Scotland’s live music industry was decimated by the pandemic. Now it’s rising like a phoenix from the ashes, thanks to a fantastic initiative, discovers Gayle Ritchie.
When Foreignfox frontman Jonny Watt stopped working, thanks to the pandemic, his first thought was that a “short break” could be a great opportunity.
He could sit back, relax, press pause on rehearsing and performing with band mates, and enjoy this rare time off to work on some new material.
“How wrong I was!” laments the Dunfermline-based singer and guitarist.
“Very soon, not performing or recording became the itch I couldn’t scratch.”
With all live shows cancelled, Jonny, along with thousands of others working in Scotland’s music industry, lost his job and found himself with next to no income.
Jonny, a promoter for Fife music venue PJ Molloys, tried to combat creeping feelings of bleakness by seeking forms of escapism, initially playing video games and listening to podcasts.
However, as time went on and there was no sign of respite, things took a downward spiral, and he turned to what he describes as “fairly heavy alcohol use” for a longer period than he’s willing to admit.
Desperate situation
Jonny, and many others, were in a desperate situation.
“The music industry had pretty much ceased to exist,” he reflects.
“There were sound engineers, techs and tour managers that weren’t able to get any support as chunks of their last few years of work had taken place around the world.”
When Covid hit in 2020, the events industry was one of the first to get shut down – and one of the last to re-open.
Not only were gigs cancelled, but musicians couldn’t get together to rehearse, record or make videos.
The music industry had pretty much ceased to exist.”
JONNY WATT
Getting back to what had once been normality, whether working on an album, or financing a tour, was never going to be easy, especially without the much-needed boost of well-attended shows at local, independent music venues.
Lifeline
Luckily, in April, a lifeline was thrown by the Scottish Government – a £750,000 initiative which aimed to aid the recovery of the kneecapped music industry and get it firmly back on its feet.
The concept – Scotland on Tour (SoT) – aims to increase opportunities to showcase live music, bringing exciting acts to city, town, village and rural communities.
The year-long bill includes both emerging and established artists, with rock, pop, jazz, classical, folk, trad and acoustic genres featured.
“We were buzzing to be chosen to be part of SoT,” says Jonny. “It gave us a life-line and something to work towards when all our money and inspiration had been spent surviving various lockdowns.”
When live shows reopened, Foreignfox’s first performances were sell-outs.
“It was pure elation to be back on stage in a sold-out venue,” says Jonny. “What a feeling!”
Varied bunch of artists
Meanwhile, he says SoT has been great for PJ Molloys, “bringing a varied bunch of artists from traditional through to wonderfully weird and experimental”.
“Pictish Trail at PJs was a particularly enjoyable watch – Johnny Lynch is a musical and comic genius,” he adds.
“People are no longer afraid to go out to live events but there are a few economic factors that now seem to be a main concern – whether people can afford a night out if they want to be able to afford their energy bills.”
Take industry seriously
Jonny’s hope is that the industry can be taken seriously in terms of future economic planning, with local authorities pumping more money into events that drive footfall.
“Pre-pandemic, the creative industries were the fastest growing industry in Scotland,” he says.
“There are artists, PA hire companies, sound engineers, lighting engineers, techs, tour managers, agents, stage builders, roadies, drivers, venues and food establishments that are all part of the economy of a single show.
“When you start to understand how many skilled people it takes to put on a gig and the benefit to local economies across the country, it becomes clear that this is an industry worth investing in.”
OOZE CHARACTER AND SOUL
In 2019 Mel Ibbotson launched Neuk Nights to bring live music to the East Neuk’s underused village halls.
Living in the area – which boasts an incredible history of musicians (think James Yorkston, Frightened Rabbit, King Creosote and the Fence Collective) – she was sad to discover it was often left off band’s touring circuits.
“Having the opportunity to fill these halls with Scottish musicians who would normally bypass the area – thanks to funding from SoT – has been incredible,” says Mel.
“It’s allowed me as a promoter to fearlessly bring high quality live music to the East Neuk.
“Post-pandemic, people were cautious about events, especially larger ones, so being able to offer smaller, more intimate gigs has been very well received.
“The majority of the halls have a capacity of around 100 to 150 and while we’ve still to have a full house, we’ve absolutely had the halls rocking!”
Gigs so far have included Callum Beattie at Anstruther Town Hall, Brownbear at St Monans Town Hall and Adam Holmes at Earlsferry Town Hall.
Next month’s gigs include The Mad Ferret Band at Colinsburgh Town Hall, and Yogi Haughton at Anstruther Bowling Club.
“Music is such an important part of our lives and it gives such great pleasure for us in smaller communities to have this level of musician play,” adds Mel.
“There are lots of beautiful underused village halls across the East Neuk – they’ve got so much character and ooze soul.
“They used to be the very focus of our communities, where people would meet and socialise, so the chance to fill them with live music and dancing again is brilliant!”
MUSICAL CONNECTION
When the pandemic hit, income that singer-songwriter Elaine Lennon expected to see through a tour of her debut album was lost.
“It was a very dark time,” says the Cumbernauld-based musician and TEDx speaker.
“It was tough financially and emotionally and I had to take a break from developing new musical projects.”
In a bid to maintain a musical connection with fans, Elaine launched an online version of her Homebird Sessions show.
Following its success, funding from SoT enabled her to bring the live version of the show to rural communities.
