There's something wrong with the music scene here. I know that, despite what the politicians say, we still in a global depression. In the last 5 years I've had a significant pay cut every year in my day job - party because the 'cost of living increase' hasn't even tried to keep pace with inflation, but also due to cuts made to market premium in my trade (IT). However, the statisticians would have us believe that in times of economic depression we actually spend MORE on leisure activities. Then why isn't this borne out in the music scene. Definitely not the local one, and from what I can see not even in the National scene.
I've been lucky enough to visit quite a few other countries in my life so far. Without exception, all of them seem to value music much more than we do in the UK.
A street performer in Stockholm will attract a small crowd of interested, normally smiling faces. The same in the UK not only gets universally ignored, but I see people crossing the street to put as much distance between them as humanly possible.
An open air gig in Australia will see the whole local area turn-out to support it, families with picnics and barbies, the young and the old craning necks to get a better few of (whoever) is on-stage at the time. In the UK you won't even get local businesses to support the endeavour, and if you do it will be the last time they do - because no-one will show up to spectate.
Streets with a dozen bars in San Francisco will have 3 bands a night each and all will have queues of people waiting to get into them. Pubs in the UK can barely pay local bands expenses, and you will be playing to the bar staff and a visually impaired labrador.
I'm exaggerating the point, but not as much as you might think. Live music in the UK seems to be a thing to be endured, not enjoyed.
I used to blame the bizarre licensing laws in the UK. Pubs would close the moment you got thirsty, were only allowed to open a set number of hours per week, and would have bars specific to age and gender. Added to this, any venue would have to apply for a music license and jobsworth Council employees armed with sound meters would make everyone's life a misery. Many of these things have gone now, and more are on the way out, but even so it only explains why live music in Pubs was so irksome. Different rules and regs applied to Working Men's Clubs (yeah, don't get me started on those) in the 70's and 80's - which have become Sports & Social Clubs these days
No, none of this is why the shopper ignores the street performer, or the family don't make it to the free summer open air event, or the couple choose the Harvester restaurant because of the "noise" in their local bar. For some reason the general population of the UK don't want or need live music. I don't know why this is, or how to change it :-/
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