BBC Radio DJ Steve Lamacq has called for the narrative to be changed on grassroots venues as the embattled sector bids to turn the tide.

Lamacq, who has chaired UK trade body LIVE since 2023, made the plea during ILMC’s Grassroots Touring – Early-Stage Strategies panel, which looked at how the circuit can turn on a new generation of fans to the more intimate venue experience.

“I don’t think we spend enough time telling people just how great these venues are,” said Lamacq. “There are a lot of stories about venues closing and the pressures they’re under. It must sound so grim… if you’re a 17-year-old, you’re probably thinking, ‘Well, these places must be shit. They’re all closing, it sounds rubbish.’

“If you change the narrative [to], ‘These places are really exciting, you can have an amazing time,’ then I think we encourage people to think differently about it. It’s a safe, brilliant, exciting, creative environment, and that’s what we should be telling people – that you’re missing out, in fact, if you don’t go.”

Moderator Sarah Slater of Ticketmaster UK began the session at London’s Royal Lancaster by reeling off statistics highlighting how touring in the UK has changed “dramatically” over the past 30 years.

“To put things in perspective, in 1994 an average grassroots tour had 22 dates across 28 different locations,” she said. “By 2024… that number has been cut in half, with just 11 dates in 12 major cities.”

“We’re losing all of the grassroots venues in the communities outside of the big cities”

UK-based independent agent Jule Konrad noted some of the complications that had arisen from that shift.

“When the tours used to be longer, you could go to some of the B/C markets,” they said. “Now, with the smaller bands, we don’t go there because they’re not worth enough tickets, so we focus on the major markets. With the bigger artists, if they get 5k in the bigger cities, they don’t want to play for 1k or 2k in the smaller markets, and we’re losing all of the grassroots venues in the communities outside of the big cities.”

Andreas Moeller, who works as a promoter for Konzertbuero Schoneberg in Germany, said the industry could benefit by emphasising the “community” element of live music.

“It’s more about bringing people together,” he said. “Music is wonderful, and most of us are fans. We’re coming from the fan side of things, and we love to be in these small venues and maybe be part of the start of a career.”

MD of boutique Athens venue Piraeus Club Academy, Sophia Kouroumali is also assistant director at Xlalala Presents, the company behind Greece’s longest-running music festival Rockwave.

“We do a bit of both: grassroots in our venue, which is 400 capacity, and then we try to develop those bands to make it to the next stage and come to our festival, hopefully, which is 30,000 capacity,” she explained. “We’re trying a lot of ways to encourage younger artists to take part and audiences to give them a chance, which is becoming more and more challenging.”

A recent initiative has seen Kouroumali launch a competition for new bands, with a festival slot up for grabs for the winners.

“There’s no social media involved,” she said. “They come, they play. We have five bands every gig… and the audience votes, grading every band from five to one. So we’re trying to encourage people to actively listen. Don’t just come and see your friend’s band, don’t just come and see a band that you saw on TikTok or whatever, come and listen to the music live and be a part of it, and you will be the one deciding if this band performs on a major stage.

“The first gig had 27 tickets [sold], and then the second gig had 116 and now we’re already getting phone calls for the third gig. So people are expressing an interest. We see this paying off hopefully, and it creates an atmosphere that is so adorable, because you see bands from 17-year-olds to 60 playing on the same stage, congratulating each other, discussing their strategies, and their audience is blending so they’re finding their people.”

“You are creating so many problems further down the line if you take away the places where the younger generation can go”

Lamacq rejected the assertion that acts were now breaking on social media platforms such as TikTok, rather than on the live scene.

“It’s not like the Spice Girls played Bedford Esquires,” he argued. “There’s always been acts like that and there still will be, and I think that’s a bit of a red herring. There are still big pop acts and they do it in a different way, but bands with a longer career will start out quite often down at the grassroots, and that’s the point we have to get across.”

He continued: “I think [the government] shy away from the music industry in general because they don’t understand it and they think it’s a big commercial thing. But we have to explain to them how culturally important it is and how important it is in so many other ways, because every time you take away a venue from a town which has nothing else for young people, then where do they go? You are creating so many problems further down the line if you take away the places where the younger generation can go.”

Moreover, Lamacq added the business needed to make sure it has “the ear of the next generation” and was putting on “the sort of music and the sort of events that they want”.

On that note, Kouroumali stressed the importance of spreading the word to the younger demographic.

“Grassroots venues may be culturally important but, to me at least, they often feel like they’re becoming irrelevant to younger generations,” she said. “They learn music through Spotify… and they’re almost unaware of the process, so we’re trying to get the message across that The Beatles started from a grassroots venue, or Shakira, or Taylor Swift, whoever is relevant.

“We’re making it a friendlier place and a more open place… One of our major plans for the next season is to have afternoon shows that can cater for the whole family.”

“After the pandemic, people are reluctant to go out. They’re staying in a lot more”

Kouroumali added that the venue was also considering loyalty programmes and ticket offers to entice fans.

