The dreadful state of UK ticket sales

I recently wrote a brief exploration of how drastically Morrissey's ticket sale figures have plummeted in the UK, with special attention given to the startlingly low sales for the upcoming Leeds gig.

With two weeks to go until the show, huge quantities of seats remain unsold in some of the best blocks in the venue while standing floor tickets also remain.

Full article can be seen online here.

 

[ACTON]

IF his ticket sales are bad compared to previous tours it is either because (1) in today's boring PC 'offended nation' anyone with a view is a pariah, (2) the songs lately haven't been great, (3) new fans from the milenniums have the attention span of a dead goldfish, or (4) fans have other concerts they prefer to go to, or a combination of the above.

None of it bothers me. If Moz doesn't sell big arenas then he'll go back to smaller venues like he has done in the past. More intimate concerts with true fans.

 

[Anonymous]

If Moz doesn't sell big arenas then he'll go back to smaller venues like he has done in the past. More intimate concerts with true fans.

He ought to, and most artists would. But he's narcissistic and bloody-minded. I can see him maybe doing a one-off at some smaller heritage venue. But I think it's likely he will just give up on the idea of UK tours. Kudos to him if he doesn't do that, though.

 

[Surface]

I half suspect Surface is FatGayVegan

I haven’t made a single comment on this thread until now you silly f***ing prick, so f*** right off with your conspiracy theories you wanker.

 

[Verso]

IF his ticket sales are bad compared to previous tours it is either because (1) in today's boring PC 'offended nation' anyone with a view is a pariah, (2) the songs lately haven't been great, (3) new fans from the milenniums have the attention span of a dead goldfish, or (4) fans have other concerts they prefer to go to, or a combination of the above.

None of it bothers me. If Moz doesn't sell big arenas then he'll go back to smaller venues like he has done in the past. More intimate concerts with true fans.

So, your defensive rationale for why his ticket sales might be down include Morrissey alienating fans with the stupid shit that comes out of his mouth, his shitty new music, millennials having short attention spans and miscellanous 'fans' going to other, more preferable concerts. That's quite a lot of variables for your big "IF" huh?

 

[marred]

The concern from fatGayVegan is touching.

 

[Anonymous]

I've been saying for 18 months now that the UK fan-base has hemorrhaged by around 60%.
The evidence was the cancelled tour of summer 2018 and, more clearly, the sales for California Son.
Low in High School = 25,000 in Week 1.
California Son = 8,000 despite similar reviews and radio backing for lead single.
His pre-For Britain London fanbase was over 25,000 when it came to live shows.
He's playing to just one venue this time with a 12,000 capacity.
Even with a 60% loss of the fan base, it should be pretty full but it clearly is not about to sell out. Watch out for very cheap tickets nearer the day.

Steve P Morrissey - all you need to do is apologise, say you've made a massive mistake, and that you do not endorse far-right politics. You clearly don't, but urging people to vote for a far-right party (because it is led by a vegan feminist) has led thousands to jump to an obvious conclusion.

And when IANADOAC sells similarly to LIHS in its first week in the UK with sod all airplay for the singles what will you say then Mr. M Maher?

 

[Deleted member 28251]

Our modest tickets were £45 in total with the grab ons£52 in total, that’s seating for two, much to the dismay of a 29 year old wanting to stand at the front for 5 hours. Unaware of my regular piss breaks and getting to the bar with ease issues, she finally managed to book the hotel today, the sodding Hilton... just hope the bars open till 4am

The Hilton? f***ing hell. You’ll be drinking with Moz.

 

[Pippistrella]

Considering Wembley is almost sold out I would hardly call ticket sales awful.

 

[carlislebaz]

The Hilton? f***ing hell. You’ll be drinking with Moz.

If the ticket sales are as predicted on here, then it looks as though I’ll be buying moz the ale, both of us shall be crying into our beer...

 

[Tom]

Let’s be real...

