I am one of many local musicians frustrated with the music opportunities, or lack there of, in the Helena area. I was recently given a bone, so-to-speak, by a couple friends suggesting I talk to the Longhorn Saloon about playing there as the owner/manager was interested in building a local live scene. I went there yesterday to touch base with her and was given the discouraging news that they are also giving into the almighty, make a quick buck philosophy so many others have gone to by eliminating their stage and renting out the space to a poker dealer. Really? Real quick, I would just like to bag on the locals here in Helena and just say, "Shame on you." And I'm not just talking about the business owners but also any of you out there that have complained about the stagnant music scene but don't get out there to support those businesses that have live music. There are a still couple.
Our band has been booked by the following Helena businesses; Haps, Jesters, Rialto and that is it. (We have played a number of other venues in Craig, Townsend and Boulder.) I also have been booked by Riley's Irish Pub as a solo artist. Due to the limitations of the building, we aren't able to play there as a band. There are other venues in town that do support live music and by support I mean they pay for it. Lake Side, The Silos Bar, The Great Divide and a couple others have seasonal music on their patios. We haven't been on the scene long enough to capitalize on the seasonal stuff yet but we are hopeful. The only two other venues I can recall are Miller's and The Ox. The problem is, The Ox only hires from the four or five bands they always hire and they close at 9pm. Miller's has given up completely on the live music scene and now hires a lame D.J. on Saturday nights. The scene is sad to say the least.
The argument is that there isn't the demand to support live music. I've heard people say the town is too small. I've also heard people say it's because of the ASCAP licensing that businesses aren't willing to take the risk. Bullshit. I grew up in a town a third the size of Helena. We didn't have a university either. We had three bars in the downtown area that supported live music as well as countless venues in the resorts around the area that would be packed every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights. Some of those venues even have music 6 and 7 nights a week. As for the licensing fees? It is MUCH MORE EXPENSIVE to pay for slot machines. The woman at the Longhorn told me each machine costs $40k, plus the taxes. And the reasoning she gave now to eliminate the live music is that she has to pay for those machines and live music isn't doing it.
I've had so many conversations with so many people about this recently it almost makes my head spin. All excuses aside; here's the skinny. Somewhere around 15 or 20 years ago, gambling became legal in Helena and just about every bar decided to become a casino because it was easy money. You put a slot machine out there, vacuum the cig butts up from around the machine and serve a couple comp drinks and you will make money. Unfortunately, that's the culture here in the Helena night life that has be perpetuated. What's happened is now the bars are filled with desperate people thinking they are going to make a buck and the rest of us are left to find entertainment elsewhere. The bars are catering to those folks, they have invested their resources into the machines and now can't afford not to keep the coins chinkling down the slots.
The other problem is having music is work. Yes, it is but there can be a return. Again, according to many people in the know, Miller's tried to do music but the business plan was flawed. (I actually used to host open mics at Miller's in 2003 so I know a little bit about the plan.) Because it is very difficult to screen bands, hire them and take care of the marketing aspect of having music; Bonnie farmed those responsibilities out. That totally makes sense. The problem however, was the model that was employed wasn't very well thought out and would never allow them to make money. They were hiring bands from across the country for thousands of dollars a night so the only way they could recoup their money was to charge a cover. People in town were not willing to pay $10 to see a band they had never heard of just because they came from Chicago. What they could have done was hired local musicians for a fraction of the cost without charging a cover and those bands would have filled the place. Once a month they could have had something big and people would have been much more likely to contribute. But now, since it was such a huge failure, Bonnie has taken the approach that live music just won't work in Helena because people don't care.
As for the Ox, they too have given up on the scene in a way that is less overt but just as detrimental. I approached them 3 times in the last 3 years about playing there and was told the same thing that everyone has been told that doesn't belong to one of the 4 bands that plays there regularly, "We are booked for the next year." Whatever, you just don't want to put the work into it and by having the same bands week after week, your patrons have become bored with it and it reflects a sentiment that Helena folks don't appreciate live music.
What really sucks is that most of the folks that I know that have a night or two to go out for live music now go to Butte, Great Falls, Bozeman or Missoula. How fricken crazy is that? And, the bands from the area that are successful are also going out of town to play! Insanity!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment