Event Evidence Video
Event Atmosphere
The events atmosphere was exactly what we set out to achieve, albeit the crowd was smaller than we had hoped. We aimed to create an alternative, energy fueled atmosphere. When noticing the crowd singing along to songs and head banging it was clear we had succeeded in providing the event we wanted to. The crowd enjoyed the eclectic line up and everyone seemed to be getting along with like minded people. There was a positive reception to my band, student slasher film, and most people attending seemed to be singing along. Keyclub was the perfect venue for this, with its DIY design and pre-established alternative audience. Despite how well i think we achieved our goal, the lack of audience members did cost us some of the energy we had expected. With less people attending, we didn’t see classic alternative gig events such as mosh pits, crowd surfing, or two stepping: most likely because people felt that with such a small crowd, it didn’t seem like the time or place. Would i attempt to put this show on again, I would try to attract more people to truly provide the gig experience one would expect at a venue like Keyclub. I have attached three photos I think correctly convey the atmosphere we achieved.
Box Office
Our tickets i felt were reasonably priced, I have put on shows with more expensive tickets and had the event perform better than this one did. Our tickets were only sold through three different means: Seetickets, Keyclub themselves, and on the door. In future for a gig set up by students like this one, i would create physical tickets and have more variation of which site can be used, as some people might feel some ticket sites are better than others, or they may have accounts on one site but not another. We initially set out for the tickets to be six pounds online, eight pounds on the door, but due to Seetickets cut, the tickets were increased to six pound sixty pence, though i think that the sixty pence was inconsequential to the final ticket numbers, as remaining below seven pounds puts our tickets below the average according to the bbc.
(https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2kdxlv8x05o)
We ended up selling thirty one tickets total, selling twenty six through Seetickets, zero through Keyclub and five on the door. Most tickets sold in groups, selling anywhere between one to four tickets a day, implying that people who bought tickets attended with friends. Along with this, most tickets sold closer to the date of the gig than the initial announcement, coinciding with late posts from bands. Along with four guestlist, we had thirty five people total attend. Below i have attached an image of the actual box office, the counter used for tickets on the door, and the invoice sent across to Seetickets for the tickets sold.
Security
We only had one security member working our gig due to the low number of tickets sold (this is what Keyclub decided.) The security staff member remained at the entrance, for the most part, and occasionally checked peoples IDs. There were no incidents requiring the attention of staff as everyone seemed very well behaved, but still remained in communication with the bar throughout. For our level of gig, I felt this was an appropriate amount of security and should any problems have arisen, I believe the staff along with myself acting as the gig rep would’ve been able to handle the situation. There was only one entrance to the venue, it being a choke point between the box office and the stage room. The security staff member stamped peoples hands as they entered, so we knew who had paid and who hadn’t yet. Usually all band members and guests of the band have an access all areas sticker, but we did not supply these and therefore anyone could’ve entered the greenroom at anytime. In the future i will be using passes to decide who has access to the green room, as someone could’ve taken expensive equipment. I have attached a photo of the security staff member at the entrance, the entrance to the green room, and a picture taken upon entering the greenroom showcasing the some of the equipment.
Health and Safety
Upon entering the venue we conducted an onsite risk assessment of the venue and logged everything we considered to be a risk.
We logged the following issues:
Poor disabled access: The only immediate access to the venue was a set of tall stairs, and with disabled band members performing, this was a health risk. There was one other entrance located, but it was around the back of the building, where audience members couldn’t access.
Poor lighting in greenroom areas: The second half of the greenroom had no functioning lights other than an LED sign that poorly illuminated the space. To mitigate this we had the LED sign set to its full brightness and had all equipment stored in the fully lit rooms.
The pipes above the stage dripped: The liquid dripped could’ve been a hazard with electronics on stage, and the liquid could’ve been a contaminant. All wires and extensions were kept away to avoid a fire hazard.
Obstructed parking: One band member parked their car in a zone supposed to be used for loading and unloading, creating a hazard when transporting equipment. All loading and unloading was taken place when this vehicle wasn’t obstructing the zone.
Blocked fire escapes: Multiple band members would stand in the fire escape to smoke rather than going outside, obstructing the fire doors. We informed the band members and the fire door remained unobstructed from then.
However, the venue clearly signposted as they use strobe lights, the audience area was clear and free of hazards, and the disabled persons area had suitable access and safety railing. I have attached below the risk assessment, the warning, and the images of the audience areas.
