What are they Radiohead now? Only limited touring? This "tour" is ridiculous. Am I stupid enough to travel from Albany NY to Philly? Yes, but fuck man........get some balls and put together a REAL tour.
1)Radiohead preaches anti-corporation (like Pearl Jam) and when touring they try to avoid places with corporate sponsorship. So they try to avoid the "Verizon Center" when they can play somewhere else. This is why they never play Detroit. Also, when they do play places that have advertising, they pay to take the banners down.
Pearl Jam meanwhile signs deals with Verizon and Target
2)Radiohead charges $55-60 per ticket (during a time gas was $4 a gallon mind you), Pearl Jam charges $80+
3)Radiohead disperses shows. They play the whole country and don't just single out the North East and West
and here is the article about why Radiohead won't play Detroit. They still stick with what they believe in.
As far as Detroit's music fans are concerned, it's one of rock's most enduring mysteries.
Why won't Radiohead play here anymore?
More than a decade has passed since the celebrated English band played a stage in the Motor City, a place that has been regarded as one of the country's premier concert markets.
During that time, the group has booked three full tours of the United States, and has had other scattered dates. But not in Detroit. Not since a 1997 visit that spawned all manner of rumors about the group's ongoing absence from the Motor City.
The issue is hot on fans' minds in the wake of Radiohead's latest tour announcement, made last week, which finds Michigan again eschewed in favor of shows in Cleveland and Indianapolis. Those cities are part of a 23-date North American run that launches next month and stretches into August.
Radiohead's absence has become so conspicuous that several explanatory tales have gelled as gospel, widely circulated around town and the Internet with a mix of titillation and frustration, often delivered with a flourish of insider insight. Radiohead, they say, is boycotting Detroit.
But they're wrong, say the close-knit handful of people privy to the band's dealings. There is indeed a reason we haven't seen Radiohead in Detroit since that transcendent performance at the State Theatre in August 1997. It's just not what fans think.
Talk to Radiohead fans in Detroit -- even just typical rock buffs -- and they're sure to acknowledge the band's absenteeism.
The frustration is ripe. Radiohead is widely considered one of modern rock's most important acts, a mystique-laden band whose epic music has broken new ground and elevated the group among the all-time greats.
"They have a lot of fans here. It's unfortunate they won't come," says Phil Zott, a Royal Oak fan who will travel to the band's tour opener next month in Florida. "I want to sympathize with these guys because I love their music. But it's frustrating. We want to see them."
Detroit is strong Radiohead territory: The 2003 album "Hail to the Thief" sold 16,000 copies here, according to Nielsen Soundscan. That makes Detroit the album's 13th-best market, well ahead of tour sites Indianapolis (8,000 copies) and Cleveland (10,000).
Around Detroit this decade, three tales have dominated the chatter.
First: that the band's equipment trailer was burglarized after its State Theatre concert, prompting the group to boycott Detroit forever.
Completely false, says a Radiohead spokesman, a position supported by others who worked with the band that evening, including the theater's former manager. (The Detroit Police Department says it has no report of such an incident that night outside the State, now known as the Fillmore.)
Radiohead was indeed a victim of equipment theft -- in Denver in 1995. The band, which was fleeced of several vintage guitars, has played that market twice since.
Then there's the overexcited-crowd rumor. Concertgoers at the State Theatre were moshing so hard, the story goes, that they offended the artsy sensibilities of Radiohead, who wrote off rowdy Detroit Rock City for good.
Wrong, say those close to the band, including the man who has worked with Radiohead longer and more intimately than any other stateside music executive.
"The band has never, ever had anything negative to say about Detroit or the fans there," says Phil Costello, a former Capitol Records vice president and head of ATO Records, which released Radiohead's latest album. "I've heard remarks about L.A., other places they've played. But I'll reiterate: I've never heard anything negative about Detroit fans."
Others who are privy to Radiohead's scheduling laughed when told of the mortified-by-moshing rumor.
Former State Theatre manager Joe Nieporte says he's familiar with the tale. He even grants that band members, backstage after the State show, may have noted the unusual response of the Detroit crowd.