The music sucks.
The band sucks.
England sucks.
He tours too much.
The set list sucks.
His quality control sucks.

For a troll comment, this is kind of spot on.

I don't think the low ticket sales have anything to do with his weird comments on sexual predators, or his politic beliefs. It's the simple fact that he tours constantly and seeing Morrissey live is about as common as going to the cinema.

Added to that, most people who have seen him in recent years know what to expect. A dull, lackluster set (with occasional flashes of greatness), clocking in at under 90 minutes, filled with songs we're all sick to death of (Paris, Munich Air, IYDLM,DLAM, HSIN, an onslought of covers, and anything off his past two albums).

If Morrissey went out of his way to make this tour special, by rewarding the fans who have stuck by him with a fresh, crowd-pleasing set, this would sell out in seconds. He would get great press and word of mouth and probably win back a lot of jaded fans. But we all know him too well, and realize that won't happen. Fool us once, shame on him, fool us 137+ times??

Facts are sometimes hard to accept, but the band (outside of Boz of course) sucks. His goon squad are incapable of writing good, solid Morrissey songs, and seem to have abandoned guitar rock all together. Morrissey desperately needs Alain Whyte's songwriting, his output has suffered greatly since his departure. Ideally, bring Alain back, sack Jesse, and Gustavo, and bring in Stephen Street to produce a new album (while also contributing a couple of songs). That's as likely as a Smiths reunion sadly.

And his quality control in all areas does indeed suck. His no-talent, oxygen-thief of a nephew does his best to tarnish his uncle's image with his laughable album/single covers, and rank amateur blog posts that come off as a mid-90s internet presence at best.

Morrissey is an incredibly selfish performer, who values his new material to an absurd degree. It is to his detriment sadly, as he is doing himself no favors. If this is the way Morrissey goes out... with a whimper, it'll be sad indeed. He still has it in him to do a course correction, but all indicators point to that not happening.

I say this with no joy, or satisfaction, only disappointment in an artist I love.

 

[Anonymous]

Morrissey's ego couldn't handle having to only play smaller type venues for the foreseeable. I could see him maybe trying it out as a way to prove that he can sell out venues but the numbers might not be there - it could also prove too much of a financial risk. He is, after all, an insurance liability due to cancellations.

I hope more people see him for what he is stay away or return their tickets. It's going to be too much like a Bernard Manning gig and Christ can you imagine the right-wing element. Nah. I wouldn't want to be around that.

These gigs prove he doesn't have the pulling power and that his loyal, core fan base is no more.

 

[Anonymous]

For a troll comment, this is kind of spot on.

I don't think the low ticket sales have anything to do with his weird comments on sexual predators, or his politic beliefs. It's the simple fact that he tours constantly and seeing Morrissey live is about as common as going to the cinema.

Added to that, most people who have seen him in recent years know what to expect. A dull, lackluster set (with occasional flashes of greatness), clocking in at under 90 minutes, filled with songs we're all sick to death of (Paris, Munich Air, IYDLM,DLAM, HSIN, an onslought of covers, and anything off his past two albums).

If Morrissey went out of his way to make this tour special, by rewarding the fans who have stuck by him with a fresh, crowd-pleasing set, this would sell out in seconds. He would get great press and word of mouth and probably win back a lot of jaded fans. But we all know him too well, and realize that won't happen. Fool us once, shame on him, fool us 137+ times??

Facts are sometimes hard to accept, but the band (outside of Boz of course) sucks. His goon squad are incapable of writing good, solid Morrissey songs, and seem to have abandoned guitar rock all together. Morrissey desperately needs Alain Whyte's songwriting, his output has suffered greatly since his departure. Ideally, bring Alain back, sack Jesse, and Gustavo, and bring in Stephen Street to produce a new album (while also contributing a couple of songs). That's as likely as a Smiths reunion sadly.

And his quality control in all areas does indeed sucks. His no-talent, oxygen-thief of a nephew does his best to tarnish his uncle's image with his laughable album/single covers, and rank amateur blog posts that reak of a mid-90s internet presence.

