I’ve said it already, marketing/promotion is a key issue to look at. It stepped up for the last two albums and chart placing improved. I’m pretty sure it stepped back this time so it had to make a difference.

Brilliant, thanks. Brings them to life. Lots of great comments too.

Dannorama wrote: ↑

Fri Sep 29, 2023 5:55 pm

Alice, your "fans" describe their unhappiness with practically everything you do. Doesn't that get exhausting?

One slight revision here… “A few of your longer term “fans” .…” I wouldn’t like to be tarred with the same brush.

A couple of things worth mentioning here. Surely a key factor here is age? Audiences, particularly comparing UK v Europe, are old. Yes, gigs we all remember as great crowds were in smaller venues but we were also 10 -20 years younger, or more. I hate seated gigs but keep meeting fans who simply can’...

Failure to chart in US and Canada or why you don’t like the album? Two different things. 1. Marketing and promotion is always no 1. There was a fresh approach for DS but much less in the UK this time. A friend didn’t know the album was out till this week! Same in the US? 2. At least two thirds of fi...

I think you may have gotten the topic wrong... the prize is not how far away but, how near did he play? Travel makes the Concert not just an event but, an adventure. Nothing wrong with that. Who will top whom? I've never left the Free State for a show but, the last time I saw Alice he played less t...

There should be some huge numbers here not least from Si himself. For me it’s 34. Glasgow Apollo 82 Edinburgh Playhouse 86 x2 Edinburgh Playhouse 88 x2 Glasgow SECC 89 Edinburgh Playhouse 91 Glasgow Barrowlands 97 London Astoria 97 Glasgow Barrowlands 2000 London Hammersmith Odeon 00 Glasgow SECC 02...

It's not like there is much future left. At some point the lure of the golf course and the grand kids will beat the lure of the road. I seriously doubt he would scale down the US in favor of Europe. Back catalogue and future sales aren't of that much importance these days. Travelling in the US just...

Glasgow to Lucca, Italy. Blended it into a holiday. Beautiful outdoor gig in ancient city. About 1,400 miles so nowhere close to the Wisconsin trip.

I’ve been looking back on chart performance since ACG times. Yes, I know they aren’t reliable etc but they do measure to some degree and you can certainly get trends from them. Also had a look at the size of venues he plays and there seems to be a big difference between the US & Canada and Europe no...

Absolutely!

Great to see this but I found it a little uncomfortable as it reminded me he wasn’t in a good place then, no matter what he was saying. This period always felt like misguided attempt to align to the punk/new wave generation. Couldn’t do it though, simply because he had been going in the other direct...

How about this one? https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-price- ... s-touring/

Gives some heavy messages for smaller bands both from Europe and the US. Taxes and costs hit you everywhere. If you don’t sell product and can’t tour at a profit there’s not too many options left.

As I said, so many variables so neither of my examples necessarily apply to Alice as I’m sure they have their own budgeting approach. One more example. A US band that’s been going over ten years. They have toured Europe at least four times I know of. In the UK they play 4-5 gigs max and they also do...

Picking up on the too expensive to tour point the act I mentioned saw their tour as key to their future. No profit, no future. Potentially either break up or have a complete rethink about their future. Marillion are an example of a band that had to reinvent how they operated and as a result have one...

It’s difficult to answer this as there are so many variables. One thing that’s certain though is that nearly all acts are working on increased costs of 20% - 30% or more to tour since Covid so, unless they can simply increase the ticket price to compensate, they have needed to change how they manage...

Agree your point about a US centric view Dragontown but there are quite a few countries with small populations e.g. Ireland, Finland, Luxembourg etc.

Lol. A slight mis-understanding there. Not for a minute did I suggest sales are good or that Alice is as popular as ever. Neither did I seek to talk about Alice personally or Shep, or for that matter Bob. I’ll happily recognise all of that and I’ll happily recognise the ACG, including Shep and Bob, ...

:( Okay it's a smash worldwide hit. Out selling Taylor Swift and Slim Whitman combined. And guess what...he's still going to play the same tired hits. Not sure what the point of that was. He’s never had a worldwide number one for weeks smash hit that became a multi million seller. Even the band nev...

I heard this comment once from a teenager. " my grandma and grandpa are going to see some old guy at the casino". The old guy that were referring to was: Alice Cooper. Ahah... Well this is so far from the reality here in Europe, where AC audience is much younger and there are no casinos with showro...