"But that's not a reason you'd stop playing a market," says Nieporte, who now runs the Emerald Theatre in Mt. Clemens. "That's not it."
Finally, there's the anti-promoter rumor: Radiohead is snubbing Detroit, so it's said, because of a falling-out with the local office of mega-promoter Live Nation, formerly Cellar Door, during the State date.
That would seem plausible ... except that Live Nation's Detroit office is staging Radiohead's upcoming shows in Cleveland and Indianapolis.
That office also worked with the band in an ultimately unsuccessful effort to stage a Radiohead show in Detroit in 2001, the band's first U.S. tour after 1997.
"The band was attempting to come back here," says former Live Nation staffer DeAnna Park, echoing others familiar with the goings-on. "They were looking at out-of-the-ordinary places to play," including Belle Isle.
And that appropriately brings us to the real reason Radiohead hasn't played here in 11 years:
Metro Detroit doesn't have a venue the band likes.
From that 2001 tour onward, Radiohead has sought a particular sort of concert setting: outdoors, out-of-the-way, pastoral. Browse the band's itineraries and you'll find a host of venues fitting that bill -- places such as the rustic Gorge Amphitheater in Washington state and the riverside Parc Jean Drapeau in Montreal.
But DTE Energy Music Theatre, this market's top outdoor venue and the one that would best fit the band's criteria, is a no-go for a very specific reason: It has too many corporate-sponsor signs for Radiohead's taste.
"That is absolutely, 100%" the reason Radiohead did not include Detroit on this year's U.S. outing, says a source who has been involved in tour negotiations, but asked not to be identified. Instead, the band opted for less-branded amphitheaters in Cleveland and Indianapolis -- facilities that also have capacities significantly higher than DTE's 15,000 seats.
The source is backed up by others familiar with the situation. In standard music-biz fashion, they declined to speak for attribution because of ongoing business relationships.
Label chief Costello is not versed on the DTE specifics. But he says Radiohead's anti-sponsor position is a core philosophy for band members, especially vocalist Thom Yorke.
"Thom is a real stickler about that," says Costello. "Two albums ago, he read a book or an article about corporate sponsorship, and it just sent him crawling up the wall. He decided there would be no more of the bullshit on the side" of the stage. "They've really drilled in to see who's doing what" in terms of sponsor presence at venues.
Officials at Palace Sports & Entertainment say that's news to them. The Palace owns DTE, though it would not necessarily be involved in negotiations for a Radiohead concert booked by an outside promoter such as Live Nation.
"We are not aware of Radiohead's concerns about sponsor signage," says spokesman Jeff Corey.
Live Nation officials declined to provide a statement about Radiohead's choice of venues.
The former Pine Knob is regarded by industry insiders as one of the nation's most successful sponsorship operations. In addition to the title rights -- for which DTE Energy paid $10 million in 2001 -- the venue has secured deals with many big-name corporations.
Last summer's stage and video screens were flanked by an array of ads for Belle Tire and Verizon, among others. Their target: the 634,000 sets of eyeballs on the venue grounds in 2007 to once again make DTE the nation's busiest music amphitheater. (Detroit Media Partnership, which manages Free Press business, is a Palace and DTE sponsor.)
Radiohead aims for venues that have no sponsor signs or that will mask them, such as the Verizon Wireless Music Center in Indianapolis.
"We know they don't want sponsorships, so all that will be covered up," says venue publicist Susan Kreiner.
Asked if DTE officials would consider removing or covering ads at a performer's request, Corey said the company does not comment on sponsor signage.
The Radiohead situation offers a rare if hazy peek into the deeply guarded innards of the new music world.
With record sales bottoming out, the music business has turned to a variety of fresh revenue streams: television song licensing, tour sponsorship deals, advertising tie-ins. What was once perceived as rock's natural foe -- corporate America -- now can be a lifeline.
North American corporations are projected to spend $1.04 billion this year for venue, tour and festival sponsorships, according to IEG LLC, a Chicago firm that tracks the industry. That's up nearly 17% from 2006.
