FEATURE:
Live to the World
IN THIS PHOTO: Picture Parlour at Brighton’s The Great Escape in 2023/PHOTO CREDIT: The Great Escape
Making Gigs and Artists More Accessible
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AN article…
IN THIS PHOTO: The Windmill, Brixton/PHOTO CREDIT: Alex Amorós
from NME caught my eye recently. I have written about music videos and how, now, you do not really get some of the more inventive and ambitious ones you had years ago. That may be budget-related, or maybe there is not so much stock in a great visual representation of a single. People prefer to stream the song or see the artist do it live – so the video is not really that important. I love visuals with a track, as it brings it alive. Something that is happening more is the live video. Rather than these being rather poor-quality phoned sets, we are seeing more and more of these high-quality and crisp videos of artists playing live. Rather than a group or artists having to tour and hoping that they catch the eye of a label or festival booker, they can get these sets or performances captured and sent to the world:
“Scan over any tastemaking festival lineup this summer and you’ll see a host of emerging names without any recorded material available. Instead, these buzzy upstarts have been beamed out by way of immersive live videos shot by a growing community of videographers. Just a few names due to hit festival stages in the coming months include Picture Parlour, Fat Dog and Mary In The Junkyard, all of whom introduced themselves to the world via videos of their visceral live shows – much like The Last Dinner Party, before they emerged with the huge ‘Nothing Matters’ in April.
Joe Love from London-based newcomers Fat Dog – who have been booked to play Reading & Leeds this summer – says the movement is a testament to the venues that are the backbone of the south London scene. “Places like The Windmill in Brixton allow artists to try out new shit, sometimes it goes down well and other times it doesn’t, but people are forgiving,” he says. “These venues put bands on that people don’t know about and take risks on them – it’s about having faith and giving artists the chance to do their thing.”
This sentiment is echoed by Katherine Parlour of fast-rising four-piece Picture Parlour, who recently stormed The Great Escape festival in Brighton. “When you’re playing these smaller venues, there’s just magic and excitement there,” she tells NME. “You’re just thrilled to be at The Windmill or The Social – venues we dreamt of playing when we started, so having those shows captured is just so special.” Take a look at the professionally recorded clip of the band’s current set opener ‘Norwegian Wood’, which shot at The Social – you can practically smell the beer and dry ice as her voice crackles with gut-punching emotion.
As an emerging band without the resource to instantly deliver their vision on record, Parlour explains that these videos have helped to kickstart the band’s career. “There’s a level of accessibility behind getting out there and playing shows,” she says. “We couldn’t just go and record a single up to our standards and put it out into the world, but you can definitely just do a live show and have someone enjoy it, capture it and whack it on the internet.”
Guitarist Ella Risi explains that the content is much more than just fan-shot footage, citing filming veteran Lou Smith, who made his name shooting the likes of Fat White Family and Shame at The Windmill over the years. “People watch Lou’s videos because they know they’re going to discover this new talent,” she says. “The videographers have their own communities around them.”
Things took a particularly unpredictable turn for Picture Parlour when Courtney Love shared a snippet of one of Smith’s live recordings to her Instagram, which saw the band’s followers count skyrocket. “It goes to show this kind of exposure is so important for smaller bands,” Risi adds”.
One great thing about the videos is that they have that professional touch. During the pandemic, many relied on streamed and virtual gigs to get their fix. Not only can these videos give festival and venue bookers a sense of what an artist can do. It is also a chance for fans to get a sense of what they sound like. When festivals are looking for acts, they can see a real and very vivid representation of what their live credentials are. You can get several videos of the same artist at different venues. Rather than having to go to a gig, stand at the back and get a semblance of what it is actually like on the stage, here you get something much more tangible and vibrant. I guess, in many ways, it is a video C.V. Not that many artists will get signed on the strength of a live video. It does give that sense of what they are about. The fact that these videos look so good shows that there is a level of professionalism there. One reason why I wanted to look at this article and phenomenon is that there is something for fans too. Many won’t be able to travel to gigs or afford it. They might feel a bit anxious and unable to handle stepping into a venue and that noise. I am in a situation where I like live music, though I have to limit the gigs I go to. That is financially-based, though I also can feel a bit overwhelmed and blasted by the sound and volume of people there. It is a shame. Whilst bands cannot replicate their live shows through videos, it is a nice and accessible way for fans who cannot get to gigs to see them. Also, it is a taster for potential ticket-buying. If you are not sure what they are like live and have been on the fence, these videos can influence your decision.
I am still fascinated by music videos. Rather than focus on that subject again – and why they are less important or high-concept or some of the previous best -, I thought I would share some important words from NME. I use quite a few of these filmed sets in my features. When highlighting an artist, it is a nice way of showing what they are like live. Because of that, people might decide to buy a ticket and see them play. Perhaps the biggest and more effective reason for these videos existing is to get festivals and venues talking and booking them. At a time when women are under-represented at festivals and having to fight for inclusion, these videos can show festival organisers why they need to book them. It at least provides an insight and small window into the live prowess of an artist or band. Again, you rely on luck and hope that a festival organise will be at your gig by chance. That rarely happens. Posting something onto social media is that instantly way of sharing that live video to the world. The professional sound and visual quality means that there is this very clear representation. I have followed artists and written about them based on their videos. It also gives me a sensation of what they are like playing live. You also promote a venue with these videos. Let people know what that space is like. Artists can also watch back their videos and see how they look performing. It can be a great template when taking the music to a festival or another venue – almost like a training video in a sense. Let’s hope that this phenomenon grows through the years. Whilst you can never get that true sense of what the gig is like, it is a brilliant way of an artist showing the world…
WHAT they are all about.