So I'm sure I'm not the only one with some questions. And while there is a lot of general information floating around, that's all it is. General.
It really hit me last night that this is something that I HAVE to do. Literally, in Massachusetts, on a Saturday night (last night) there was NOTHING going on. Yeah, there was stuff in CT and RI. But.. here? Nada. I want to fill that gap.
Here's the situation:
Myself and a couple buddies want to start a night in one of the local cities (Looking at both Fitchburg and Lowell at the moment). Central MA has more than a few colleges around, and is close enough to NH to potentially pull some folks down from there if it hits off well enough. Central MA also has a void where there is nothing going on.
Just a weekly or bi-weekly thing (leaning toward weekly, but we'll see). Nothing fancy, just playing "Bass Music" basically. Consider the genre's to include Dubstep, Breaks, Electro, and some DnB. Probably going to have a few resident DJ's whom open, and then see what other local talent we can pull in. More about just consistency in quality of mixing/music rather than sticking to "omg dubstep night" or "omg electro night" which seems to be happening all over the place. (of note, I'll def. be contacting the DJTT community about playing :) )
Sounds pretty simple. But there's literally nothing going on in this general area, and while we aren't looking for a crazy packed house rager party, just getting a few people together and playing music that we love and sharing it with people is the goal. But actually getting it all planned out is the monster.
One of the bar's in Boston (Phoenix Landing), which I go to a fair amount, has the kind of vibe I'd like to emulate. I know it's taken them over 10 years of playing music to get where they are, but it's just a great atmosphere. Small bar, great sound system, and people there for the music over the whole "dry-hump grindfest" which seems to be taking over in a lot of places.
Our time-frame is pretty open. We've stated that we'd like to start something in the beginning of next year. No stone date, and we're open to where it takes us. There's still a lot of prep work to be put in.
Questions/Concerns:
Now, setting this up as an actual business with tax write-off's and such is something I'm actively looking into. If anyone has any good information here, I would love to hear it. Would basically want to be starting an event/promotion company, and would like to be able to see about at least writing stuff off. I know it's possible, I just haven't made the connection to how I would do it yet.
My boy and I are checking out venue's at the moment. I realize that is a HUGE part of it. But we're working on that, but don't have something set in stone. Sound and gear, and what the bar/club might have or might not have, is one of our big concerns. (I want to get some of the plans of HOW we would get the gear/sound/djs together before I settle on a venue, though checking out different places never hurts)
Renting gear. I realize that myself, nor any of my good friends, own CDJ's. Also, getting sufficient sound gear to start the first few nights out is something we will probably have to rent. Our plan is to eventually buy the stuff outright, but it's not going to happen right away. We currently have a hodge-podge of equipment, and I realize for a legit night we'd need something a bit more serious.
Is anyone willing to share average costs to rent sound equipment, or even just renting mixers/turntables/cdj's? This is one of the big "unknown" factors in all of this right now. Would LOVE to hear some actual experience of people renting gear.
Basically, once we figure out what the costs would be for the sound equipment (having EXCELLENT sound is a priority), then it's going to really start the ball rolling from there. Depending on the venue's system, that can change, but we've talked about it and definitely plan on bringing sound that will really set the tone. There's nothing like going to an event and the sound sucks.
Anything else anyone thinks should be a legit concern? Something that we should keep in mind? Open to any and all suggestions. Troll the hell out of this, I don't care. But just trying to figure this out and would love all the help I can get with planning. While I've been to a ton of shows, actually running one (albeit small) is a totally different animal.
