don't equivocate

[S. Alexander Reed]

Everyone,

Apologies for having seemed to equivocate.  I just don't think this is an 
argument worth having, personally.  However, since you asked, here is what I 
recall, though the details are sketchy.

I believe that TSN has played three shows for Manny (5/9/03 @ Rex w/ SMP, 11/
5/03 @ Rex w/ Jordan Decay -- Penis Flytrap cancelled, and 8/1/04 @ Shadow 
Lounge with The Brides).  Again, details on all this are hazy, but I believe that we 
had a loose verbal agreement about payment for the SMP show, or at least I had 
perceived it as such.  When we were not paid for it, it was a frustration, though 
probably less for me than for my bandmates, because I didn't feel it was 
worthwhile to make a stink over it.  Instead, I merely made sure that when you 
we agreed to play for you the next time, we had a written agreement.  For that 
second show, I asked for $50, and you conceded $30.  As for the final concert, I 
have zero recollection of the payment scenario, and my email records have a 
multimonth gap in them, so I really can't say much about it.  If we were paid, it 
was certainly $50 or less.

I stress again that I personally have no ill will for Manny, but I do understand 
that for TSN (which despite not being the most famous act on Earth still has a 
big enough fanbase to warrant a half dozen releases) to have played three 
concerts, involving at least 12 hours of driving on Aaron's part (he lives 3 hours 
away, and was present for the 1st and 3rd shows), all for less than $100 is an 
anomaly.  Given the attendance at these shows, it is not an anomaly I imagine us 
repeating in the future.  This is not entirely Manny's fault of course; the scene in 
Pittsburgh is traditionally very lazy about coming out to shows, and as it has 
been said many times before, if you don't come, they'll stop happening.

Jeremy is correct in that all three of these shows began and ended very late, and 
that in every case we showed up to the venue before the promoter did.  Maybe 
that's just because we're anal retentive about punctuality; I always prefer to give 
the benefit of the doubt.

Though I am not upset at present about any of this (as evidenced by my 
continued willingness to play solo shows for Manny's events), and while I on 
principal don't hold grudges, I *do* understand Jeremy's frustration with the 
situation, and I *do* understand how one might perceive it as a shafting.  I take 
partial blame for this, as I (in at least one case) agreed on the band's behalf to 
play for a low fee.  I will say, however, that when I was promoting shows, the 
bands' payments were always more important to me than my own -- even local 
acts for money-losing shows.  I did it that way because A.) it's the ethical and 
professional thing to do, B.) I have toured and know it is harder on bands than 
on promoters, and C.) it makes bands actively want to work with you again.  
When I plan a tour, I would rather skip a city entirely than work with a promoter 
who left a bad taste in my mouth the last time we collaborated for a show.  A 
friendly, punctual, sociable, promise-keeping, and passionately invested 
promoter can make up for any number of other technical or financial 
misfortunes.

I hope that clears things up a bit.  I apologize to everyone for dragging details 
as I have out into public; I normally wouldn't do such a thing, but I wanted to 
demonstrate that my position in this (which I still very much regret is a public 
affair at all) need neither be one lockstep loyalty nor waffling equivocation.

Best wishes,
Alex