“What we’re going to start implementing, hopefully sometime before the end of this season, will be a 1+1 ticket, so you can get a ticket for one gig and then get the second one for half price. Maybe that will encourage people to go out more because another thing – and I think it’s more general than just grassroots venues – is that after the pandemic, people are reluctant to go out. They’re staying in a lot more.”

Lamacq ended with a rallying cry extolling the virtues of grassroots venues, saying there was an irreplaceable magic to seeing an emerging band play to 200 people at the start of their career.

“The best Catfish And The Bottlemen gigs were at Southampton Joiners, Clwb Ifor Bach and wherever else I saw them on that tour,” he said. “The band at their absolute hungriest, not a care in the world. It was fantastic and spontaneous and hot and thrilling – tell people that.

“There’s nothing wrong with big stages and big productions… and it’s lovely when you see 60,000 people come together for one jubilant night at an arena. But it’s also amazing when there’s just two of you, or even if you’re on your own, and you take away that memory of that night. That’s the best thing about grassroots venues for me.”

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The UK live music sector contributed a record £6.1 billion (€7.2bn) to the economy for the first time last year, according to freshly published data from trade body LIVE.

LIVE’s annual UK Live Music report shows live music achieved a year-on-year uptick of 17% since 2022 and an increase of 35% on the last pre-pandemic year of 2019. Live music also supported jobs for nearly 230,000 people last year – an increase of 9.4% since 2019.

The data analysis from research agency CGA by NIQ covers more than 55,000 gigs, concerts, festivals and events. It reveals the growth in the sector last year was driven largely by concert revenues, which jumped by 19% year-on-year and accounted for nearly three quarters (73.5%) of the total, boosted by major tours by acts such as Beyoncé and Coldplay.

Despite the positive headline figures however, LIVE warns that significant challenges remain for grassroots music venues, small festivals, and up-and-coming artists, with 36 festivals cancelled and 125 grassroots music venues closed permanently last year.

“2023 delivered significant growth for many sections of the live music ecosystem,” says LIVE CEO Jon Collins. “We had some of the biggest names in music sell out tours and festivals across the UK, but we also saw pressure build up across our industry, leading to grassroots music venues and festivals left with no choice but to close down in the face of rising costs.”

“With a lower rate of VAT on tickets, we could see the sector grow further”

In response, LIVE is calling on the government to reduce the current rate of 20% VAT on tickets. It also supports the recommendation in the Culture, Media and Sport Committee’s report on Grassroots Music Venues that government should introduce a temporary cut to VAT to stimulate grassroots music activity, while undertaking a comprehensive economic analysis of the impact of a cut to VAT on all concert tickets.

“We welcome the commitments made by the government to put the creative industries at the centre of the UK’s economic growth plan,” adds Collins. “Reintroducing a lower rate of VAT on tickets would bring the UK into line with international competitors and would be pivotal in unlocking the economic potential of our industry. With a lower rate of VAT on tickets, we could see the sector grow further, supporting more jobs, generating more investment, and putting on more gigs, festivals and tours for people to enjoy.”

On a regional basis, the data shows that London accounted for nearly a third (30.6%) of 2023’s total live music revenue, followed by Manchester at 7.4%. Glasgow took the lead in Scotland with 5.5% of the UK’s share, while other cities in the top 10 included Edinburgh, Birmingham, Cardiff, and Belfast.

“Our live music sector is world-class offering concerts, festivals, gigs and more to suit every music taste,” adds LIVE chair Steve Lamacq. “Last year, we saw much of the live music sector triumph over adversity; faced with a spike in costs as a result of inflation, the cost-of-living crisis and labour shortages, fans had more concerts and festivals than ever to enjoy.

“However, we cannot forget that urgent action is needed to support the many grassroots venues, artists, and festivals which continued to struggle last year.”

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UK trade body LIVE has appointed radio DJ and live music advocate Steve Lamacq as its new chair.

Lamacq has been a mainstay of BBC Radio programming for over 25 years as co-presenter of The Evening Session on Radio 1 before moving to host 6 Music.

Having stepped back from presenting his drive-time show full-time after 18 years, Lamacq has “decided to steer his career in a new direction in an effort to promote, support and define the live music industry for generations to come”.

Also joining LIVE, as co-opted directors, are Charisse Beaumont of Black Lives in Music, Christine Osazuwa of Shoobs and Lucy Noble of AEG Presents.

The appointments come as LIVE welcomes its 16th member, the Musicians’ Union (The MU). Kelly Wood, National Organiser for Live Performance, will also join LIVE’s board on behalf of the MU’s community of over 33,000 musicians.

“The UK’s live music industry is world-class but faces obstacles in realising its true potential,” says Jon Collins, CEO of LIVE. “With a sector value of over £5.2 billion, the industry is one of our greatest, and most prized cultural exports.

“It is a terrific opportunity to be a part of the future of live music in this country”

“We are proud to support the entirety of the live music ecosystem and represent their interests and the appointment of music legend Steve Lamacq, The MU’s Kelly Wood, Charisse Beaumont, Christine Osazuwa and Lucy Noble to LIVE’s board will enable us to further extend the work we’re doing. Steve will bring to LIVE unrivalled recognition of the power of the UK’s live music industry along with the challenges it faces. We are honoured to have such notable industry figures sitting on our board who will be key to enabling our enviable live music industry to thrive.”

