JAZZMANB
Striker
nairrrWrong Bukowski mate, you want @buckowski.
For what it’s worth, while I’m here...
Poorly attended shows are not a problem consigned to the north east, it’s countrywide. In London as much as Hull, Cardiff, Glasgow, there are shows that sell desperately poorly for otherwise buzzy artists. There needs to be a major saturation point - a combination of press, radio (still the biggest gatekeeper for ticket sales), streaming, TV, festival slots, whatever - before a band break and begin to sell out tours.
Sunderland, however, has always been a harder sell. Agents don’t often send bands like Fontaines DC, Inhaler, Idles etc. to Sunderland while they’re on an ascent, so the city scarcely gets a chance to cultivate a gig going audience. Sunderland gets the tours that didnt sell well anywhere else previously and often exacerbated by the artist being on a downward trajectory with press, radio etc. TOY being a pretty decent example.
Agents know managers and bands like Newcastle as a major city stop off in the north east but Newcastle has arguably too many options for gigs each night and that outstrips the demand. Funny old business.