“SoT’s help has been invaluable as, at this time, it would’t have been possible for me to tour without their financial support,” she says.
“Ticket revenue alone wouldn’t have covered my own touring expenses or allowed me to pay guests, showcase artists and team.”
Elaine’s first post-pandemic event – at Cumbernauld Theatre – was an emotional one.
“There were people clearly still apprehensive, wearing masks, not being able to sing along to songs they loved or hug people they hadn’t seen in so long,” she recalls.
“There were tears from some – some from the excitement of being back out, others because they had lost live show buddies to Covid-19, and we remembered them with fondness.
“Highlights included performing live with the legendary Horse and US artist Jesse Terry, and having school children perform with me for the first time since before lockdown.”
CREATIVE CRAIL
Getting on board with SoT was a fantastic opportunity for Crail Community Partnership, having acquired the village’s community hall in February 2021.
“One of our main goals was to raise Crail Community Hall’s profile as an attractive venue for events, and recognised by performers and audiences,” says events manager Dennis Gowans.
“It’s a former church with a high-lofted ceiling and therefore high levels of air circulation.
“In isolated communities like Crail, musical events bring the opportunity for social interaction and continued community dialogue, which are important for our welfare.”
Dennis says SoT has been a great opportunity for Crail to experience some “fantastic and diverse” talent that wouldn’t normally find its way to the East Neuk.
In terms of best gigs since the launch of SoT, Dennis says iconic saxophonist Tommy Smith’s, earlier in November, had to be “near the top”.
“The audience was from all over Fife, and the hall was lit to ensure people knew they were in a church (not a theatre) creating the artist’s preferred ambience,” he says.
“In Tommy’s words, the hall was perfect for saxophone playing as there is no echo, so each note could be heard clearly.”
GREAT PICK-ME-UP
Lisa Whytock, executive producer of SoT, is well aware of the links between music and mental health.
“When it’s gloomy, music is a great pick-me-up! People should get along to more gigs!” she enthuses.
As director of Ayrshire-based music agency Active Events, Lisa became aware that mainstream venues were fast filling up with rescheduled event, post-pandemic, and that artists who didn’t have tours planned would find themselves short of venues to perform in.
She applied for funding from Creative Scotland to research and develop the creation of “new” venues, encouraging use of village halls, or underused city venues.
When it’s gloomy, music is a great pick-me-up! People should get along to more gigs!”
LISA WHYTOCK
Lisa found the then Cabinet Secretary for Culture Fiona Hyslop supportive of the idea, and work began on making it a reality with the Scottish Government investing.
“Applications were opened to artists, venues and promoters to apply for grant funding to cover costs such as vehicle hire and fuel to attend concerts,” she explains.
“It’s important to remember that once the project launched, artists had not worked for almost two years and all reserves they may have had were depleted. We hoped to kick-start a recovery while supporting local economies.”
Lisa says many “traditional” venues are, as predicted, full, with more concerts than ever taking place in cities. But the cost of living crisis is posing a threat to recovery.
“Emerging and mid-range artists are suffering most – the more established artists are for the most part OK,” she says.
“When you think about everyone involved in a concert – vehicle hire companies, drivers, security personnel, first aiders, designers, printers, social media pluggers, press agents, promoters, technical crew, sound companies, lighting companies, managers, agents, tour managers and the artists themselves, the numbers add up.
“There are also taxi drivers, buses, bars, restaurants and hotels who benefit from audience spend.
“The UK music industry contributed £4 billion to the economy in 2021, which was an increase of 26% from 2020, but still down 31% on the pre-Covid all-time high of £5.8 billion in 2019.
“So I would encourage everyone to take a chance on a concert, even if it’s just one this year. Go and see a band you haven’t ever seen – it may be the best concert you’ve been to.”
UNTESTED WATERS
Scotland on Tour project manager David Clark says while there have been challenges – Covid restrictions initially and now the cost of living crisis – that overall numbers at SoT events have been good.
“So far, a little over halfway through, we’ve had more than 13,000 people attend,” he says.
“In some cases we’re bringing renowned artists to towns they’ve either never played or not for a long time, and the shows have sold out quickly. In others we’re bringing new genres to rural locations.
“It’s untested waters and more about laying foundations for artists to build upon on future tours. We’re already seeing the results of this with promoters re-booking artists to return outwith SoT.”
With a wide variety of venues used so far – from village halls and theatres to refurbished churches and underused provincial concert spaces, David says gig-goers have enjoyed everything from rock to reggae.
“Early on we had Callum Beattie playing at venues smaller than you’ll likely see him in again (including in Kirkcaldy and Anstruther).
“Also, Scottish Album of the Year award winner and Mercury Prize nominee, jazz pianist Fergus McCreadie, took his trio to Braemar and Dunoon.
“Then there’s been James Grant, Honeyblood, Duncan Chisholm, Constant Follower and Mànran. Many artists onboard are award-winning and critically acclaimed.”
Highlights of SoT to date, for David, include Callum Beattie accidentally sticking his fist through the roof of Styx in Kirkcaldy during the song Lovers!
He laughs: “He literally raised the roof, as one fan put it!”
- Scotland on Tour runs until April 2023 and supports the creation of hundreds of performances at town and village halls and community venues. The project, which was created and managed by Active Events, was made possible by £750,000 of Scottish Government backing. scotlandontour.com.
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