By declining to buy in and sell out, Radiohead makes itself an anachronism of sorts. Costello says Yorke's anti-sponsor epiphany can be spied on the cover of 2003's "Hail to the Thief," with its ironic splay of ad slogans.
Artists remain sensitive about the appearance of corporate ties, but Radiohead is an especially striking example, says William Chipps, senior editor of IEG Sponsorship Report.
"Radiohead seems to be taking it to another degree," he says. "If they don't want to play in a particular venue because of in-your-face sponsorships -- that's unique."
A venue with an unusually high amount of sponsor signage faces a challenge if a performer requests it be covered, says Chipps: "The venue would have to work with every sponsor to say, 'Hey, are you guys OK with this?' They know who butters their bread."
A facility might decide it's not worth all the trouble, opting to instead "use those nights to sell seats for acts that don't mind logos," he says.
For Detroit-area Radiohead fans such as Leslie Sullivan, the lack of a local date has one upside: She gets to take a road trip.
"They really need to come here," says Sullivan, who was 6 years old when the band played the State. "But Radiohead is so great that people will do anything, and go out of their way, to see them."
Contact BRIAN McCOLLUM at 313-223-4450 or <!-- e --><a href="mailto:bmccollum@freepress.com">bmccollum@freepress.com</a><!-- e -->.
1)Radiohead preaches anti-corporation (like Pearl Jam) and when touring they try to avoid places with corporate sponsorship. So they try to avoid the "Verizon Center" when they can play somewhere else. This is why they never play Detroit. Also, when they do play places that have advertising, they pay to take the banners down.
Pearl Jam meanwhile signs deals with Verizon and Target
2)Radiohead charges $55-60 per ticket (during a time gas was $4 a gallon mind you), Pearl Jam charges $80+
3)Radiohead disperses shows. They play the whole country and don't just single out the North East and West
4)Radiohead sucks and thom yorke is a whiney bitch.
1)Radiohead preaches anti-corporation (like Pearl Jam) and when touring they try to avoid places with corporate sponsorship. So they try to avoid the "Verizon Center" when they can play somewhere else. This is why they never play Detroit. Also, when they do play places that have advertising, they pay to take the banners down.
Pearl Jam meanwhile signs deals with Verizon and Target
2)Radiohead charges $55-60 per ticket (during a time gas was $4 a gallon mind you), Pearl Jam charges $80+
3)Radiohead disperses shows. They play the whole country and don't just single out the North East and West
4)Radiohead sucks and thom yorke is a whiney bitch.
1)Radiohead preaches anti-corporation (like Pearl Jam) and when touring they try to avoid places with corporate sponsorship. So they try to avoid the "Verizon Center" when they can play somewhere else. This is why they never play Detroit. Also, when they do play places that have advertising, they pay to take the banners down.
Pearl Jam meanwhile signs deals with Verizon and Target
2)Radiohead charges $55-60 per ticket (during a time gas was $4 a gallon mind you), Pearl Jam charges $80+
3)Radiohead disperses shows. They play the whole country and don't just single out the North East and West
4)Radiohead sucks and thom yorke is a whiney bitch.
haha. Radiohead is more talented than Pearl Jam. I love Pearl Jam, but there is nothing innovative or creative about them. They are the reason bands like Creed exist and are compared to them. It's the reason Radiohead is often referred to as "the best band in the world" and why when you speak of Pearl Jam the first thing people ask is "oh they are still around?'
1)Radiohead preaches anti-corporation (like Pearl Jam) and when touring they try to avoid places with corporate sponsorship. So they try to avoid the "Verizon Center" when they can play somewhere else. This is why they never play Detroit. Also, when they do play places that have advertising, they pay to take the banners down.
