Shut Up And Get On With It

The press statement saying Eurosonic-Noorderslag delegate registrations are 40 percent up on this time last year claims it shows that, whatever the state of the economy, the live music industry is proving it can “keep clam and carry on” (sic).

The “clam” may be a typing error or it may mean the industry just shuts up and gets on with it.

Close to 1,000 people have already signed up to be in Groningen, The Netherlands, in January, which suggests an industry vote would make it Europe’s most “unmissable” live music gathering.

Each year it attracts a throng of media, which in 2009 included 140 journalists plus broadcasters from 22 radio stations.

“I think it’s a great event and a fantastic opportunity because you’ll get shows if your band is any good,” says Paul Bolton of London’s Helter Skelter agency, who had White Lies at this year’s ETEP showcase. “It’s a chance to put the act in front of every major festival booker in Europe, as long as you’re there to make sure they’re in the room when your act is playing.”

White Lies broke the ETEP record by securing 15 shows from this year’s programme – one out of four of the 60 ETEP festivals offered the band a slot.

Having established the platform for emerging talent, a sort of supermarket where festivals can almost buy it off the shelf, the arrival of Virtual Festival’s first European Awards is expected to increase the number of continental outdoors in attendance close to the 200 mark.

Buma Cultuur, which runs the annual event, has managed to keep the panels delegate-friendly by scheduling each one to last no more than one hour.

Eurosonic-Noorderslag is Jan. 13-16.