Kate Evans Sound Nation, 05/06/2006

Did any Sound Nation readers want to be an agent when they were young? I did - a secret agent like James Bond. But when I realised my dreams were no more than pie in the sky, I started to research touring agents. The job is just as glamorous, great money - sounds brilliant. Yours truly managed to meet up with some agents and get the low down on their job - and how they could help your band. I didn't just ask them though, I wanted everyone else's opinion on them - namely the managers and the promoters. Read on, folks...

THE MANAGER

Jo Hunt manages Jarcrew and People in Planes through her company M4 Management. Sound Nation asked her about Jarcrew's recent UK headline tour and how the band come to use an agent: "Jarcrew got an agent after we signed with Gut Records, but I'd been courting a few agents before the deal. I'd been speaking to about four or five, but there's no point in an unsigned band having an agent, as there's nothing that agent could do. "Agents are there to book tours - and bands need the money to be able to fulfil commitments. We could book one off shows ourselves, but agents are reluctant to touch unsigned bands. Before signing, Jarcrew did a small tour with Mclusky. This was funded by t-shirt sales, but we couldn't afford to do any more than five dates. We couldn't afford to play the Scottish leg of the tour, for instance." What are Jo's feelings on local promoters? Surely they play a major role in how each show shapes up? "I'll often pass on names of promoters that have done a good job and agents will approach them with other bands for different tours - I've recommended a few Welsh promoters to our agent. On the other hand, promoters shouldn't piss anyone off as it's a very small industry!"


THE LOCAL PROMOTERS

Before taking up a post as Welsh Language Officer with the Welsh Music Foundation, Guto Brychan was Entertainment Manager at Cardiff's Clwb Ifor Bach venue. Sound Nation asked him how he forged a relationship with agents. Did they come to him, or did he have to scream out for attention? "A bit of both. I chased the agencies who represented the bands I liked and also the bands that I wanted playing in the club - bands that would pull a crowd. I built up a good relationships with The Agency, Helter Skelter and Coda - they're all good. I usually started off telling them about the club - its facilities, its size and its record of bands. After establishing contact with the agencies it followed that they began to contact me, but you have to be proactive. Also, the world-wide success of Welsh artists made things a bit easier."


Did Guto ever have a problem being taken seriously by some agencies? "It varied - some people just never responded, no matter how many e-mails or phone calls I made. Others were far more responsive over time. One problem is that Cardiff is looked at as a regional show, rather than a main city that bands have to play. If a touring band is playing at Bristol for instance, the agent might not book a Cardiff or Welsh show. "Also, the size of venue is sometimes a limitation. Some bands jump quickly from club gigs to university venues, so it's important to catch a band at the right time. You also have to realise that small venues are sometimes not a priority for agents who are booking large scale tours. "Winning 'Best Small Venue' at the Welsh Music Awards for three years running definitely boosted the profile of Clwb. Agents approached us and offered gigs - then we would make an offer back to the agency. If they've seen that past shows have worked, then they'll begin to trust you with bigger gigs."


Neil Thompson is promoter at Wrexham's Central Station venue. Recent visitors have included Mclusky, Chikinki, The Wildhearts, Electric Six, Shed Seven, Eliza Carthy and the legendary Damo Suzuki. Did Neil also have a problem being taken seriously by some of the bigger agencies? "It was basically two years of shouting 'Hello! Hello!', we had to keep banging away for ages until we made some contacts. We started by
putting on loads of smaller bands, paying them £50 - it's all about persistence and that extra bit of effort. "When we call agents, we sell the fact that we have really good facilities, a great sound system and brilliant catering. The effort we put in when bands are here means that word gets around to other managers and agents. People start saying 'oh, that place is good', and so on. Our main problem is that
some managers and agents don't even know that our venue exists! But it's understandable that some agents are reluctant with small promoters and venues - there are too many shysters out there who don't have the money or contacts to back up what they say. There are so many dodgy characters who can't be trusted."