Pearl Jam meanwhile signs deals with Verizon and Target
2)Radiohead charges $55-60 per ticket (during a time gas was $4 a gallon mind you), Pearl Jam charges $80+
3)Radiohead disperses shows. They play the whole country and don't just single out the North East and West
4)Radiohead sucks and thom yorke is a whiney bitch.
haha. Radiohead is more talented than Pearl Jam. I love Pearl Jam, but there is nothing innovative or creative about them. They are the reason bands like Creed exist and are compared to them. It's the reason Radiohead is often referred to as "the best band in the world" and why when you speak of Pearl Jam the first thing people ask is "oh they are still around?'
just sayin
Wow, nothing innovative or creative about Pearl Jam...you must be high! Here's an idea, drop your PJ membership so we don't have to listen to your bitching. I mean seriously, Radiohead is a good band but cannot touch PJ's talent. Nothing is more irritating than hearing people like you get on here and talk negative about the very band we are here to support. Boo hoo, they're not playing your city, get over it. The band has been around nearly 20 years, give them a break. At least we get a tour!
guys. You have to admit when your favorite band isn't the most talented. Radiohead is far more talented than Pearl Jam. That's not to say I don't like Pearl Jam, I do, they are my favorite band. But I don't see them as innovative or groundbreaking in any way. They play well as a band, but nothing they do makes me think I could never do it. Radiohead is different. I mean Radiohead has sold out every show in the US for the past 7 years, Pearl Jam can't say that. The people have spoken
My favorite golfer is Ratief Goosen. I know Tiger is better and more talented, but he isn't my favorite. I'm not going to sit and say Ratief is better than Tiger, that would be crazy
and this isn't just about them leaving out every city in the midwest not named Chicago- it's a mixute of things they do now like signing deals with Verizon and Target, and charging their fans $80 to see them.
1)Radiohead preaches anti-corporation (like Pearl Jam) and when touring they try to avoid places with corporate sponsorship. So they try to avoid the "Verizon Center" when they can play somewhere else. This is why they never play Detroit. Also, when they do play places that have advertising, they pay to take the banners down.
Pearl Jam meanwhile signs deals with Verizon and Target
2)Radiohead charges $55-60 per ticket (during a time gas was $4 a gallon mind you), Pearl Jam charges $80+
3)Radiohead disperses shows. They play the whole country and don't just single out the North East and West
4)Radiohead sucks and thom yorke is a whiney bitch.
guys. You have to admit when your favorite band isn't the most talented. Radiohead is far more talented than Pearl Jam. That's not to say I don't like Pearl Jam, I do, they are my favorite band. But I don't see them as innovative or groundbreaking in any way. They play well as a band, but nothing they do makes me think I could never do it. Radiohead is different. I mean Radiohead has sold out every show in the US for the past 7 years, Pearl Jam can't say that. The people have spoken
My favorite golfer is Ratief Goosen. I know Tiger is better and more talented, but he isn't my favorite. I'm not going to sit and say Ratief is better than Tiger, that would be crazy
and this isn't just about them leaving out every city in the midwest not named Chicago- it's a mixute of things they do now like signing deals with Verizon and Target, and charging their fans $80 to see them.
I hope you're comparing Tiger to Pearl Jam and Ratief to Radiohead, because that would make sense. I think I get what you're saying now. I mean, Michael Jordan was my favorite player, but Dennis Rodman was more innovative, creative, and obviously more important to the game for those reasons. Makes sense....NOT!
guys. You have to admit when your favorite band isn't the most talented. Radiohead is far more talented than Pearl Jam. That's not to say I don't like Pearl Jam, I do, they are my favorite band. But I don't see them as innovative or groundbreaking in any way. They play well as a band, but nothing they do makes me think I could never do it. Radiohead is different. I mean Radiohead has sold out every show in the US for the past 7 years, Pearl Jam can't say that. The people have spoken
My favorite golfer is Ratief Goosen. I know Tiger is better and more talented, but he isn't my favorite. I'm not going to sit and say Ratief is better than Tiger, that would be crazy
and this isn't just about them leaving out every city in the midwest not named Chicago- it's a mixute of things they do now like signing deals with Verizon and Target, and charging their fans $80 to see them.
