This section is probably the most important element in being successful. That is, playing live shows. It's incredibly hard to find gigs on your own, especially with no knowledge of bars, etc. outside of your hometown, and in the case of big cities, that may mean the mile or so in any direction of your apartment. Well, thankfully the web is becoming more and more useful, and I'm not the only one with the vision of making things easier on musicians. Because of that, there are many sites with venue information in different areas of the country. I'll list these sites by state, and then alphabetical order by URL. Here goes, and good luck gettings some gigs.
If this site is helpful to you, please support Underground Music Monthly by buying my (Mission Man) music at CDBaby.com.
If you don't like my list, go to http://www.indie-music.com. Theirs is better.
Also, try www.openmikes.org - it has been very valuable for me in finding open mics.
If you're looking for UK gigs, try www.themusichype.com
If those sites get on your nerves, try contacting local musicians and seeing what places they'd recommend playing. You can also try contacting college activity boards to setup something for the following semester.
You can also check out www.gigamerica.com for gigswaps
Starting June 14, 2004, I'm putting together my own listing of venues, many
of which I have contacted directly, and some of which I have performed at.
Click here to see that list organized by state
and then city, alphabetically.
www.jacksonville.com - not the most straightforward, but information can be found here
www.orlandoweekly.com - Orlando's independent arts newspaper. Not extremely useful, but can generate leads.
www.tampabaymusicscene.com - well organized info on Tampa's music scene, also has random out of town venues
www.ChicagoGigs.com - I mailed out four demos to Chicago the same day I learned about this site
www.IndyBands.com - bar/club information for Indianapolis
www.indianapolismusic.net - much more complete information than Indy Bands, has info on type of music, etc.
www.athensmusician.net - information on bars in Athens, Ohio (Ohio University)
www.CincyMusic.com - information on pretty much every venue in Cincinnati
www.ColumbusMusic.com - information on bars in Columbus
If you know of any sites like these that I have missed, email me and let me know. It will be helpful in my pursuit of the elusive gig, as well as other musicians. Hopefully my listing of these sites will help you as well.
www.CDBaby.com - I have no idea how many times I link to this site, but I find it very useful. Find other musicians there to network with. You can even find them by state. Maybe you can setup a gigswap, or just trade information on places to play.
www.digitalcity.com - you can browse information on nightlife, type of bars, etc.
www.indie-bible.com - no information on places to perform, but helpful for promoting
www.mapquest.com - that's right, the site that has made everyone's map skills worse. It has a yellow pages function, which allows you to search by business category. If a club has a website, it may be listed under the results. If it doesn't have a website, you'll still get a phone number. Some of it is outdated, but most of it is very current.
www.worldofgigs.com - a lot of bad links, but nothing's perfect. I've sorted through them as much as I can and tried to provide helpful websites for you.
www.musictoday.com - some information on venues
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Or, if you need a break from making your own career more successful, check out my music for free at www.MissionMan.net.