Unfair share

If there's one live-music-related phenomenon I hope dies a death in 2023, it's ignorant wankers chatting their way through quiet performances. If there are two, then the second would be venues taking a hefty cut - or indeed any cut at all - of artists' merch sales.

The issue blew up last year following tweets by Peter Hook and Tim Burgess, prompting this Quietus article by Sean Adams, who writes from the perspective of someone who is not only a music journalist but also a sometime tour manager himself. It's an insightful investigation into a phenomenon of which many music fans may still not be aware, exposing the economic realities of touring and sharp behind-the-scenes "non-negotiable" business practices, and featuring comments from a wide range of different artists including Zola Jesus and Field Music's David Brewis.

As Adams takes pains to point out, most of those interviewed for the piece conceded without prompting that times are also tough for venues. But the practice is rife not at grassroots level, where spaces are run on an absolute shoestring, but at mid-level venues and beyond that are brand sponsored and part of a corporate chain. Often a member of staff is supplied (whether wanted or not) to sell the merch, but in some cases the venue takes a cut for doing absolutely nothing other than providing a table. That was the complaint from Spiral Stairs and Holly Ross when their bands Pavement and The Lovely Eggs played at the O2 Apollo in Manchester in October, and The Bug Club and BEAK also had merch-related tribulations when they supported Pavement at the Roundhouse a few days later.

So, what's the solution? Selling merch out of the back of the tour van (see, for example, Zola Jesus) or flogging it in a nearby pub (see, for example, Dry Cleaning) can only be a short-term fix. Credit, then, to the Featured Artist Coalition for establishing the 100% Venues initiative - "a public database of UK venues that charge zero commission on artists' merchandise sales". Fingers crossed this will help bands to book spaces that don't rip them off and enable music fans to see which of their local venues are committed to giving those who play there a fair deal.

Touring post-Brexit and amid COVID and the cost of living crisis is challenging enough without the likes of Live Nation creaming off money for nothing.