience at a premier nightclub with a live DJ.  Are there just not enough people to sustain live music (in its purest sense)? Without demand, the supply is going to dwindle.

 

What about venues themselves? Are they being run professionally? Are businessmen running them or creatives who don't fully understand the consequences of having too many names on the door, or not putting enough markup on alcohol. Are they marketing events? So many artists have said to us that venues fall down when it comes to marketing, and yet all they need do is put together a mailing list or be active on their Facebook page, or just think of new ways to market.  At the end of the day, a music venue is a business, and needs to be treated as one regardless of how fun, modern, or offbeat it's supposed to appear.  A persona or facade should not dictate how the business is run. 

 

 

 

 

Then there's bands, who are as much to blame as anyone else. They either don't ask for enough money, or expect too much money without doing the work. They don't set the example of professionalism, and then they wonder why venues aren't treating the situation professionally. It's all a vicious cycle. Take any South African artist or band that has had success. They get the job done, and either they are professional or have professionals working for them. But the artists that don't take themselves seriously have a graveyard Facebook or MySpace page, and that's about all the evidence of their existence that's left. 

 

This discussion has turned into a long list of questions, ones that need to be addressed. If we want to figure out what's going wrong here, why despite the incredible number of bands in this country, we have venues closing and audiences fading, we have to ask the hard questions, and make sure everyone is accountable, from the band, to the venue owner, to the audience member, and even to people like us. We're all in this together, and we all want this to work. 

 

 

Unit 11, Tings n Times, Burn. Thank you for your contribution. We hope something can rise from your ruins.