(how anxiety got in the way of our golden rule)
We know that we’re far
from perfect and we do mess up a lot of things, but one of the rules we feel is
kind of sacred is that every show starts on time.
At Left of the Dial, a
huge number of bands play and most ticketholders have spent months planning
which bands they’re going to see. Therefore, the least we can do is try
everything in our power to ensure that every artist sticks to the schedule.
Our stage managers are
pretty amazing, so most of the time things run smoothly. Every now and then, an
overly eager artist jumps on stage too early, and it has happened once or twice
that a set ran a little late due to technical problems.
Since 2018, over 700
bands have played Left of the Dial, and there has been only one band that
started late due to something we did not see coming: stage fright.
The band in question
arrived at the venue right on time and everybody seemed happy and relaxed.
Except for the singer. He was panicking because the venue was empty. He thought
that it was because everybody hated his band.
Our stage manager
explained that at a festival, people roam from venue to venue and always leave
as soon as a band is done playing, but that up until now, the room had always
been packed as soon as the next band started.
This didn’t reassure
him at all. He was convinced that they were actually going to be the first band
of the festival to play to a completely empty room.
The band set up their
gear and the singer wandered off. By the time the band was supposed to go on,
he was nowhere to be seen. The stage manager and the band members searched the
venue for a good ten minutes before they found the singer.
He had locked himself
in a toilet and said he had no intention of ever opening the door again.
Luckily, this
particular stage manager is a father of three and used to dealing with every
level of anxiety. He persuaded the singer to come out just to take a quick peek
at the room. If he didn’t like what he saw, he could go straight back to the
toilet, the stage manager promised.
The singer opened the door and walked to the stage. When he saw the room was packed, he started smiling. Without hesitation, he jumped on stage as if nothing had ever happened.
A good 20 minutes late, though.
Now we didn’t tell this story to shame the band and we’re certainly not going to name them. We also hope you’re not going to try and guess who they were, because that’s not the point.
What we are trying to say is that we’re all doing the best we can, but at the end of the day it’s the artists who have to get up on stage and play their songs for you in the hope that you’ll like them.
That’s scary as hell.
Just be that wonderful crowd you’ve always been and show newcomers how it’s done at Left of the Dial.
The Punctualists of
Left of the Dial
PS: To all future Left
of the Dial artists, we’d like to say: get in early, don’t wander off, and, if
needed, get your stage fright under control, because whatever happens, you’ll
still have to start your set on time!