Lamacq, adds: “I am absolutely thrilled to have been offered the chance to work with an organisation which is right at the centre of live music in the UK. As someone whose life has been indelibly shaped by the gigs that I’ve seen, it is a terrific opportunity to be a part of the future of live music in this country, and to be given the responsibility for helping promote, support and define it for generations to come.

“It has been a very difficult time for everyone involved in live music in recent years, with Brexit, the pandemic, the cost-of-living crisis, rising energy bills for venues and many other challenges, which have affected everyone at all levels of the live music ecosystem. With that in mind there are many things we need to address whilst also looking forward to forging a more sustainable and inclusive industry.

“LIVE has already achieved a great deal through a number of important campaigns and I am excited about what we can achieve in the future. It will be a privilege to represent those across the entire spectrum of our sector.”

Kelly Wood, National Organiser for Live Performance at The MU, said, “This is a positive move for the sector and we are excited to join the LIVE board. Joining such a forward-thinking and dynamic organisation, whose priorities are closely aligned with our own will be critical to the industry. I hope that The MU’s presence on the LIVE board brings a new perspective and together with LIVE’s other member organisations, we will reinforce lobbying efforts and hold the Government to account to ensure the dynamism and potential of the sector is unleashed. This will better equip us to support our members working at all levels of the live sector, in terms of their local, national and international tours.”

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DHP Family-owned Thekla (400-cap.), the award-winning live music boat venue based in Bristol, UK, is to be taken into dry dock on Monday 3 June for a £1 million overhaul to secure the boat’s next 50 years as a venue and club.

Ahead of the overhaul, Thekla will celebrate its 35th anniversary weekend from Thursday 2 to Saturday 5 May, with acts including BBC Radio 6 Music’s Steve Lamacq, drum and bass artist Roni Size, rock group October Drift and Hessle Audio co-founder Pangaea.

Built in 1958, a new steel offset hull will be welded to the whole of the boat’s existing hull. A recent detailed survey showed that the current hull is near the end of its life, despite regular, routine inspections and repairs.

“There’s a lot of love for Thekla in Bristol, around the country and worldwide. Both music fans and bands like Florence and the Machine, White Denim, Mumford and Sons, Ellie Goulding and many others who have played there over the years have taken part in some great nights,” says George Akins of DHP Family.

“We’re committed to preserving that heritage and that’s why we’re getting the new hull fitted – we need to make sure that Thekla continues to be a great night out for the next 50 years,” adds Akins.

“There’s a lot of love for Thekla in Bristol, around the country and worldwide […] we need to make sure that Thekla continues to be a great night out for the next 50 years”

At over 50 metres in length, Thekla is one of the longest ships in Bristol’s floating harbour. Repairs will be undertaken in the grade two listed Albion dry dock, which reopened in 2018 to allow maintenance and repair to be carried out on large ships in the city.

“We are very pleased to be undertaking works on Thekla and so secure her long term future in Bristol,” comments Martin Childs, co-owner of the Albion Dock Company. “Equally, her visit to the Albion Dockyard helps our venture in bringing this historic facility back to full time use as a working dry dock.”

Thekla will return to its usual position in Bristol’s floating harbour and reopen to the public in early September 2019. The Thekla team will announce the exact date of its reopening through its website and social media channels.

In 2017, DHP called on supporters to back its #savethekla campaign amid fears that noise complaints would cause the venue to close following the approval of a new housing development adjacent to the venue.

More information about the Thekla 35th anniversary celebrations can be found here.

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The 2018 edition of Venues Day, which takes place at Islington Assembly Hall in London next Wednesday (17 October), has sold out, organiser Music Venue Trust (MVT) has announced.

Venues Day 2018, which moves after four successful years at Ministry of Sound, will host more than 500 delegates representing over 200 venues, together with key grassroots music venue sector stakeholders, for a day of panels, workshops and presentations.

Agenda highlights include panels on music industry practice, health and wellbeing and company structures, while presentations include PRS/PPL on licensing, John Spellar MP on the progress of agent of change and the next steps for venues, and headline sponsor TicketWeb presenting facts and figures from the frontline.

Returning for 2018 is Sandbox, the meeting space for agents and venues, and the MVT team will be at hand to offer advise on licensing, planning, rates and legal issues.

“Venues Day is the key moment in the calendar when the music industry can hear directly from the venues under threat”

“The ongoing crisis in the grassroots music venues sector shows no signs of abating, with three new venues, Sticky Mike’s, Talking Heads and Marshall Rooms, forced to announce closures this week,” says MVT.

“Venues Day, now in its fifth year, is the key moment in the calendar when the music industry can hear directly from these venues under threat about what needs to change, and what steps need to be taken to protect, secure and improve the sector.”

The event kicks off with a panel presented by BBC DJ Steve Lamacq, ‘The Magnificent Seven: Anniversaries, Celebrations and Survival Stories’, celebrating venues that have fought on against the threat of closure.

For full details, visit the MVT website.

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