+1. Radiohead have album after album of brilliant and unique albums - Pearl Jam sometimes have winners, sometimes have losers. Both put on great shows, and I enjoy and appreciate them both for what kind of band they are! They are definitely front-runners in regards to their revolutionizing the music industry, along with NIN. I think they could both learn a lot from each other - Radiohead's show, while great, I found to be pretty removed from the crowd. They were there to play, and that's it. Minimal communication with the crowd, etc.
Pearl Jam, on the other hand, seems to communicate with the crowd, and allow a sort of energy exchange between them and us. It's what I love most about a Pearl Jam show.
'05 - TO, '06 - TO 1, '08 - NYC 1 & 2, '09 - TO, Chi 1 & 2, '10 - Buffalo, NYC 1 & 2, '11 - TO 1 & 2, Hamilton, '13 - Buffalo, Brooklyn 1 & 2, '15 - Global Citizen, '16 - TO 1 & 2, Chi 2
EV
Toronto Film Festival 9/11/2007, '08 - Toronto 1 & 2, '09 - Albany 1, '11 - Chicago 1
guys. You have to admit when your favorite band isn't the most talented. Radiohead is far more talented than Pearl Jam. That's not to say I don't like Pearl Jam, I do, they are my favorite band. But I don't see them as innovative or groundbreaking in any way. They play well as a band, but nothing they do makes me think I could never do it. Radiohead is different. I mean Radiohead has sold out every show in the US for the past 7 years, Pearl Jam can't say that. The people have spoken
My favorite golfer is Ratief Goosen. I know Tiger is better and more talented, but he isn't my favorite. I'm not going to sit and say Ratief is better than Tiger, that would be crazy
and this isn't just about them leaving out every city in the midwest not named Chicago- it's a mixute of things they do now like signing deals with Verizon and Target, and charging their fans $80 to see them.
I hope you're comparing Tiger to Pearl Jam and Ratief to Radiohead, because that would make sense. I think I get what you're saying now. I mean, Michael Jordan was my favorite player, but Dennis Rodman was more innovative, creative, and obviously more important to the game for those reasons. Makes sense....NOT!
I hate bashing a band I love, but really, where is Pearl Jam's innovation or creativity? practically every song they have put out since 2000 sounds like it could have come out in 1995. When has Radiohead ever put out a Riot Act? Where is Pearl Jam's OK Computer, the album everyone points to as to how it changed a whole genre of music?
guys. You have to admit when your favorite band isn't the most talented. Radiohead is far more talented than Pearl Jam. That's not to say I don't like Pearl Jam, I do, they are my favorite band. But I don't see them as innovative or groundbreaking in any way. They play well as a band, but nothing they do makes me think I could never do it. Radiohead is different. I mean Radiohead has sold out every show in the US for the past 7 years, Pearl Jam can't say that. The people have spoken
My favorite golfer is Ratief Goosen. I know Tiger is better and more talented, but he isn't my favorite. I'm not going to sit and say Ratief is better than Tiger, that would be crazy
and this isn't just about them leaving out every city in the midwest not named Chicago- it's a mixute of things they do now like signing deals with Verizon and Target, and charging their fans $80 to see them.
+1. Radiohead have album after album of brilliant and unique albums - Pearl Jam sometimes have winners, sometimes have losers. Both put on great shows, and I enjoy and appreciate them both for what kind of band they are! They are definitely front-runners in regards to their revolutionizing the music industry, along with NIN. I think they could both learn a lot from each other - Radiohead's show, while great, I found to be pretty removed from the crowd. They were there to play, and that's it. Minimal communication with the crowd, etc.
Pearl Jam, on the other hand, seems to communicate with the crowd, and allow a sort of energy exchange between them and us. It's what I love most about a Pearl Jam show.
I feel exactly the same way. I love Pearl Jam for their live shows. I love how they make the crowd feel apart of it, while Radiohead doesn't do that. Radiohead's show was unbelievable sonically and visually, but you didn't feel apart of it as a crowd. I saw some of the most awesome things like guys playing 3-4 instruments at a time (Jonny playing guitar, drums, and synth all at the same time). I like both bands for different reasons, but I'm more impressed by Radiohead's ability
I don't want to get involved in the Radiohead vs. Pearl Jam debate here but I just want to say that I really can't understand how people can not like Radiohead.
