Basic Truths: “The Road Is Fuckin’ Hard”
Lyle McKeany shares his take on touring based on his experience with major label act Pressure 4-5. His time on the road was relatively short but, as he points out, that's the only way they were going to make any money given the unlikelihood of recouping initial expenses through album sales. But McKeany was young and without major obligations other than the band so he includes some thoughts from long time Nonpoint drummer Robb Rivera on going on tour once you're a family man. It's a sobering look at the realities of the music industry and also the backstory to McKeany's upcoming merch-related mobile app.
"The Road Is Fuckin' Hard" (via Nick Mango) begins with a quick recap of Lyle McKeany's major label exprience with Pressure 4-5 that included cutting an album and appearing on Ozzfest in 2001.
Since they were working the Blockbusters model, that meant the label was spending a lot of money that needed to be recouped. And that meant that not only did they need to sell albums but needed to hit the road to start producing revenue.
Pressure 4-5 didn't recoup and didn't make it to a second album with Dreamworks Records.
McKeany turns to a blog post by Nonpoint member Robb Rivera for a perspective from someone who's been touring for many years:
"At home after another month long tour. This time we get to be home for about 3 weeks with a few shows in between. I appreciate every single minute i can when i am at home. Been watching my daughter dance to mickey mouse and baby einstein videos. As long as she is happy doing it i am happy. Her little face when it smiles makes me a very happy father."
He's got a kid on the way and lotss of touring ahead cause the "bills have to get paid you know."
Neither McKeany nor Rivera are complaining. McKeany's pointing to the reality he's seen as someone who got a chance at the majors. And Rivera's reminding us that he probably misses a lot of what happens as his kids grow up.
Other artists could fill in the picture with more details from needing time to create without worrying about incessant brand building to having all your equipment ripped off to what happens when you need to go clean and sober but have to keep touring even though you've never toured without being altered.
For Lyle McKeany this experience has led him to the world of music startups and plans for a "mobile app that will help bands connect more easily with their fans at live shows."
He hopes:
"It will help them sell more merch and create unforgettable experiences. The ultimate goal is to get that one fan to not just tell five of her friends, but her entire social network."
Obviously McKeany isn't the first to turn to mobile apps in hopes of helping musicians with their merch game but nobody's truly broken out as of yet so it should be interesting to see what he comes up with.
If you're a touring band and want to get in on developments, check the post for contact info.
[Thumbnail of High Place's touring van courtesy Incase.]
More:
- 5 Tips For Keeping Your Music Gear Safe On Tour
- WillCall 2.0 Adds Tipping, Merch & Ticket Bundles To Concert Discovery App
- TheHub.fm Music Merch Management & Sales App Launches At SXSW March 8th
Hypebot Senior Contributor Clyde Smith (Twitter/Facebook) is building a writing hub at Flux Research. To suggest topics about music tech, DIY music biz or music marketing for Hypebot, contact: clyde(at)fluxresearch(dot)com.