Morrissey is an incredibly selfish performer, who values his new material to an absurd degree. It is to his detriment sadly, as he is doing himself no favors. If this is the way Morrissey goes out... with a whimper, it'll be sad indeed. He still has it in him to do a course correction, but all indicators point to that not happen.

I say this with no joy, or satisfaction, only disappointment in an artist I love.

 

[Deleted member 1074]

For a troll comment, this is kind of spot on.

I don't think the low ticket sales have anything to do with his weird comments on sexual predators, or his politic beliefs. It's the simple fact that he tours constantly and seeing Morrissey live is about as common as going to the cinema.

Added to that, most people who have seen him in recent years know what to expect. A dull, lackluster set (with occasional flashes of greatness), clocking in at under 90 minutes, filled with songs we're all sick to death of (Paris, Munich Air, IYDLM,DLAM, HSIN, an onslought of covers, and anything off his past two albums).

If Morrissey went out of his way to make this tour special, by rewarding the fans who have stuck by him with a fresh, crowd-pleasing set, this would sell out in seconds. He would get great press and word of mouth and probably win back a lot of jaded fans. But we all know him too well, and realize that won't happen. Fool us once, shame on him, fool us 137+ times??

Facts are sometimes hard to accept, but the band (outside of Boz of course) sucks. His goon squad are incapable of writing good, solid Morrissey songs, and seem to have abandoned guitar rock all together. Morrissey desperately needs Alain Whyte's songwriting, his output has suffered greatly since his departure. Ideally, bring Alain back, sack Jesse, and Gustavo, and bring in Stephen Street to produce a new album (while also contributing a couple of songs). That's as likely as a Smiths reunion sadly.

And his quality control in all areas does indeed sucks. His no-talent, oxygen-thief of a nephew does his best to tarnish his uncle's image with his laughable album/single covers, and rank amateur blog posts that reak of a mid-90s internet presence.

Morrissey is an incredibly selfish performer, who values his new material to an absurd degree. It is to his detriment sadly, as he is doing himself no favors. If this is the way Morrissey goes out... with a whimper, it'll be sad indeed. He still has it in him to do a course correction, but all indicators point to that not happen.

I say this with no joy, or satisfaction, only disappointment in an artist I love.

It isn’t a troll comment.

 

[Deleted member 28251]

If the ticket sales are as predicted on here, then it looks as though I’ll be buying moz the ale, both of us shall be crying into our beer...

I think it will be astonishing CazBaz. A Morrissey concert, in a good venue, minus hundreds of Guardian reading drips. Perfect.

 

[Pippistrella]

For a troll comment, this is kind of spot on.

I don't think the low ticket sales have anything to do with his weird comments on sexual predators, or his politic beliefs. It's the simple fact that he tours constantly and seeing Morrissey live is about as common as going to the cinema.

Added to that, most people who have seen him in recent years know what to expect. A dull, lackluster set (with occasional flashes of greatness), clocking in at under 90 minutes, filled with songs we're all sick to death of (Paris, Munich Air, IYDLM,DLAM, HSIN, an onslought of covers, and anything off his past two albums).

If Morrissey went out of his way to make this tour special, by rewarding the fans who have stuck by him with a fresh, crowd-pleasing set, this would sell out in seconds. He would get great press and word of mouth and probably win back a lot of jaded fans. But we all know him too well, and realize that won't happen. Fool us once, shame on him, fool us 137+ times??

Facts are sometimes hard to accept, but the band (outside of Boz of course) sucks. His goon squad are incapable of writing good, solid Morrissey songs, and seem to have abandoned guitar rock all together. Morrissey desperately needs Alain Whyte's songwriting, his output has suffered greatly since his departure. Ideally, bring Alain back, sack Jesse, and Gustavo, and bring in Stephen Street to produce a new album (while also contributing a couple of songs). That's as likely as a Smiths reunion sadly.

