To think pop/rock concert tickets are way too pricey nowadays...

[jobhunter7]

To think pop/rock concert tickets are way too pricey nowadays...

Yanbu, it's too expensive for me so I don't get to go :(
I guess it isnt too expensive for some though otherwise they wouldn't sell out!

[quote jobhunter7]@user135644

Cinema tickets are about £15 at my local multiplex... which I suspect is above inflation...[/quote]
Maybe at peak times/the weekend. I tend to go at quieter times where it's cheaper.

@nancy75

I took my Dd to the expensive Taylor Swift concert at Wembley in 2018, anyone who went will know why it was so expensive. The staging was amazing, she flew across the stadium in a gold bauble! It was a proper show. I’m not a fan of her music but I would say the show she put on was worth the money

Yes I was going to say that, she doesn't just stand on stage and sing, she puts on a really spectacular show. Not everyone's cup of tea of course, but I think its worth the money because it must cost a load to plan and stage! Venues have had a rough time with covid as well its not surprising things have gone up, I don't know what's going to happen as people feel the squeeze and have less disposable income whilst venues running costs for utilities soars along with the rest of us :(

YANBU. We used to go to a lot of gigs but it’s become too expensive. My favourite band is Green Day who used to have an unwritten policy of keeping prices low to allow kids to be able to enjoy live music. In 2009 I paid less than £30 a ticket for an arena concert, 8 years later they around £60 for the same venue.

Look at football matches or big sporting events.

Me and my son have season tickets for a Premier League club. That covers PL games but we have to buy tickets for the FA Cup and Champions League, we have no choice in the matter. Our team’s now in the knockout stage of the Champions League, in the league stage before Christmas we paid £37 each, for this next round we’re now charged £42 each. Should the team progress to the next round it’ll be £47. Same seats that we always sit in, no difference to any other game for the club to stage but we’re charged extra for the privilege of being there.

Buggy Clyro are a good example of a band that keep prices in check, make a huge effort to keep touts out and play smaller venues.

FFS. BIFFY Clyro

@user135644

I think off-peak tickets are about £9, but I still think prices have gone above inflation - if not so astronomically as concerts...

Probably similarly troubled by illegal downloading...

Obviously the big headline bands are now out of most peoples range i looked at going to see Aerosmith reasonable seat tickets were £225 each ouch no way could i justify £450 for one gig but Alice Cooper with The Cult supporting who we are going to see in may same venue is £72 each and he puts on a good show still other good but not headliners our local theatre Robert Plant £35 each i look at what the prices are and decide wether to go or not

I think festival tickets are way better value.....I will be paying 280 for my Glastonbury ticket this year and seeing loads of bands/artists

1996 cinema ticket - am guessing it was an evening showing? Which in today's money is £8.60...

There was no Glastonbury 1996. But 1995 tickets were £65 and 1997 tickets were £75.

So a Glastonbury ticket shouid be £140.

They are pricey these days.

I miss the days where you could go to a big festival for cheap.

I don't go very often, maybe 2x a year, but I like to get the best seat ,which was something like 600 last time I went.

@WheelieBinPrincess

I’m seeing the Libertines and Supergrass at Hatfield house in June and that was £52, I think that’s reasonable! Likes of Coldplay charge mega prices for Wembley arena (not my cup of tea so wouldn’t bother) but I pay upwards of £70 to see Foo Fighters and Muse and that is a lot. I could get cheaper seats but I don’t go to gigs to sit.

I remember going to Reading festival for the first time in 2002 and it was £90 for the whole weekend with camping!!

I went to Reading for the first time in 2002

Fugees - in today's money at Brixton Academy £25
The Cure - arena gig in Cardiff in today's money £35

Duran Duran - paid £36 last year for a ticket for a home town gig, absolutely a bargain though I suspect tickets for their tour will be more. A lot of the bands I see (mostly 80s) are all still reasonably priced, even the arena tours. I think the newer acts who rely more on an amazing set and dancers, etc are the ones who need to charge more to make a profit because those tours aren’t cheap to put on (and the acts probably have a shorter shelf life so need to make the money whilst they can).

Duran Duran £62.45 a ticket for general admission at Castle Howard, York this June

This is showing my age but I went to see Culture Club at Leicester polytechnic in 1982 and the tickets were only £1.75!!

Some artists have expressed a moral compass occasionally...

Billy Bragg tickets here for £33 which is not so bad...

www.seetickets.com/event/summer-nights-at-the-bandstand-billy-bragg/kelvingrove-bandstand/2159283

I paid £20 to see Madonna at Wembley in 1990, seemed like a fortune then, so I don’t think the £85 I paid for Taylor Swift recently is massively overpriced in comparison. What I could buy with my £20 in 1990 probably would equate to £80ish now.

@VariationsonaTheme

It'd be £48-ish

I believe Billy Bragg tends to tour on his own which means he isn't having to pay a band, can probably get away with minimal sound crew etc

Factoring in a four piece band, with transport, accommodation, more crew etc pushes the costs right up to the point where it's prohibitively expensive for many acts to travel much.

While pulling their music from streaming sites, Youtube etc might seem like a good idea, it really doesn't help smaller bands that rely that kind of media to reach new fans and raise their profile enough to sell tickets to tour. No real money comes to bands 'up front' nowadays, so they need to know a tour will at least cover their outgoings.

We're being priced out. Comedy and gig tickets are getting too much. I only splurge if I'm a big fan, so have bought tickets for The Cure and The Wonderstuff this year. I looked at tickets for Steve Coogan, Tears for Fears and Simple Minds, but they were too much.

It's not just the money though, it's the distance you can be from stage. I'm only 5ft1 and am getting too old to play find the space where a 6ft 5 bloke isn't standing in front of you.

Then there's parking at big venues, cost of a pint, and it all adds up. I've been going to gigs for 35 years almost, but the increase is not in line with my wages!

We watch a lot of tributes now instead.

@DysmalRadius

Billy does play with a band sometimes though.

"No real money comes to bands 'up front' nowadays, so they need to know a tour will at least cover their outgoings."

Why is this?

Depends - I saw Emilie Sande at the Roundhouse a few weeks ago - allegedly 'restricted view' but it wasn't - just her and a piano. Truly amazing, best thing I've seen in ages - about £10.
Also saw Shingai Shoniwa for £20ish at the end of January.
Diana Ross later in the year was about £90 though

Bands used to get signed to a record label which would pay them, front the money for the costs of recording albums, and organise tours. That is a vanishingly rare scenario these days as record labels don't have to go out and scout for new acts, so there's no incentive for them to 'invest' in bands when they can get them ready-made.

Now, record companies tend to sign acts that already have a good following, either on social media or those that are already doing well on the live scene, so most have to self-fund their early recordings and travel/accommodation for gigs etc.