Residencies

Los Angeles venues collect their bands through the benefit of holding residencies, an honor for any band to have. For one day a week for about a month, popular music bars and venues such as The Echo, Spaceland, and Cinespace invite a single band to return again and again, reaping the benefits of playing a residency show. “It was incredible,” states AJ Jackson, the frontman of Echo Park’s Saint Motel. “The idea is that there is a snowball effect. If the band is good, people will keep coming back. If the band is really good, they’ll tell their friends.” Saint Motel just finished playing their residency at Spaceland, the Mecca for indie bands located in Silverlake, California. Each night had a different theme, and each set list held new songs, so nothing was repeated. “By the end of a residency, hopefully you will have pushed yourself as a band and increased your fan base.” Jackson continues.

A lot of importance for playing a residency show relies on the turnout, and amount of audience each week. For many bands it is hard to attract a range in crowd, but most of the time turnout seems to be successful: “different crowds tend to come each night, and the hardcore fans come each night!” says Sarah Negahdari of Silverlake’s The Happy Hollows. “Also, depending on the other bands booked, you get different groups of their fans each night.” The Happy Hollows played a successful residency at The Echo two years ago, and are looking forward to their upcoming Spaceland residency in November.

Besides the obvious marketing advantages, not every aspect of playing a residency is beneficial. “The negatives are that usually the residencies are free. So you don’t make money from the door,” says Negahdari, discussing some of the disadvantages. “Other difficulties include setting up a great line-up and DJ for every night, not to mention having to tweak, change, and add to your own set list.” Adds Jackson, reflecting upon the Spaceland shows.

Its no question that the good outweighs the difficulties when playing residency shows, and that most bands would be willing to expose themselves in a new and exciting way. “Despite all of this, I would do it again in a heartbeat” Jackson says. Residencies are celebrations that both the venue and the band can benefit from, a truly positive experience.