Picking bands for a lineup is easy – anyone can scrawl down the perfect selection of acts on the back of a napkin and dream of what might be. Actually turning those lofty goals into a real-life festival lineup, however, is the hard part.
Acts need to be in the right spot in their release cycle, there needs to be enough cash in the kitty and, of course, you need to get in before an increasing number of competitors snap lock them in – and there’s plenty more to complicate matters.
To get an appreciation for what it’s actually like booking festival lineups, we’ve had a chat with Michael Newton of Roundhouse Entertainment who, in addition to booking countless bills over the years including a huge number for Aussie festival institution A Day On The Green, has now put together a run of March for A Weekend In The Gardens, bringing massive names like Boy & Bear, John Farnham and Icehouse to Melbourne’s Royal Botanical Gardens.
Boy & Bear will be heading to The Gardens with San Cisco and Amy Shark in tow
How To Book A Lineup, With Michael Newton
Hey Michael, you’ve been at this for quite a while now – how many lineups have you booked at this point, and has the process changed?
“About 420 A Day On The Green bills, and countless others in my life as an agent before that. No, it’s pretty much the same – a matter of understanding the audience. Horses for courses, kind of.”
Take us through the process of booking a lineup – where do you start, and what are some of the biggest/most common hurdles?
“Start with knowing who your audience is, what your budget is, and how the ticket price will fit into the equation given all your other costs. As we’re running ‘greenfields’ shows, they’re expensive to run.
“Having good relationships with the artists, managers and agents helps too. For some it’s only about the money. Sometimes it’s a drawn out, protracted process… sometimes it’s one phone call and job done.
“Sometimes you need to consider the priorities of the headliner, and shaping a mutually-agreed lineup that sells tickets, but still reflects the direction the artist wants to take. Other considerations are where the act is in an album cycle – have they overplayed, or can you identify an upswing in value that is coming for that artist?
“Often it’s gut feel; I have never met anyone who is better at that than Michael Gudinski – but he can still get it wrong. It’s not a science, but you need to use all the information and experience you have every time you put a lineup together.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKl-W_q8N4k
When you book The Voice himself for your lineup, what more can you ask for?
What are some common mistakes you think people make when booking lineups?
“Paying too much money, and not knowing your audience. Also sometimes putting too many acts on the bill – more is not necessarily better. Save your money on the bottom of the bill, and spend it where it counts.
“There are some times when you need to say ‘no’ when you don’t want to – mostly because of the money. We put together 35 – 40 shows a year, and aiming to get anywhere between 6,000 and 20,000 attendees depending on the winery, and saying no is sometimes the best outcome for us.”
What have been some of the biggest mistakes, or the ones that got away?
“Paying too much for some acts that I can’t mention…”
And some of the acts you’d love to book?
“Tom Petty, Tame Impala and Violent Soho with Sticky Fingers (I’m sure they will get back together).”
What have been some of your biggest triumphs booking acts?
“Putting together interesting packages. For example, this summer with A Weekend In The Gardens, three days was really exciting. One of my favorites that turned out to be a really fun show was Hoodoo Gurus, Violent Femmes, Sunnyboys, Died Pretty & Ratcat – all killer no filler!
A Weekend In The Gardens all kicks off in March with three hand-picked lineups. Friday March 10 sees John Farnham joined by fellow Aussie legends Daryl Braithwaite and Ross Wilson; Saturday March 11 brings Boy & Bear supported by San Cisco and Amy Shark; and Sunday March 12 caps things off in style with Icehouse, James Reyne and Claire Bowditch – tickets are on sale now.
