Australia is a truly massive place, yet most of us seem to huddle around our capital cities, reluctant to leave the comfort of the coast.
This is especially true for bands, many of whom will play show after show in their local pub or fly across the country before they’d ever think to pile into a van and head out to tour a few regional venues. But if your band isn’t making the most of the countless venues dotted across our wide open plains, you’re missing out.
To encourage more bands to get out there and explore, we’ve spoken to a couple of people in the industry who have jumped headfirst into regional touring, and want to encourage more Aussie acts to do the same.
James Clarke is the Director of touring and events company Aeroplane Agency, and one of the organisers of Up The Guts, the massive regional tour happening right now that’s cutting its way from Hobart to Darwin, right through central Australia. James was inspired to take a trip ‘up the guts’ of Australia when approached by Jack Parsons, fellow Up The Guts co-founder and the frontman of The Pretty Littles.
“He came to me and said, ‘I’d love to put the Littles through central Oz, and even if it’s just for a bit of food and a bed each night, I just want to do some regional touring through central Australia.’”
Shaun Adams books the longstanding Karova Lounge in Ballarat, a beloved mainstay of the regional touring scene, and also tours acts regionally. He originally found himself drawn to the venue by the idea of building up a smaller music community.
“This was something I starting doing just over 10 years ago. I didn’t really have an idea what the end goal was, apart from wanting to see my fave national touring acts playing in Ballarat, and playing some small part in growing a local music scene.”
With plenty of experience between them, they’ve given us their thoughts on why you and your band should add some regional venues to your next tour.
It’s An Adventure
Firstly, there’s the thrill of actually living the classic band dream of hitting the road for a cross-country tour, something that Australia doesn’t embrace as much as the idea of a trip across the US or Europe.
“Our trip was inspired by the late ’70s, early ’80s rock and roll era. I wouldn’t say it wasn’t as hard back then, but there was a lot more passion going around, wanting to hit the road. Just jumping in a van and doing it – not really the way that the music landscape is today. It was part of an adventure.”
“A regional tour like Up The Guts is a pretty exciting thing to be a part of, if you’re a muso. You get to tour 15 dates in a short amount of time, the same way bands get to go to Europe or the States and do a huge run of shows.”
“It’s been crazy. We had snow in Tassie, now we’ve got the warm sunshine and everyone’s just really wanting some hot weather – and we’re getting there, it’s good.”
Even better, it can be a bonding experience for everyone involved.
“The tour is a pretty tough run, we’re doing effectively 15 shows in 18 days. We’re playing shows in places like Castlemaine and Bendigo on a Tuesday or Wednesday night, and we played Whyalla on a Sunday which was a great vibe. It’s all hands on deck here, there’s no doubt about that, but we have the most fantastic group of people. Forget about the music; by the time the 17 of us had the Tassie leg done, everyone’s best friends and chipping in, cooking and helping out.”
“It’s truly just a really great opportunity for these guys to travel through Australia and see their own backyard, and share music to a wider regional audience that might not have heard it before.”
“There have just been too many great moments over the years,” Shaun tells us, “but I was thinking today about when The Living End played here under the guise of ‘The Long Necks’. One of the biggest bands Australia has ever produced, and they are playing a bunch of shows in these small pubs in regional Victoria – they were amazing. ”
There’s A Demand
Rural venues may be relatively isolated, but that doesn’t mean the communities there aren’t hanging for bands to visit.
“The ‘East Coast’ model is so tried and tested,” James tells us, “but that’s not to say there isn’t a hunger and demand for live music throughout the Territory and stuff like that as well.”
“There are a lot of regional communities with venues that are no more than a 150 – 200 cap, but there’s an audience of 20,000 people there.”
“We’re just already feeling really confident about pushing this harder for next year, and building a bit of a brand around Up the Guts – but also around those communities that are through that little Australian beltway that are just starved of live music. We’ll play tonight at The Desert Cave, and I think this will be the first gig in Coober Pedy in about four months.”
“We stopped by a tiny little place in Port McDonnell, which is just south of Mount Gambier on the coast, and it’s just an absolutely incredible little town. We went to the bar for a pub feed, and it was absolutely pumping, and they said, “Oh, we’ve love you to play here”.
Find New Fans, And Loyal Fans
“Bands could be shifting a lot of merch to people who have literally never heard their music before,” James says. “These people may not have heard of Scott ^ Charlene’s Wedding or ScotDrakula before, but have had such a great experience that now they’re a fan, and they can proudly say that the band came to their town.”
It’s a rewarding experience in other ways, too, as there are always a few die-hard fans dotted about where you’d least expect them.