And his quality control in all areas does indeed sucks. His no-talent, oxygen-thief of a nephew does his best to tarnish his uncle's image with his laughable album/single covers, and rank amateur blog posts that reak of a mid-90s internet presence.

Morrissey is an incredibly selfish performer, who values his new material to an absurd degree. It is to his detriment sadly, as he is doing himself no favors. If this is the way Morrissey goes out... with a whimper, it'll be sad indeed. He still has it in him to do a course correction, but all indicators point to that not happen.

I say this with no joy, or satisfaction, only disappointment in an artist I love.

Bringing in Alain Whyte and Stephen Street would of course be heaven, but for all Moz's nostalgia and romantic nature he just doesn't like repeating the past. He keeps moving on, working with different people, pushing a different sound. He will never make music that sounds like The Smiths again, and working with Street and Whyte was the closest he's ever come to re-creating that old sound. Progressing along a path - for good or bad - seems important to Morrissey.

 

[Anonymous]

Non-proven? The facts are there. If you choose to ignore them, it doesn't make the facts any less factual.

"In reference to SURVIVORS of Harvey Weinstein"
"Morrissey said of a person who WAS abused by Kevin Spacey as a child"
You cannot state either as fact.

 

[Anonymous]

I just can't believe the number troll accounts that have been created &/or reactivated to support this opening post.

FGV is clearly someone on here.

There are tell tale writing styles & familiar points made, reminiscent of previous points raised by a certain individual in other posts. That person then vigorously flood-posts on here to promote & support his own work. Literary nepotism.

I find it shameful & embarrassing that I seemingly enjoy the same forum space as this person.

Surely not beyond the realms of possibility to 'out' the author is it?

Question is, do we actually need to do so?

 

[Pippistrella]

Glad he's playing of course, but does anyone else think Wembley Arena is a horrible big echoey shed of a building that should have been pulled down like its neighbour the Stadium (which was rebuilt), years ago?

Not the best of venues. Two nights at Brixton would have been better imo.

 

[Verso]

Bringing in Alain Whyte and Stephen Street would of course be heaven, but for all Moz's nostalgia and romantic nature he just doesn't like repeating the past. He keeps moving on, working with different people, pushing a different sound. He will never make music that sounds like The Smiths again, and working with Street and Whyte was the closest he's ever come to re-creating that old sound. Progressing along a path - for good or bad - seems important to Morrissey.

That's a romantic interpretation of things, but it's not about 'pushing a different sound' or 'progressing along a path.' It's about burning bridges and having access to a smaller pool of lesser talent. No one worth a shit wants to work with Morrissey. Boz has been on autopilot for years and the other mooks are 3rd-tier session nobodies.

 

[Carlislebaz]

Morrissey's ego couldn't handle having to only play smaller type venues for the foreseeable. I could see him maybe trying it out as a way to prove that he can sell out venues but the numbers might not be there - it could also prove too much of a financial risk. He is, after all, an insurance liability due to cancellations.

I hope more people see him for what he is stay away or return their tickets. It's going to be too much like a Bernard Manning gig and Christ can you imagine the right-wing element. Nah. I wouldn't want to be around that.

These gigs prove he doesn't have the pulling power and that his loyal, core fan base is no more.

I disagree with your fist part of your post, I think the reason he’s stopped doing the smaller venues, thus longer uk tours is down to age and health reasons, and to some degree , as some posters have mentioned, not wanting to be in the uk for any great length of time. Morrissey in a small venue, IE 2000 or so , it’s a different world. Yes that of the smiths and a real moz concert... he hasn’t done the ‘smaller, longer ‘ uk tours for a while now... has he, don’t think he will again... most, probably all of us ticket buying fans want to see him in a smaller venue.... I’m going to mention something that nobody really wants to here.... I’ve urinated next to Bernard manning in a nightclub called the pagoda in las carlisle .... yes my first and last experience of celebrity