The Importance of Going to Shows

Last night, Luis Dubuc, the lead singer of the power-pop band The Secret Handshake, announced that he was canceling the rest of his Luis and the Handshakes tour due to lackluster attendance. The tour, featuring A Cursive Memory, The Narrative and SPEAK, was intended to go on three weeks with 21 shows. Now, the tour is stopping with only 12 shows played. The final show will be tonight at Emo's in Austin, TX.
A written statement by Dubuc concerning the tour's status.

This may seem to be a disappointment to fans of not only the Secret Handshake, but to A Cursive Memory and The Narrative as well, but it is a lesson to fans for any group. It goes to show the importance of supporting your favorite bands when they are on the road. Concerts are truly a band's major source of income.

A diagram of earned income though online downloading.

In a world of downloading music online, it is hard for a band to earn any kind of reasonable salary. A few months ago, Jon Devoto, of the now defunct Oakland band, The Matches, posed a question to his Facebook friends, asking them if they knew how much he got on his royalties check that he received to his band's song "Wake the Sun." No one got it right. The answer was 21 cents.

It doesn't matter how successful a band is, tours are made for us, the fans. Bands need our support, not just by buying, or downloading the music, but to going to their shows. No one band can make it solely on album sales alone.

So go out to a show, spend a few dollars and support your favorite bands!