“We had one guy drive three hours from Port Lincoln to Whyalla to see Scott & Charlene’s Wedding, and Craig picked him out in the crowd because he was wearing a t-shirt that they only did a run of for their Japan tour. He said, ‘Oh, that dude was in Japan!’ and the guy told him ‘Yeah, I drove three hours from Port Lincoln to come see you, and I’m driving back tonight.’ Stuff like that is really heartwarming, and I think that has a profound effect on artists.”
“I think if you can just get out and share your music with different people, it’s an inspiration to come to some of these towns, and that can feed in to your work as well.”
It Doesn’t Just Help The Bands
It’s not all about the band, either, as the local community gets just as much out of it.
“The more regional touring we can do, the more we can get people out socialising,” James says. “It stems directly into the drug and alcohol abuse that are issues in regional areas. It stems into depression, due to the sheer reality that a lot of these areas are quite isolated. So the more you can bring those social interactions to regional towns, the better it is for everyone.”
“I also think that it’s really important to change the culture back a little. Big festivals are fantastic, but you pay your $300 and you go to a festival for three days and everyone gets shitfaced – and that’s that.”
“We are very lucky in Melbourne where we get to go out on any day of the week and see great quality live music. I think it’s really important to inspire people to be leaders in their own towns and create that culture outside of big cities.”
With Up The Guts especially, it isn’t just about playing gigs.
“I’m currently sitting at the Coober Pedy School with 17 artists, about to go teach some young kids about their skills in music which is pretty amazing. We just arrived at Coober Pedy this morning and we’ve done ten shows, this is our 6th workshop in 12 days, so obviously we’ve gone all the way from the deep south in Hobart and we’re making our way up the spine now, so we’re doing pretty well.”
So, Why Did It Stop?
“Regional touring is so important,” Shaun tells us, “but regional venues in Australia as a whole have seen a bit of a drop off of acts touring regionally, and maybe some acts, managers and booking agents are forgetting the importance of a regional fanbase.”
“The industry and touring cycles change so quickly, but I think acts forget they can develop genuine longterm fanbases outside of metro areas – especially when their careers are building and they have radio play on triple j, or they have just played a festival like Meredith or Groovin’ the Moo.”
It could all just be a matter of perception, he claims.
“Maybe we are in a time where regional touring is ‘not cool’, or it isn’t the right perception for acts, and they would rather sell out multiple shows in the capital cities. But I do feel a regional audience is a lot more honest, and maybe care less about trends or the latest single being played on the radio.”
The Challenges
There are, of course, some difficult aspects to taking your band to the outback, but James insists they’re worth tackling.
“The reception has been amazing. That said, it’s also been challenging in some towns. I really think it’s a perception thing, there’s a certain culture just bred into regional towns about not necessarily going out to see gigs.”
It may not always be a profitable exercise, either – at least not immediately.
“Obviously, just in terms of the numbers and size of the audience, this certainly isn’t going to be a financially profitable tour – in year one, at least – because we’re putting on great shows. We’ve got amazing backline production on us; it’s not just a pop-up gig in a pub, it’s a full show and when people come to the gig (that was $12) they come up to us afterwards just ecstatic to have that level of quality live music out in their town – they just don’t get it normally.”
“Overall it’s been incredible, and we’ve met such great local people, who are so enthusiastic about being part of a project like this. If we get nothing else out of this, and can at least carve a path for more things like this to happen, then I’ll be happy.”
Shaun agrees that the benefits are well worth any negatives.
“Acts do have to make some sacrifices to tour regionally, such as not being able to make as much money as they would in the capitals, but I think the rewards certainly outweigh any of that.”
Advice For Getting Out There?
“One of the greatest resources to touring regional Australia is triple j unearthed,” says Shaun, who believes it isn’t that hard to get noticed. “Look up the places you want to tour, type in the postcode and engage with the local acts. See whats going on, and before you know it you will be playing a town hall, venue, or even someone’s backyard.”
James agrees that any band who might be up for it should just get stuck right in.
“For bands who want to tour regionally: just DIY. I read an amazing article by Steve Albini about the way he goes about his business, and it’s just all about DIY – have a go. Regardless of whether it’s going to be a profitable tour or not, you never know the opportunities that might stem from there, whether it be new connections, or people hearing and buying your music.”
The reward, he says, comes from just having a crack.
“I’d say just team up with some people who might have some connections in establishing a new route, and have a go and get your music out there as best as you can. And do it yourself, do it on a shoestring budget, because it’s definitely possible – and it’s a lot more fun that way.”
