“Music festivals give new bands the chance to gain experience of performing on major stages with major acts,” says Jason Carter, head of BBC Introducing, which supports under-the-radar talent.
Spots at big festivals are one of the main things up-and-coming bands want, says Carter – and it’s easy to see why.
The benefits of appearing at a large festival are many: exposure to a new audience, the bragging rights of opening for household names, and the chance to network with industry bods are just a few of them.
For student bands still playing around their university town or at the local student union, a gig at a Glastonbury, T in the Park or Download might seem an unachievable goal. Yet many young up-and-coming bands grace festival stages every year. So how should you go about joining them?
Send out CDs
For indie band Montagues and Capulets, who formed at the Access to Music college in Norwich, the road to their first major festival appearance began with a bulk-buying shopping spree at the local post office. “We bought a ton of Jiffy bags, filled them with press releases and our CDs, and did a whole load of research,” says Nathan Baverstock, 20, a singer and guitar player in the band.
“We scoured the internet for addresses and contacts: I’d say about 80% of people we sent our music to didn’t reply at all, and a further 10% of people said we weren’t what they were after.”
Rejection is an inevitable part of the process when sending out demos to festivals, but Baverstock says that isn’t a reason to be put off. “When it comes to big festivals, it can seem nearly impossible to get booked, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try. Even if you don’t get on the bill, it still gets your material listened to, and there’s always a chance that it’s going to fall on the right ears.”
The time spent burning CDs and trawling Google eventually paid off for Montagues and Capulets when they landed a spot at Latitude. Baverstock says the opportunity opened doors and led to important exposure for the band. “After the festival, our social media got super busy and we had lots of national radio play for our single Aileen, which was surreal!”
Build a contacts list
But how do you go about finding the right places to send your tunes? You could start by working your way through a list of festivals, but if you want to save yourself some leg-work and make sure your demo goes to the right place, you could shell out a few pounds for access to a contacts directory such as The Unsigned Guide. It lists thousands of contacts that get updated regularly, so you don’t waste your time and resources on out-of-date details.
Another good starting point is BBC Introducing. Designed for those bands that aren’t yet big enough for airplay on Radio 1 or 6Music, its uploader gives any band or artist in the UK the chance to get exposure through the BBC network.
“Initially, a band’s music is heard by their local BBC radio shows, but it may then be referred up to larger radio networks and for spots at our Introducing stages at major festivals,” says Carter.
If successful, you’ll be in good company. Artists that came up through BBC Introducing include the likes of Ed Sheehan, Jake Bugg, Florence and the Machine and Slaves.
Carter points out that bands who play the BBC Introducing stages at festivals get their sets recorded by top sound engineers, and often receive exposure on BBC radio and through iPlayer after the event.
Get physical
If your endless stream of emails, letters and phone calls aren’t getting results, it might be time to start asking around in person. Gryphen Ford, 21, the drummer of pop band Polar Collective, who formed at Suffolk One sixth-form college in Ipswich, says you can’t underestimate the importance of networking when first starting out, whether you’re on band business or at the family barbeque.
“Have your game face on at all times: you never know who might be able to help you out with a gig or contact. We’ve had ex-teachers, old friends and even grandparents put us forward for some incredible opportunities in the past, so you never really know who could help.”
It’s this approach that led the band to gain a contact that might not be at the top of every band’s schmooze list, but has paid dividends for them. “I knew one of the leaders of Girlguiding,” says Ford. “We applied to play its Wellies and Wristbands festival and have now appeared there twice and even written a theme song for the festival.”
And once you get yourself that first coveted spot? “Remain professional, hard-working, polite and talk to everyone,” says avid networker Ford.
For Baverstock, each gig is a chance to hone the focus of the band. “We knew when we got that opportunity at Latitude we wouldn’t let it slip,” he says. And he insists that the challenges of being a student needn’t hold you back: “I write around my studying, swap shifts at work, and take time off to follow the dream.”
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