Credit Crunch and the Climate – Two big issues affecting the UK Festival season

With the UK’s festival season all but over, Unsigned looks back on what could possibly be the most unsuccessful year so far. Not in terms of talent on display or the atmosphere generated at the events which went ahead, but simply in terms of those which fell by the wayside due to poor ticket sales or down to the awful weather we are now experiencing in this country.

Over the last few years, we have seen what could be described as a festival boom, with numerous events popping up all over the place. With less money in our pockets and the threat of torrential rain at any point, has this boom now peaked? The main events such as Glastonbury, T in the Park and V all survived but then even Glastonbury, famous for selling out in record time struggled to shift all tickets. Many may blame this on the new ID ticket scheme or the controversial decision to have Jay-Z as headliner (which was one of the highlights in Unsigned’s opinion); it could simply be a case of a lack of cash.

People, who in the past may have attended a number of events, are now finding themselves having to compromise and pick and choose which events they attend. As reported in the Guardian at the beginning of this month, 38 festivals around the UK had to be cancelled due to either a lack of finance, poor ticket sales or bad weather. With many others being forced to scale down or close camp sites for the same reasons.

These are worrying times for both the economy and environment and it looks like they are finally taking their toll on the music world.

All thoughts on this subject are most welcome

Sid