 |
So your band is interested in playing a Metal Thursday? Great! Please take the time to read this blog first! It will hopefully answer some of the common questions I get from bands!
The first thing that you should know is that Metal Thursday is for METAL BANDS ONLY. It's probably near impossible to describe in perfect detail exactly what IS Metal and what ISN'T, but I will do my best to quickly explain it here.
If your band classifies itself as Thrash Metal, Power Metal, Death Metal, Black Metal, Grindcore or Extreme Metal, then chances are you will fit right in at Metal Thursday. This probably covers about 75% of the bands that contact us asking to play. For the other 25%, please pay close attention to the next paragraph.
If your band is punk, hardcore, classic rock, hard rock, rap-rock, screamo, ska, hip-hop or any other genre that is clearly NOT METAL, then you will NOT be booked for a Metal Thursday - EVER. If you ask anyways, don't be surprised if you don't get a response. Your friend request probably will be ignored or denied. It's not to be a jerk, I just don't have time to personally explain this to every non-Metal band who asks to play a Metal Thursday. For bands that don't classify themselves as any of the above genres/subgenres, or simply classify themselves as just "Metal", it can be a little more complicated. If your band calls itself Metal, but you sound more like Godsmack, Linkin Park, System of a Down, Korn, Slipknot (yes, that's right), Mudvayne or any other band you would typically hear on Mainstream Rock radio - then you will not be booked on Metal Thursday. Sorry, but that's not Metal, that's Mainstream Rock! If that's your band's style then you can get booked at just about any place on any night you want. There is no place for you on Metal Thursday. Again, it's not to be a jerk... it's just the way it is. Do you want to play in front of a room of people who won't like your band? No you don't, so I'm saving you the trouble. Sometimes there is some gray area in between. If you are unsure if your band would be considered "Metal enough", feel free to send a message and ask... I will give my honest opinion and advice.
So, if you made it this far and you think your band is right for Metal Thursday - send a message to this profile or to metalthursday@gmail.com with your booking inquiry. You will be added to the list of bands (currently 40+ as of October 2009) waiting to get booked. You will be contacted when there is a slot available that your band would be a good fit for. This could be as early as a few days or weeks, or as long as several months. Feel free to check in from time to time if it has been a while. When you send your first message, please provide the following information:
Whether your band is all 21+ or has any underage members
An email address for the band or at least one band member
How many paying heads you would expect to draw (not required, but if you have a draw then definitely mention it!)
You should know in advance that bands DO receive pay for playing Metal Thursday, but ONLY when the show makes enough money at the door. The way it works is that everyone (the sound man, the promoter & the bands) is paid from the door money. Therefore, specific dollar amount guarantees are IMPOSSIBLE for me to make. I am usually willing to work out some kind of a deal that is fair and appropriate with touring/out-of-state bands or local bands with an established draw. If the show makes money, bands are paid as fairly as possible at the END OF THE SHOW.
That's about it. Hopefully this gives you all the info you need!
I look forward to working with all the real Metal bands out there that want to play a real Metal show!!!!
Chris
MT Booking
Metal Thursdays @ Ralph's
11:55 AM
Powered by  | | English | | Albanian | | Arabic | | Bulgarian | | Catalan | | Chinese | | Croatian | | Czech | | Danish | | Dutch | | Estonian | | Filipino | | Finnish | | French | | Galician | | German | | Greek | | Hebrew | | Hindi | | Hungarian | | Indonesian | | Italian | | Japanese | | Korean | | Latvian | | Lithuanian | | Maltese | | Norwegian | | Polish | | Portuguese | | Romanian | | Russian | | Serbian | | Slovak | | Slovenian | | Spanish | | Swedish | | Thai | | Turkish | | Ukrainian | | Vietnamese |
|