Slow travel week last week. With the exception of a road trip to Nashville on Friday and Saturday, I pretty much camped out in Atlanta all week catching up on music listening, live shows, and a little company paper work. I came across some really cool stuff while I was at it, particularly in the live setting. I saw about 6 different bands throughout the week, and was completely destroyed by one (in a good way), loved another, and thought the others were fairly average.
The one that destroyed me didn’t just destroy me because I thought the songs were good, lots of bands have good songs, in this case their music actually moved me. Know what I mean? Have you ever seen a band that you were completely unfamiliar with, as I was with this band, only to have them take you to another place? As I stood there watching and listening, it literally felt like time was standing still. It was such a good feeling, one that is more and more rare as time goes on, one that I search for at every show, usually coming up short. The jury is still out on whether I‘ll be able to do anything with this band, and that’s the interesting part.
I’m constantly asked why, if I like something, I don’t just sign them. One would think that the minute I find something that has this type of affect on me I would rush to the signing table and get something done. It’s not quite that easy unfortunately. Part of what I and the others in my field have to look for is stuff that moves not only us, but potentially the masses. My personal taste in music isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, and I have to constantly be aware of this. This isn’t to say that the above mentioned band isn’t worthy of a deal, or that nothing is going to happen, it might (I’m still thinking it through), it's just not that simple. It’s also not to say that I would sign something that I don’t personally like, I wouldn’t. There has to be a balance. Thankfully, I love the bands I work with--best of both worlds.
The next night I saw a band that had everything I look for; great songs, amazing performance, and huge following. I wasn't moved the way I was the night before, but it was still a strong showing. I'm also not sure what's going to happen with them with regard to a deal. What I'm saying is that there’s an enormous amount of thought that has to go into signing a band, particularly in a time when people aren’t buying CDs or downloads as much as in the past (don’t get me started on this, that’s a topic for another time, and boy could I go on about it). At the end of the day, every signing is a big investment, and one that nobody takes lightly. Our job is at stake every time we take a risk on a band, so risks are far and few between.
If there’s a downside to my job that's it, but seeing bands like the ones I saw last week makes the downside of the gig look up.
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