Tour costs are rising – through the concert hall roof.
High gas prices, road crew salaries, hotels, transportation, and even highway tolls, seriously impact the bottom line. Many acts have reported that their touring profits have been marginal.
Simply put, rising expenses means additional revenue has to come from somewhere.
The tickets are gonna be higher,” singer Dez Fafara (Devil Driver/Coal Chamber) recently stated. He speculates that a fan may go to their favorite band’s concert even if there’s a price increase. “But what they’re not gonna do is go to two, three shows a week anymore, he’s going to one or two a month now. It’s rough.”
Avenged Sevenfold singer M. Shadows has said that the busing for the band’s upcoming tour will cost two million dollars more than it did prior to the pandemic.
According to Megadeth‘s Dave Mustaine it costs between $42,000 – $52,000 a day when Megadeth is on the road but not playing a show. On show days, it’s more.
“(That’s)” salaries, hotel rooms, insurance — everything,” explained Mustaine. “The buses, the bus drivers, the trucks, the truck drivers. Yeah, a lot of stuff.”
