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Band Van/roadie/engineer


bocean02

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Hello,

 

I run a local delivery business called The Van Group and am going to expand utilising my sound tech' skills however I was hoping I could get some real critique from the people who would potentially use this service. I have been doing roadie work with a few bands in Aberdeen for the past three years so am not new to that area of work but I have not been employed at the same time to provide sound engineering. I haven't found anyone else who provides a van equipped to transport a 5 piece band and their gear, load/unload/set up (or at least assist) and offer a sound engineer in the same package. I would also like to find out how many bands/artists might benefit from hiring the sound rig as well on top of this, Mixing desk, amps, loud speakers etc. The service would be local and national so think tour van if you will.

 

So peeps, what could benefit you or people you know? What could I be missing out? What price would you expect to pay for such a service?

 

Thank you for any friendly feedback offered

 

Cheers, Colin

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If I were you, I'd have a look into what hire companies charge for vans by the day/week etc. Use that as a base rate and add on whatever you think you're worth as a driver. Either charge per mile, per hour, whatever.

 

THEN, take a look at the standard hire companies in Aberdeen (Toms. MV, Atmosphere) and similar in Glasgow etc, again get a baseline from there. If you do a bit of homework it should be easy enough to work out a base rate for hire based on the competition, since nobody would bother with your service if hiring a splitter from a dealer and a PA etc from somewhere else would be cheaper. You then gotta work out how much you're willing to get out of bed for as a roadie/engineer.

 

If you can make it cost effective, it's a fantastic idea. Lump sum of £X up front, or £Y per day and you get all that shit sorted out. If the van had bunks in it, then you'd be a band's only real expense on tour other than food and drink!

 

xx

 

 

EDIT: It's worth considering, though, that many venues will have a backline and engineer supplied, so bands could be put off using your service because you won't be needed every night, but they'd still have to pay you. I know if I were booking a UK tour, I'd be trying to stick to venues with house backline and engineers to keep our costs down.

Edited by Stroopy121
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There is definitely a market for van + driver in Aberdeen however I'm unsure of how often you would be asked to be used as a sound engineer. If a band is taking a sound engineer on tour, it will be the engineer they use for every gig rather than just the driver of the van they've hired.

 

I tend to find that unless an engineer is really, really good, then it is more beneficial to use the in-house engineer. They know the equipment and the venue and that is generally quicker and more efficient.

 

As Stroopy says above, it is also highly unusual to have to provide a PA at venues, certainly that bands that frequent this site, will be playing.

 

That said, if you can allign your prices with somewhere like Splitter Scotland and include you as a driver then you will get business from Aberdeen - one of the worst parts about touring and hiring a van is that one of us has to drive. If the stress of driving a massive van was taken out of the equation, it would be excellent.

 

Good luck!

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Reasonably priced van hire is something that is lacking in Aberdeen, it's actually nigh on impossible for under-25s, therefore a driver too would be greatly beneficial for most.  We had the problem of being under-25 when we toured earlier this year, but two of us are 25 this year, so we would rather just have the van for the next tour we do.  If you did an option whereby you would just let us use your van, on a day rate, it's definitely a service my band would use.  I don't know that many bands would be looking for a sound engineer as well, unless - as Adam says - they are really good/know the band inside and out.  There's probably money in just being a guy that owns a van that can rent it our to folk though, with the option of a driver on top for a larger day rate.  There are people out there who will drive a band around their tour for food and beer, however, just 'cause they love to tour.  That's probably more common in the "d.i.y" scene that we operate in. 

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Just a thought - if a band wanted to do an "all ages" tour, then they'd probably end up playing a lot of village halls and that kind of thing. Or, for more punk/DIY shit, there could be a few gigs in back gardens and house parties et al. Those would definitely need a van, gear and a sound man, but wouldn't be particularly well paying!

 

xx

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There is definitely a market for van + driver in Aberdeen however I'm unsure of how often you would be asked to be used as a sound engineer. If a band is taking a sound engineer on tour, it will be the engineer they use for every gig rather than just the driver of the van they've hired.

 

I tend to find that unless an engineer is really, really good, then it is more beneficial to use the in-house engineer. They know the equipment and the venue and that is generally quicker and more efficient.

 

As Stroopy says above, it is also highly unusual to have to provide a PA at venues, certainly that bands that frequent this site, will be playing.

 

That said, if you can allign your prices with somewhere like Splitter Scotland and include you as a driver then you will get business from Aberdeen - one of the worst parts about touring and hiring a van is that one of us has to drive. If the stress of driving a massive van was taken out of the equation, it would be excellent.

 

Good luck!

Thanks a lot Adam, I am aware of the local venue set up so assumed that there wouldn't be a need for an engineer or gear there but hopefully I could continue the roadie business that way. I expect that if this service was to work it would be beneficial to those who perform all over, not neccesarily in purpose built venues but schools, community halls and pubs etc. Maybe more suitable in the Shire.

 

I will look further into the cost of Splitter Scotland but as far as I am aware so far, it's over 100 miles just to get the van from them.

 

Thanks very much for your feedback

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You have to remember, at the level 99.9% bands are at in Aberdeen and the surrounding area, that you would need to be pretty cheap in order to get enough buisness to keep yourself going. I would be interested in seeing prices and what have you.

