Live Shows in post-pandemic lockdown and potential expectations

[Bosco]

I see there is already some dates scheduled for 2021 and I have no clue if they are still gonna go forward with them.

Assuming artists get the green light to resume touring some time this year or the next, are we going to expect a typical Chemical Brothers tour? Is it possible that we see a sudden increase of touring from Tom and Ed to fill to make up for lost revenue? Do they even want to tour anymore under the current circumstances?

I don't know how the live music industry works, but if I'm reading it right I have to imagine competition will be pretty stiff once things get going again. Venues are closing, festivals are folding, and a bunch of hungry artist waiting to get back to work... passing on a potential gig could be costly, for some.

Honestly, can't figure out if it's a buyers market for venues/festivals, or sellers market for artists.

tl;dr

Does the fallout of pandemic, put them back in "grind" mode, or is it business as usual?

[Bosco]

some other things to consider:

Does their live show get scaled down as a cost cutting measure?

Maybe the future of "live" shows is in the hands of Adam (Smith). Rather than actual touring, what about another multi-media project in the works that conveys a live experience?

The Sims: 'Don't Think' Edition?

[WhiteNoise]

A problem with many venues is that they were in danger to begin with, even before coronavirus. The real estate that venues take up can usually be used for housing and retail more profitably, and regrettably profits are what's number one. So without bailouts, we're going to see a lot of historic venues never open again. And this is gonna mean less places to play for an absolute logjam of artists looking to tour a years worth of records.

And the vibe of a concert is going to be weird this year. Fauci covered this recently, even this upcoming summer it's expected that masks and proper ventilation are going to be a necessity at live events, it will not feel the same until COVID has for the most part passed on.

I don't see the Chems scaling back the production because of the sunk cost of equipment. They're gonna keep touring with everything and keep it big. The alternative is leaving all the lasers, big screens, and George + Mildred in a storage closet (or selling it, which would also be a little bit of a waste - anyone want a pair of giant robots? slightly used!)

Personally I think a scaled down tour with less reliance on massive production values has a lot of creative opportunity for more unpredictable live sets. It genuinely always sounds amazing when they're forced to improvise heavily in a live set. But I've been saying that since like 2015 and there's no indication they'll do that, Tom and Ed are perfectionists more than they are improvisers and I'm sure they'd disagree with me loving their improv. So I'll be looking forward to the next big room set with a nice "Dig Your Own Hole / Hoops / GUOILT" style wink to the hardcore fans somewhere in it.

Still waiting on that online "Another World" project they've hinted at!!

[Bosco]

thanks for a response, Whitenoise.

Still waiting on that online "Another World" project they've hinted at!!

I don't seem to remember this being mentioned. Is there a link or quote you can provide?

[hstn]

thanks for a response, Whitenoise.

I don't seem to remember this being mentioned. Is there a link or quote you can provide?

I posted a thread on it back in September! Under the assumption we would've gotten news on it sooner lol

A new interview came out on F-Word mag interviewing Adam and Marcus about the live show and exhibition, it's all really interesting, but Adam seems to have announced something in it:

https://www.fwordmag.com/single-post/NEWS-IN-CONVERSATION-WITH-SMITH-LYALL

B.C: Please can you start a festival?

A.S: I would love to. Oddly I was thinking about that the other day. We are working on a very exciting project called Another World with The Chemical Brothers which is a creative dream come true. Details to follow soon. 

There was a post smithandlyall made too with the hashtag #anotherworld and an image of a costume that was left out of Keep On that seems to hint it may relate to an at home visual show

[androidgeoff]

it was that lego glastonbury video, it already came out

[Bosco]

I posted a thread on it back in September! Under the assumption we would've gotten news on it sooner lol

There was a post smithandlyall made too with the hashtag #anotherworld and an image of a costume that was left out of Keep On that seems to hint it may relate to an at home visual show

Appreciate it! This and the museum exhibit stuff kinda has flown over my head.

That is great news.

[Stefan]

Even though  there are shows announced, I don't see any happening in 2021, sorry. Maybe, maybe very late in the year, if vaccination programs are fast and successful.

For future shows, I don't think venues of the size the Chems are likely to play (5000+ people, given the recent tour maybe even 10.000ish) are in that much danger of closing down permanently.

I also don't expect much changes in production size and style for their shows. When gigs are possible again, T&E will probably start with a few DJ gigs (testing out new stuff produced during lockdowns?) and then a full scale tour to promote a new album for 2022 or 2023. Pretty sure they won't continue with the NG tour.

[Bosco]

Ed just tweeted this podcast about the upcoming problems regarding British musicians touring the EU:

https://twitter.com/eddychemical/status/1354689366971527169

Not saying this reflects Tom and Ed situation directly, but doesn't sound good.

Tom and Ed probably can absorb the blow of the new restrictions since they are more established than the average artist, but still cuts into their bottom line. Maybe a big time commercial sponsor is necessary to help fund touring inside of EU?

Also wonder if the future might be likeminded artists trying to create coalitions and curate their own traveling festival. It would be a nightmare to orchestrate but might be able to cut some cost if you can operate your show using the same instruments and equipment as your colleague within the coalition. Could possibly minimize crew too, as cold hearted as that sounds.

