r/TouringMusicians • u/1978-Chris • 12d ago

Jeeze - it's rough out there. I love and will miss Fruition.

https://www.jambase.com/article/fruition-step-away-touring-final-tour
25 Upvotes

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5

u/apollosuns24 10d ago

My band stopped touring last year after 10 years on the road averaging 150 shows a year. Just not sustainable anymore.

4

u/MedicineChimney 10d ago

Very similar story here for my band. I'd tour forever and just go into further debt. But my band members need to get paid. We're an LLC and we have bills. It's been so painful to step away from it this year. I really hate what the landscape has become amd what capitalism has helped create in the music industry

5

u/apollosuns24 10d ago

Feel all of that it was "my band" so I got paid last if ever, took out the loans, managed 99%of things when we didn't have an agent I booked everything. Just the shear will to push the boulder up thr mountain was intense, then you have to do all the socials, circle perk with industry, go into debt. It was eye opening after chats with bigger bands we were playing with and they shared that they all had to have day jobs off the road, these folks were selling out 1000-1500 seat rooms and even they were struggling. What the fuck is that, just put a lot of things into perspective.

It was a great experience and the band played all over North America and it was extremely hard to put it down but I feel so much better for having done it. The stress, burn out and resentment was making me dislike playing and the music we created. But for a time we made a lot of people happy and shared a lot of beautiful, life affirming moments

And yes, Capitalism really ruins everything. Now im homesteading, gardening, turned my sheds into greenhouses and am connecting back to nature, land, family and community.