Every band I have talked to in Austin this past week has had no other excuse for the recent low attendance at their shows; school is out. Meaning, the college kids are gone. But I'm wondering, is it really the college kids that make up the majority of music goers in Austin?
Somehow I don't buy it. I think it has to do a lot with the fact that many Austin bands are touring the nation during the summer. Therefore, they spend less time on self promoting their local shows, and more time on making merch, sending out press kits, and promoting their out of town shows.
The fact that the students are gone is just a cheap excuse for low attendance at a local show (this could be a valid excuse for an out of town show where a band has no local following). Summer might be a harder time to get your friends to come out and pay for a show, but that just means you have to get more creative and put more hype behind all of your summer live music events.
Everyone loves hearing live music on a hot Austin summer night with a cold beer in hand. We just need to get people off their couches and out downtown.