So does Neil have any tips for budding local promoters? "You've got to keep your ear to the ground, it's about knowing what shows and tours are about to go out. I think it's good to stick your oar in and get agents to pay attention. It's also good to be friends with other promoters, it's no good being rivals. Every now and then, if another promoter's venue is not suitable, they will recommend me and vice versa."

THE AGENT

Steve Zapp works for International Talent Booking (ITB), and has recently organised tours for Biffy Clyro, Jarcrew and a host of other high profile bands. Sound Nation started by asking Steve what agents actually do: "It's our job to develop the best live gig possible and it could be a combination of many events. It's a mix of festival appearances, small headline slots and good support gigs."

Does Steve take local promoters seriously? What does he expect of them? "I think a number of agents would feel that they'd rather spend time doing big shows, but that's not the way I see it. New bands need to deal with small promoters and small venues, that's where they start. I always ask for a guarantee as it costs a lot of money for bands to tour. "I'll also look for a town's smallest venue if a new band is playing, that way if not many people turn up it's still gonna have a good vibe. A guy called Conal Dodds started promoting small shows in Kidderminster and Newport - now he promotes massive gigs like the Foo Fighters, Robbie Williams and Oasis for Metropolis Music. Also, Andy at Clear Channel started off promoting small gigs at Nottingham Rock City." Paul Bolton works for the large agency Helter Skelter. We asked him to describe his role, too: "We decide on every aspect of a band's live career, from which festivals to play in Germany to what ticket price to charge in Rio. We route tours, making sure the travelling is possible, choose which media to advertise in, make sure the P.A. is what the band want, ensure the posters use the right artwork, etc." So what is Paul's view on using local promoters? "Bands and managers have
certain expectations and it's sometimes safer for us to use national promoters that we know will deliver good conditions, rather than take the risk with local promoters."

THE COST

So now you know what an agent does, how much does it cost to enlist their services? Well there's no definite price, as you'll see below...
Paul Bolton, agent for Helter Skelter: "All promoters always pay at least 50% of the fee upfront, new promoters pay 100%. We check that club venues have the facilities the band would expect and we like experienced promoters that have a constant stream of shows going into any venue to avoid our bands being guinea pigs."

Promoter Guto Brychan: "In my experience, most deals will involve a minimum guarantee followed by a percentage of net profits after costs." Neil Thompson agrees: "Cost depends on the agent. Most ask for a percentage, it's become a general thing that they ask for. Sometimes the demand is so high that you just have to say 'no way'. It is negotiable, but agents will stick to their guns."

Sound Nation asked Jarcrew manager Jo Hunt if money is still a problem when touring? "It depends where you are on the bill. If you are first on it'll usually be a flat 50 quid with no negotiation. If you're the main support, chances are you'll get a little bit more depending on the size of the venue. If headlining though, it's the agent's job to negotiate a fee with the manager and the promoter. I'll sit down and say what we think is a good amount and will also explain that we will do no shows under x amount of pounds. It's the agent's job to act on the instruction of the manager. An agent should also be involved in sorting out promo for the gig; advertising, local press and for bigger shows - TV and radio." So there you have it. Are agents worth the money? Undoubtedly, whether you're a band manager looking to book a nationwide, or whether you're a local promoter looking to expand and improve the quality of the acts playing your shows. It's just a question of whether you think you're ready to deal with them.


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Glossary of Terms


GUARANTEE - the fixed amount you agree to pay the band whatever the ticket sales.


PERCENTAGE (sometimes referred to as a "percentage break" or as a percentage of net income after costs) - Once ticket sales have covered the cost of the gig, the rest is split between the band and the promoter. Usually heavily in the artist's favour.


FIXED COSTS - The cost to the promoter of putting the gig on, which is usually roughly the same for every night at a particular venue. i.e. Venue hire, door / bar staff, publicity, engineer, PA hire etc etc. plus promoter's fixed profit.


Another term to look out for is the RIDER. Although you will have built in the cost for the rider in your breakdown, the rider for the band (plus buy out / catering) will often cost more than you planned. It is always good to have a word with the tour manager in the days leading up to the show to see what they need, as the rider is usually a standard list of requests which is used to cover everything from toilet circuit gigs to festivals. That means there may be some room for manoeuvre.

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