I don't expect to make it overnight but am lucky enough to already have an established business which will keep my head above water while I work on this project. Obviously I would love to be able to do this for really cheap as I support the band and performance scene however, what I have learnt from running a business is, don't undercut yourself or it just won't work. Business is business unfortunately.

 

What service that I have suggested might you be interested in? And how much would you be prepared to pay?

 

I will be getting some cost estimates which I can let you know of soon.

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Reasonably priced van hire is something that is lacking in Aberdeen, it's actually nigh on impossible for under-25s, therefore a driver too would be greatly beneficial for most.  We had the problem of being under-25 when we toured earlier this year, but two of us are 25 this year, so we would rather just have the van for the next tour we do.  If you did an option whereby you would just let us use your van, on a day rate, it's definitely a service my band would use.  I don't know that many bands would be looking for a sound engineer as well, unless - as Adam says - they are really good/know the band inside and out.  There's probably money in just being a guy that owns a van that can rent it our to folk though, with the option of a driver on top for a larger day rate.  There are people out there who will drive a band around their tour for food and beer, however, just 'cause they love to tour.  That's probably more common in the "d.i.y" scene that we operate in. 

Hey Moose, may I ask what you would consider 'reasonably priced van hire'?

 

The problem with renting a van out to people is the shocking insurance premiums, they are steep enough for what I do now!

 

The d.i.y scene doesn't pay the bills unfortunately but definately sounds like more fun :)

 

Cheers for the feedback

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Just a thought - if a band wanted to do an "all ages" tour, then they'd probably end up playing a lot of village halls and that kind of thing. Or, for more punk/DIY shit, there could be a few gigs in back gardens and house parties et al. Those would definitely need a van, gear and a sound man, but wouldn't be particularly well paying!

 

xx

I agree, where do you think the best place to advertise for this would be? Maybe the village halls themselves??

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I don't expect to make it overnight but am lucky enough to already have an established business which will keep my head above water while I work on this project. Obviously I would love to be able to do this for really cheap as I support the band and performance scene however, what I have learnt from running a business is, don't undercut yourself or it just won't work. Business is business unfortunately.

 

What service that I have suggested might you be interested in? And how much would you be prepared to pay?

 

I will be getting some cost estimates which I can let you know of soon.

 

Oh yeah, dont undersell yourself, you are offereing a very very handy service!

Personally speaking, my band is going to start getting out of the city more, hopefully, in the next 6 months or so, but playing gigs, then driving is never a safe option, ideally id be looking at options for a van, driver and someone who can help lump equipment about and someone we can all get a long with, if we're sharing a van for a few day so or a week or longer, we would have to get along to a certain extent.

 

At the moment we are lining up a show up in Inverness, again it might be an idea to have someone drive us there and back afterwards, what would you be looking at for something along those lines?

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Oh yeah, dont undersell yourself, you are offereing a very very handy service!

Personally speaking, my band is going to start getting out of the city more, hopefully, in the next 6 months or so, but playing gigs, then driving is never a safe option, ideally id be looking at options for a van, driver and someone who can help lump equipment about and someone we can all get a long with, if we're sharing a van for a few day so or a week or longer, we would have to get along to a certain extent.

 

At the moment we are lining up a show up in Inverness, again it might be an idea to have someone drive us there and back afterwards, what would you be looking at for something along those lines?

Let me get back to you on that one, I haven't done any roadie work out of Aberdeen yet so this is where I need to compare prices to try and make it work for everyone. I take it you're not looking for an engineer? If you give me an email at thevangroup@live.co.uk and we can discuss prices. I don't want to start throwing rough estimates here until I know for certain. Cheers mate.

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Let me get back to you on that one, I haven't done any roadie work out of Aberdeen yet so this is where I need to compare prices to try and make it work for everyone. I take it you're not looking for an engineer? If you give me an email at thevangroup@live.co.uk and we can discuss prices. I don't want to start throwing rough estimates here until I know for certain. Cheers mate.

 

Its not so much that i wouldnt be interested in a sound engineer, its more that as stated above, the guys who do the sound in their own venue's tend to know their systems very well, and know how to make them sound good, if you were to offer that as well, id kinda want someone who was willing to work with us more as a full time engineer and not just for a week or two on the road, that way id be happy that even tho you may not know the venue, you know how to work with the band.

 

Ill email you tho and discuss more that way.

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Its not so much that i wouldnt be interested in a sound engineer, its more that as stated above, the guys who do the sound in their own venue's tend to know their systems very well, and know how to make them sound good, if you were to offer that as well, id kinda want someone who was willing to work with us more as a full time engineer and not just for a week or two on the road, that way id be happy that even tho you may not know the venue, you know how to work with the band.

 

Ill email you tho and discuss more that way.

Hi Milner, did you get my email?

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I was speaking to a Collegue who suggested that I offer front of house; drums, amps, stacks, stands etc rather than back line. The idea of course being that it could help touring bands (especially from over seas )and local bands who cant transport big equipment or don't own the big gear. To be fair, if they hired me they would have a van to transport the big stuff :p They would be of a high standard and could be offered as a mobile service for as and when needed.

 

What do you guys think of that idea?

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