booking agent

Technically they just do a lot of gig-seeking work and make promotional work with that with a good lay-out. In return they usually ask about 20 percent of your booking fee.

The problem is that most of them want 'exclusiviteit'. Not only they don't want to 'share' you, but usually they are not very happy if you accept any gigs without consulting them (i.e., without them getting any money)

tanx for the comment!

last weekend we had a chat the guy he seems fear in his deal. the fee was 15% we have a test-period before signing a contract they have connections in most of the belgian clubs (ab, vooruit, petrol, ...), radiostations and in countries around belgium + spain and italy.

they also wanted the 'exclusiviteit' you talked about. But I find it rather hard to find the right gigs for an electro-band. Unknown bands end always in a stupid 'rock'rally with 150 other 'rock'bands. If (yes if) you win the contest you can play at a little festival at 2 in the afternoon with six people watching you from behind a hot-dog-tent.

they have connections in most of the belgian clubs (ab, vooruit, petrol, ...), radiostations and in countries around belgium + spain and italy.

Everyone has so-called connections, but unless you are going to work with someone from Lowlands or Clearchannel or similar, I don't think you can go on that.

I have had meetings by now with people from those clubs, that doesn't mean I can just plug any new project I have and put it in the spotlight in a club as AB.

Don't forget that booking agencies are often agencies ran by a minimum of people who try to make it their way of gaining their bread. If you want to gain your bread in music, it is well, just like 'Selling bread'. You have to promote your artists, and for newer artists you have to be able to plug your organisation.

Booking agencies in Belgium seldom have a large impact in clubs, for the simple reason that if any would get really succesful, I would imagine they would work under Clearchannel.

Also remember that the 15 percent of costs in a contract can be read in a lot of directions. Pay attention you don't give away 15 percent on a lot of things. A booking agency I talked to a while ago had a very, very weird contract and after informing myself juridically, ended up asking 15 percent of all RECORD sales as well (and record sales are a label's work, booking agencies should do live gigs, no more), and even went so far to have a very good hidden paragraph that forced the band to mention the agency in radio interviews.

You might also want to take a look at http://www.comingbands.be

It is some kind of free help for beginning acts, and they are free.

Alternatively, check silenced http://www.silenced.be

well, I don't want to sign anything before it's been checked out. In the test-period it will clear what they can do for us. After that I will have an oppionion about the things I want from them and what should be in the contract and what not. Besides that we won't sign before a few profi's did read it. I don't want to get chained by a booker.

What's your advise - Leave it all behind and do it yourself?

That entirely depends on the booking agency. Some really do a lot of work and support, but for a beginning band, you have to ask: Can it really be of help?

The chance you can get a gig in a major venue through a booking agency when you didn't have too many concerts and no release is slim.

You will also be bundled in a package with other artists. Sometimes it could get you an extra gig, but remember that it might also lead, without you knowing, to a haggling market: If you want 250 euro for a gig, your booking agency will ask 600 (15 percent of which goes to them), and if the location tries for a lower price, the booking agency can try the 'ok, just this once, because it is a great opportunity' route.

Try it out, see what the response and everything is, I would say. Leave it at least 3 months. 6 would be even better.

Originally posted by : joez

Unknown bands end always in a stupid 'rock'rally with 150 other 'rock'bands. If (yes if) you win the contest you can play at a little festival at 2 in the afternoon with six people watching you from behind a hot-dog-tent.

Hey, that's Mechelen's Maanrock Rally, allright! LOL

Hey, that's Mechelen's Maanrock Rally, allright! LOL[/QUOTE]

euhm ... that's belgium!

Bart, do you any 'good' agencies besides JeM'enFish ofcourse? The contracts I've seen (ex. Mr Mandonx) gave a lot of restrictions to a band, things you have to do or that you weren't able to do anymore, but didn't talk about what the agency had to do to be a good agency. Can we for instance say we want at least 4 gigs a month? Or that we put something in the contract that says we can quite it when we think they don't do their job very well? But it's so difficult to define those 'rules'. Any idea?

Originally posted by : joez

Hey, that's Mechelen's Maanrock Rally, allright! LOL

euhm ... that's belgium!

Bart, do you any 'good' agencies besides JeM'enFish ofcourse? The contracts I've seen (ex. Mr Mandonx) gave a lot of restrictions to a band, things you have to do or that you weren't able to do anymore, but didn't talk about what the agency had to do to be a good agency. Can we for instance say we want at least 4 gigs a month? Or that we put something in the contract that says we can quite it when we think they don't do their job very well? But it's so difficult to define those 'rules'. Any idea?[/QUOTE]

I dont know the music industry that good, but I'm pretty sure that those kind of contracts are standard. So unless your name is Bono, I would be surprised that you'll get anything to say. Sure, there'll be some negotiations, but if they are somewhat professional, they'll have wel-defined limits on what's negotiable and what's not. So a friendly word of advice: dont push it or they'll drop you.

Anyway keep us informed!

I dont know the music industry that good, but I'm pretty sure that those kind of contracts are standard. So unless your name is Bono, I would be surprised that you'll get anything to say. Sure, there'll be some negotiations, but if they are somewhat professional, they'll have wel-defined limits on what's negotiable and what's not. So a friendly word of advice: dont push it or they'll drop you.

Anyway keep us informed![/QUOTE]

I'm known for that pushing ... We put a lot of ourselfs in the music we make and push it very far in various ways so we're not easily satisfied when it comes to a guy/women that has to promote us. And when we're not satisfied, we don't do it.

Till now it was pleasant to work with him, but I wondered about what has to be in the contract if the test-period comes to it's end.

The meeting we had was last weekend, we're providing him with our 'stuff'. Now, wel'll see what happens. So we'll give him a little more time ... ;)

I am not a booking agency :)

And no, there are no rules, only unwritten ones. One of the ones I have the most problems with is not playing under a certain amount. While I think this is perfectly normal for a bigger project (booking agencies will ask them not to do any 'favor gigs' or expo's or so on for nothing, because word goes around, and the price drops), booking agencies make most bands cost (going on the price of rock bands) 400 to 500 euro.

What you always get in return is someone who takes care of your technical read-outs, and puts together riders. But other than that it depends. I think most have the same problem as me, it's hard to give full attention to a project if you have a lot of them. But I think they mostly help to get you in contact with people. Although you have to consider how many booking agencies exist and how much they all try to push their projects.