If EU is truly a problem because each country is individualized, it could mean more touring for America. They're definitely not as popular here though, so I don't know how that would equate financially.

Hoping for the best. I'm so damn anxious to see some live music and really hoping it comes back healthy.

[Bosco]

Hmmm... I see Pumisher posted about the announcement for Creamfields.

This really gonna go down this year? or just posturing?

[Stefan]

Hm, the UK has one of the fastest vaccination rates worldwide, and I guess that capacities will still increase in the coming months, so maybe they can really pull this off so that everybody can enjoy this safely?

[Csar]

I don't want to sound pessimistic but I believe we still have to wait for analyses of the efficacy of these vaccination efforts, probably reflected in the infection numbers and incidence values.
Fingers crossed that it works all out. But the timing is pretty tight and festivals need a lot of time to prepare I would think.

[Stefan]

I absolutely agree that the chances for mass events during summer are still very low, even with a successful vaccination program.
From everything I've read so far the results do look promising, of course for protection against the disease (this is what is tested in the trials, so any vaccine has to work in that sense in order to get approved in the first place), and also for reducing the spread. Of course scientists and regulatory agencies have to wait unitl the data is really really robust before any recommendatins can be made to allow mass gartherings to happen again.

I'm guessing that in this case the organizers of Creamfields are basically taking a huge bet and are fully aware that they might call the whole thing off.

[Csar]

Yeah, Creamfields is pretty optimistic but so are the boys as it seems!

https://forum.thechembase.com/index.php/topic,2312.msg25851.html#msg25851

[Bosco]

This might be a little too presumptuous, but I'm curious if this "announcement" for Creamfields has to do with sewing up some loose ends so they qualify for a certain threshold of festival insurance this year. Things were covered for 2020, but maybe they had to show a sign of actively pursuing resumption of business in 2021 to cover their ass when they eventually have to cancel again this year?

Seems silly to announce a headliner to what is an already sold out festival. Especially, within the current environment we're in now. Why get everyones hopes up?

[Csar]

That would be quite a stretch. No insurance would cover COVID related issues THIS year as the risks are still uncalculatable and cancellations more likely than not.
I firmly believe they just want to get out there and play music to their fans. And remember, there are still the old scheduled festivals from last year.

[Wolkenkrabber]

So another Chems UK festival date announced today.
I admire the optimism of this, I just wish I shared it (really!).

It would be great if we could all get jabs like with MMR or Tetanus and say "that's it, we're covered".
But this thing ain't so simple.
The UK vaccination effort is no doubt impressive (although I still await my first jab). However the most commonly used vaccine at the moment here is the Astra Zenica one. And as per below, it isn't very effective against the South African variant.
I personally wouldn't want to be packed into a tight crowd with tens of thousands of others who may or may not have a variant of the virus that is protected by the vaccine.
I hate to be a Debbie Downer but I fear that this thing is going to mutate and roll on for years.

And as for Sonar and Rock In Roma in June? Well I'm hearing about a "third wave" in mainland Europe. If those dates go ahead, I'm no longer a Dutchman.

https://twitter.com/devisridhar/status/1375396616669134849

https://twitter.com/devisridhar/status/1375401121662042114

https://twitter.com/globalhlthtwit/status/1375394315959218176

https://twitter.com/globalhlthtwit/status/1375394320077967362

[Born In Planet Dust]

I just got my first dose of Pfeizer and still the only way I'd consider going to a show or fest this summer is in a literal bubble.

https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-55794674

[Bosco]

I'm with you Wolkenkrabber. I just don't see how any music festivals can be safely executed with normal capacity. Way too many variables related to Covid in play.

But I do understand how important it is for festivals to push for an operating year this year. Not only are they fighting to stave off another economic hit, or trying to mitigate the health risk towards its attendees/employees. But they also have to fight the growing psyche that Music Festivals are detrimental and thus, unpractical.

If we go on to two+ years of no music festival season due to Covid, people are going to determine that attending a large event is generally a bad idea by default.

I might be too dramatic, but we probably are already experiencing the death rattle of non-brand name music festivals.



On a side note, I have tickets for a Music Festival in September (Riot Fest). There's optimism it's going to happen, and I'm thinking that I'm willing to attend as long as they don't restrict me in any way of protecting myself from the rest of the festival populous. And if they advise people attending in human sized hamster balls, as supported by The Flaming Lips, that's acceptable too.

Honestly though, I have faith in the Festival to stay on the up and up, it's all the other factors like public transportation and the limited defecting populus that worry me.

We'll see though, perhaps we're too confident that vaccinations are the key to victory here.

[Wolkenkrabber]

In the interests of balance, I think it might be worth mentioning that a science person involved in making vaccines replied to the Devi Sridar tweets above as follows:

https://twitter.com/sailorrooscout/status/1375415437731758084

Devi blocked "mac n chise", which didn't seem the best idea (although I do still have time for Devi - see her qualifications in her bio).
It seems there is only limited data so far regarding the (in)effectiveness of Astra Zenica on the South African variant.
I don't want to put anyone off getting the AZ vaccine. I personally think it's a good idea to get it, if you are offered a vaccine (even though Pfizer might be my first choice, if I had a choice). And  the "blood clot" fears wouldn't put me off. But I am not a scientist.

https://twitter.com/sailorrooscout/status/1375416297916411904