Production
The production of our event was one of our strongest areas, the lighting and mixing being near perfect thanks to Jo, the sound engineer, and our own riot circuits member for lighting. The sound was different for each band to suit their performances, and the lighting was synced with the movement of the songs. There was a desk, a mixing desk, and a lighting desk at the back. Overall it felt professional. However the set up for the event felt less than professional, as the back line was not clear on what they had (telling us they had amp stacks, but not informing us that did not include heads for the cabs.) we then clarified this, and transported our own amp heads. However due to the lack of a bass head, the bands not using digital amps had to plug into the PA system. The loading and unloading of equipment went off without a hitch, and sound checks went perfectly apart from one band experiencing technical issues with their digital amps and having to restart their soundcheck. This did push our doors back by ten minutes, telling me we didn’t leave enough time for issues to be resolved in the soundcheck. In the end, i think the issues that arose were quickly solved and in the future i would communicate better about equipment and leave more time for issues. I have attached equipment of the systems used and the stage in the background.
Artist Liaison
As all members of riot circuit promotions are in bands, we decided to use these bands for our gig. This effectively mitigated costs and improved communication as at least one member of each band was involved in the creation of this event and knew all of the information. We decided on an even split between the bands from profits rather than a flat fee, which each band agreed to. We made sure to provide water for the band members, but didn’t provide any alcohol. the green room had access to a TV with Netflix, sofas, and a bathroom. After asking different band members, i have concluded the performers were satisfied with playing the show.
I am satisfied with our communication and accommodation of each band.
As the gig rep, i was also the liaison between riot circuits and Keyclub. This was also fairly easy, as the band i am in is currently managed by Mia Jackson, the promoter for Keyclub. I clearly communicated the specs of the show, and the poster for promotional material. I would definitely take this approach again where possible, as knowing all parties involved prior to set up meant communication was easy.
Stage Management
The stage management for this show was handled adequately. Despite being set back by technical issues, each band loaded and unloaded at the correct times due to a clear set time put up in the green room. each band was told how long until they were on stage prior to the band that was on finishing, and the bands played in order of popularity, despite no one band being a support. The stage itself was kept clear except for equipment of the band that was playing, and wires were managed to be out of the way. i have included pictures of the stage, and the clearly labeled set times as evidence.
Online Marketing
I do not think that our online marketing was very good for this event. We solely used Instagram, not creating a promotions account, using the band accounts of the performers to spread the word of this gig. We mainly just posted the poster we had created physical versions of, but also employed the use of Instagram stories and having people we know promote it on their Instagram stories too. We reached the most amount of people through this method, but posted all of these announcements far too late, most bands posting less than two weeks before the event. This led to people making us aware they would’ve attended had they known earlier, but they now had work or other such engagements. in the future i would promote the event across different social medias, use a variety of posts such as videos, song snippets, poster variations and paid post promotion. I would also start promoting the event much earlier. I have attached below the social media promotion from my band, and evidence of getting other people to post about it.
Promotional Materials
This was our weakest area. we sold a total of thirty one tickets, many of them being friends of our own coming to support us. This tells us that we didn’t promote the event enough or far enough in advance. we put posters around our the conservatoire, and had a stand in the cafe bar for a day, with the promotional offer of free snacks with the purchase of a ticket. These were our only two forms of physical promotion, and were localized to one area, meaning that our reach was extremely low. the posters seemed to have no effect, probably because they were placed among everyone else’s posters and we chose a very dark background for our graphic, meaning it didn’t stick out amongst the rest. In the future i would spread them to record stores, alternative bars, postered on walls and other venues. The stand pulled in a total of three tickets, also yielding very little results. In the future, i would offer a raffle with a prize, as i believe the gamble would entice people more, and would afford us one very good prize instead of snacks. I have attached pictures of the physical promotion as evidence.
Financial Outcomes
Financially we did not succeed. We failed to break even, and most of our cost seemed to be in our sound engineer, with the venue hire being labeled as zero pounds. Because we stated profit share rather than fees, we did not owe the bands any money. Most of our money was earned through Seetickets. Sadly this was not what we expected, but this was due to our poor promotional campaign. I have attached the event settlement, as well as all invoices sent and received.
conclusion.
In conclusion, this event is proof that had we promoted the event better, we had the knowledge and means necessary to create the gig we set out to. I would consider the gig a success due to the experience provided and the satisfaction of both audience and band members, but financially we should’ve done a lot better.
