Tour

[ANEWMAN35]

It is with great joy and excitement that we bring you news of Belle & Sebastian's biggest ever US and Canada tour. 22 shows in 18 cities. We are going to be joined on amost all these dates by very special guests The New Pornographers. One exception is Vancouver. I can't remember why. We're also playing Austin, where we will be joined by Mogwai and Cat Power. In fact, it's not really our show as such, it's a Matador SXSW show, and unfortunately that means very few of you are going to get in, as the vast majority of places are taken by SXSW pass holders. Sorry about that. There will be some tickets made available in a couple of weeks apparently, but for the moment there's nothing.

You'll notice that not all the ticket information there is quite complete. Keep checking back and it'll appear soon enough. Also, if I may save you the time and bother it'll take to write in and complain about booking fees. We know! But we can't do anything about it! Almost all the venues have deals with the big ticket agencies, so either we just swallow it or we play places so small that a) we don't fit and b) only 150 people get in. At least this way you get the choice of whether to buy a ticket or not. Clearly it's not the cheapest ticket on the market either, but it costs what it costs and I think the addition of The New Pornographers makes it pretty decent value for money. Rest assured that nobody is laughing all the way to the bank. Except the ticket agencies...

Anyway, the dates in full are below. Check www.belleandsebastian.com for details of where to get tickets.

Feb 25th Toronto - The Docks
Feb 26th Montreal - Metropolis
Feb 27th Boston - Avalon
Feb 28th Boston - Avalon
March 2nd NYC - Nokia Theatre
March 3rd NYC - Nokia Theatre
March 4th Philadelphia - Electric Factory
March 5th Washington - 9.30 Club
March 6th Washington - 9.30 Club
March 8th Nashville - Ryman Auditorium
March 9th Louisville - Brown Theatre
March 10th Chicago - Riviera
March 11th Milwaukee - Riverside Theatre
March 12th Minneapolis - Orpheum Theatre
March 14th Dallas - Granada Theatre
March 15th Austin - Stubbs (Matador SXSW Show)
March 18th LA - Wiltern
March 19th LA - Wiltern
March 21st SF - Concourse @ The SF Design Center
March 23rd Portland - Roseland Ballroom
March 24th Vancouver - Commodore
March 25th Seattle - Paramount

[george]

matador you guys gotta have some kind of contest so that i can get into that sxsw showcase.

[earl grey]

this is gonna be great - very solid double bill. though whichever of the NYC nights i pick, i'm sure B+S will end up playing "seeing other people" on the other one.

[Lukas]

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[My Friend Goo]

bitchin ...

[My Friend Goo]

DAMN MATADOR!!!
Tickets are $30. Pretty steep.

[pabost]

DAMN MATADOR!!!
Tickets are $30. Pretty steep.

Pretty sure Matador has nothing to do w/ that, but after the "Antics" repackaging thing, it's hard to say . . .

I kid.

[Salman]

I think the prices has to do more with the amount of people in the band(s).
They've all gots to get paid.

[george]

DAMN MATADOR!!!
Tickets are $30. Pretty steep.

this was discussed the last time the toured. the main thing to know is that nobody is making money on these tours.

[soot]

DAMN MATADOR!!!
Tickets are $30. Pretty steep.

Well... was it not fully addressed in the tour announcement statement that opened this thread ?
Let's see... The New Pornographers tickets are probably $15 to $20 on their own. ...I think I remember their last NYC show being close to $25.. and Belle & Sebastian usually charge $25- $30 themselves (and have been for awhile now ) You get both of them for nearly the price of one ! They aren't 3 piece bands rolling up in vans & sleeping on floors thats for sure
Hell... If LCD Soundsystem (from Brooklyn) can charge $30 for their recent NYC show... then I think for B & S & TNP's it's pretty fair..

[Spam]

the main thing to know is that nobody is making money on these tours.
I find that hard to believe. Why would anyone own a place to have shows if they couldn't make money. Why would a record label sign, record, and distribute records if they could make no money. Don't kid yourself money is always the motivator. Matador, Merge, Sub Pop, Touch and Go they're all companies, just like their corporate counterparts; they all demand return on their investments. The shareholders must be kept happy! Everyone is getting a cut, some bigger than others. Don't think everyone is here for charity. This is business. These are jobs, salaries, meals paid for. All from the consumers pockets. We feed and clothe famlies, we pay tutions, buy flat screen T.V.s all for people we've never met. No one is starving for $30 that's for damn sure. Me, I'll slip in the back when I slide a spliff to the bouncer out back.

[Patrick]

DAMN MATADOR!!!
Tickets are $30. Pretty steep.

Matador has nothing to do with ticket prices.

Patrick

[Spam]

Matador has nothing to do with ticket prices.

Patrick
You do with the profits.

[soot]

Everyone does take their cut & you'd be surprised how little is left for the band in the end.. I have a friend who is a tour manager & whether people know it or not but crew people for a band ..which could include soundmen to roadies to drivers, t-shirt sellers, etc they all get paid salaries & the venues get all their expenses paid (including their labor as well)& then there is transportation costs & hotels, etc ...after all this stuff is paid then the band gets their cut and if you tour the way B & S does with hired musicians & lots of crew & buses , etc I wouldn't be surprised if they just broke even.... So why do it ? You get to travel around the world all expenses paid & maybe make a little money now and again..after all they are professional musicians so why shouldn't they get paid ? but my point is they don't usually get a salary therefore unless they were making like U2 money I really don't see how anyone is getting rich.. like the original statement says..it costs what it costs (as in everyone is paid fairly for their job all along the way & expenses need to be met)

[JohnnyBaconbitz]

Wow...both DC shows sold out in under 30 minutes...and face is $35 there.

I guess people aren't so concerned about the price...I know I wasn't.

[Lukas]

The shareholders must be kept happy!
Since when is matador a publicly traded company? Wait can this also apply to people who have stakes in the company too?

[Joel]

yeah private companies can have shares, too. they're just not traded publically, obviously.

[Lukas]

Got my tickets in the mail today!