Damon Albarn Rivoli Ballrooms

[ontheedge]

Did anyone manage to get tickets to see Damon Albarn at the Rivoli Ballroom.

Went on sale at 09.00am via see tickets at 08.45am showing as sold out.

Latter that morning some selling on seat wave for ?175 original price ?37.50 furious needless to asy

[malumbu]

Reason they are on for ?175 is because people will pay that much. That is capitalism for you; clearly we need a revolution and a centrally controlled economy. Bet it doesn't happen in North Korea. Having said that I hate Seatwave as they get round some of the anti-touting controls, more than I hate some of the bedroom e-bay touts (some admire these as enterprising young people).

Back to Albarn, very talented and not half a tossa as that bloke with the cheese. Saw him in the Albarn show, aka The Good the Bad and the Queen, aka 'look at me I have the Clash in my band', the last but one night of the Hammersmith Palais. It was OK but full of trendies who were too busy looking at each other. The Fall rightly closed the Palais down the next evening. Certainly no posers there. Rivoli Ballroom would be the star of the show. For those disappointed at not seeing Albern, come along to to the Ivy (not THE Ivy of the Cheese man fame) on Saturday 8 March to see Dave Formula and the Finks

PS I was one of the few private individuals who contributed to the Select Commitee investigation into ticket resale. This concluded that the secondary market is a good thing. I don't concur.

[mancity68]

Bring back Scarletmist - when it worked it really was an ethical secondary market. I miss being able to pick up last minute tickets from people who can no longer go and just want to recover face value. I bought and sold on it fairly often.

And yes, I was at The Fall gig at the Palais too.

[malumbu]

I've sold tickets outside of gigs and events at face value, sometimes well below (50p for a England test match at Trent Bridge once to a programme seller, a chap walks in later who'd then paid near face value for it). Just the odd spare that became available. I see events as things you want to to to rather than a commodity.

I've also hung around looking for tickets including mayhem at the World Cup in Germany, where at one point after kick off for Ghana vs Czech Republic the Scouse touts started to put the prices up (no, the match has started idiots). I got pissed in the local pub instead.

I saw the Producers at Drury Lane and made a speculative offer when I overheard a conversation with people trying to get rid of a spare. Again the touts were asking me how much I was prepared to pay (ie times two, where I was asking for 1/2). Also bought a few times on e-bay when clearly the touts had got the demand wrong and were off-loading. Tended to be for concerts at the Academy where someone like New Order wanted ?40 and were just abouts worth the ?7 I paid. Morrisey was another, as he'd put a gig on which would sell out in ten minutes, resale prices would go through the roof, and then he'd do another two gigs and kill the demand.

Scarlet Mist only seemed to have tickets for shows that proved unpopular. But the concept was right.

Fun, but don't think it is worth spending my days doing this.

[mancity68]

Yup - had many similar experiences. Even given away the odd spare to people just to annoy the scummy touts. Sadly nowadays I find myself having to go and see bands I love outside of London because its easier to get tickets for Manchester, Oxford etc than it is to get them within the first 20 mins they go on sale.

I got a fair few good spur of the moment tkts on Scarletmist - but I agree I wouldn't want o spend my spare time running it!

[titch juicy]

Yes, I got tickets.

They showed 'sold out' 15 minutes before on-sale as an error that was fixed quickly and went on sale bang on 9am as promised, but did sell out extra fast.

I was always very much part of the anti-albarn brigade; but about 5 years ago my other half forced me to listen to less mainstream Blur stuff. Have since seen Blur live twice, Gorillaz once, the Good the Bad and The Queen once and his Dr Dee Opera at the Colisuem. All were excellent.

I think the Good The Bad and The Queen album is excellent. Wasn't so keen on the first two Gorillaz albums but the last one was superb and the Africa Express album from last year was out of this world. Not heard his solo stuff yet but am very much looking forward to, especially in that venue.

Oh, and Scarlet Mist is thriving.

http://scarletmist.com/

[ruffers]

I assume you're furious at Albarn for playing such a small venue with the inevitable outcome of demanding outstripping supply leading to this situation. He should have played somewhere much bigger really shouldn't he?

[Help-Ma-Boab]

He's playing at Lattude this year - http://www.latitudefestival.com/line-up which is a great festival (well it was not been for a couple of years now)

[giggirl]

The Rivoli Ballroom is a magical place but I wouldn't go and see Damon Albarn if he was doing a free gig in the EDF - I am not a fan.

This is a paperless event and tickets are not being touted on Seatwave or anywhere else.

It's lovely to see live music in small venues and it's always going to be a problem when demand outstrips supply. If he played the O2 would that make people happier? When big artists play small venues it is normal for the event to be paperless (as this one is), so I really don't understand the problem.

Seetickets is a joke of a website and it throws up all kinds of error messages when tickets go on-sale. Keep hitting F5 until the tickets load (which they will) and you get to a buying screen.

[ontheedge]

ruffers Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I assume you're furious at Albarn for playing such

> a small venue with the inevitable outcome of

> demanding outstripping supply leading to this

> situation. He should have played somewhere much

> bigger really shouldn't he?

No brilliant he's playing at a small venue, have seen him several times in small and large(outdoor venues) Furious I didn't get opportunity to buy ticket as showing sold out and my job is not one that allows me to wait all day by computer, thanks gig girl for tip re refresh button but yes I have seen tickets on seat wave a few hours later you only need to show up and met the person you buy the ticket from at the venue and go in with them