Slow nights at the bar

**Icefrogg** · 08-20-2012, 09:46 AM

I just got this saturday night gig at this bar...My first night there was pretty good....so my second saturday there was dead as shit...like 10:30pm probably 4 people in the bar. towards the end of the night more people came in....
I hate nights like that...its like slow death. I'm still trying to get my name out there so I can move on to gigs at bigger name bars....So I consider this paying dues I guess.

anyone else ever have nights like this??

**DJ ATX** · 08-20-2012, 01:22 PM

Yep, wait till you are playing a bigger club and its empty. Last year we had a weekend where there was a festival going on, plus Afrojack was playing at another club, and I forget who, but there was also a concert and a ball game going on. The club I played at had a max capacity of 700ppl. We probably only had 100 that night, if that. I know 100 sounds a lot, but in a 7000 sq ft club, that is near empty. Specially when most of them leave by 12:00. That was a loooooonngggg night.

**DJRavine** · 08-20-2012, 10:45 PM

Hahaha I've played entire sets to the bar staff before.

Just suck it up, it gets better.

**broshades** · 08-20-2012, 10:47 PM

use it to try new stuff or play songs that you normally wouldnt.

Think of it like your bedroom just became a bar

**Icefrogg** · 08-21-2012, 08:10 AM

awesome just making sure its not just me haha.
hopefully this was just one of those nights and this week will be better.

**disparate** · 08-21-2012, 09:37 AM

Originally Posted by DJRavine

Hahaha I've played entire sets to the bar staff before.

Just suck it up, it gets better.

Originally Posted by broshades

use it to try new stuff or play songs that you normally wouldnt.

Think of it like your bedroom just became a bar

Both of these are good advice.

I've played a good few quiet nights, it's a bit demoralising but just get on with it and enjoy the tunes.

**DJ ATX** · 08-21-2012, 10:00 AM

...also a good time to record your set.

**AdrianR** · 08-22-2012, 03:29 AM

Mate... 's ... Gather round, let me tell you a long winded, over typed story. (Which I will now shorten).

Anyways!

Not last Saturday, the one before. I hosted a Deep House gig out here. It was FUCKING HORRIBLE!!! The first one we had done at another bar went great! This one was horrible. Now, I'd done everything I could possibly do as far as promotion goes and that included giving the bar owner a massive full colour poster to put up so people walking by would know it was on (which he didn't) and well, the night was shit.

Worst part was, 11:00pm, a FEW people came. 12:00pm, MORE PEOPLE!! ... And fuck man, THEY'RE DANCING!!! (Go me! I'll sign shit for you if you want because clearly I'm going to be the next Tiesto) so, gets to 1am. He closes the bar. I could see it happening. Didn't make me happy. But, I went out side, 2 MAJOR clubs on the same block. I thought "You fucking idiot!"

A- He had that massive poster weeks prior to the gig. If he had put it up, clientelle from those clubs walking past etc would have SEEN IT and may have been inticed. I'm not into stealing other clubs patrons, but when you're all on the same block, fuck man. Sharing is caring!

B- If he had WAITED ANOTHER HOUR those clubs would have had like, pass outs. People would have started coming out for a cigerette, seen what we were doing and come in AND STAYED IN! (I have that effect on people).

But that wasn't allowed to happen. It really shitted me because at other venues I'd worked at bar owners understood this and it had worked for us and our gigs were getting better and better. It really pissed me off because this was the first gig I'd hosted since I came back from the Winter Music Conference in Miami in March. I had hoped I would have learned some stuff there, come back with a new attitude and spirit, be rejuvinated and shit and kinda be re-birthed into a more fruitful scene, enterprise etc. I thought shit would finally start working for me because there was subtle signs of it before I left, but yeah. Back at square one. Made me sick. I thought it was my fault but, a lot of people even those who didn't come were saying "yeah nah we didn't come because we don't like the venue", it was something I didn't know. I should have done my research better I guess.