I don't want to get involved in the Radiohead vs. Pearl Jam debate here but I just want to say that I really can't understand how people can not like Radiohead.
They are my 2 favorite bands of all time, but I can see how someone could not like either one of them. Everyone has different tastes. Just because I think they are great doesn't mean they appeal to everyone.
Radiohead equals a snoozer of a show.....wouldn't go with a free ticket. Like some songs/albums.
I disagree. I had a wicked time. For anyone who ever gets the opportunity, I recommend trying for GA (pit) tickets, and waiting at the venue early to get in. I did this and ended up at the barrier, and it was one of the most memorable experiences of my life.
Post edited by benjs on
'05 - TO, '06 - TO 1, '08 - NYC 1 & 2, '09 - TO, Chi 1 & 2, '10 - Buffalo, NYC 1 & 2, '11 - TO 1 & 2, Hamilton, '13 - Buffalo, Brooklyn 1 & 2, '15 - Global Citizen, '16 - TO 1 & 2, Chi 2
EV
Toronto Film Festival 9/11/2007, '08 - Toronto 1 & 2, '09 - Albany 1, '11 - Chicago 1
Radiohead equals a snoozer of a show.....wouldn't go with a free ticket. Like some songs/albums.
How wrong you are. I had a wicked time. For anyone who ever gets the opportunity, I recommend trying for GA (pit) tickets, and waiting at the venue early to get in. I did this and ended up at the barrier, and it was one of the most memorable experiences of my life.
An opinion can't be wrong unless it conflicts with the facts and guess what saying Radiohead is awesome live is not a fact its an opinion.
Radiohead equals a snoozer of a show.....wouldn't go with a free ticket. Like some songs/albums.
I disagree. I had a wicked time. For anyone who ever gets the opportunity, I recommend trying for GA (pit) tickets, and waiting at the venue early to get in. I did this and ended up at the barrier, and it was one of the most memorable experiences of my life.
An opinion can't be wrong unless it conflicts with the facts and guess what saying Radiohead is awesome live is not a fact its an opinion.
Fair enough! I'll change my wording.
'05 - TO, '06 - TO 1, '08 - NYC 1 & 2, '09 - TO, Chi 1 & 2, '10 - Buffalo, NYC 1 & 2, '11 - TO 1 & 2, Hamilton, '13 - Buffalo, Brooklyn 1 & 2, '15 - Global Citizen, '16 - TO 1 & 2, Chi 2
EV
Toronto Film Festival 9/11/2007, '08 - Toronto 1 & 2, '09 - Albany 1, '11 - Chicago 1
. For anyone who ever gets the opportunity, I recommend trying for GA (pit) tickets, and waiting at the venue early to get in. I did this and ended up at the barrier, and it was one of the most memorable experiences of my life.
+1. Definitely the best way to see any band anyway, but being able to see them up close (and watch Thoms dancing) is brilliant. The noise they make together is incredible. I love that they also mix up their sets a fair bit.
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thats only damage control for the roll over shows.... quit tryiung to make something into nothing
1)Radiohead preaches anti-corporation (like Pearl Jam) and when touring they try to avoid places with corporate sponsorship. So they try to avoid the "Verizon Center" when they can play somewhere else. This is why they never play Detroit. Also, when they do play places that have advertising, they pay to take the banners down.
Pearl Jam meanwhile signs deals with Verizon and Target
2)Radiohead charges $55-60 per ticket (during a time gas was $4 a gallon mind you), Pearl Jam charges $80+
3)Radiohead disperses shows. They play the whole country and don't just single out the North East and West
As far as Detroit's music fans are concerned, it's one of rock's most enduring mysteries.
Why won't Radiohead play here anymore?
More than a decade has passed since the celebrated English band played a stage in the Motor City, a place that has been regarded as one of the country's premier concert markets.
During that time, the group has booked three full tours of the United States, and has had other scattered dates. But not in Detroit. Not since a 1997 visit that spawned all manner of rumors about the group's ongoing absence from the Motor City.
The issue is hot on fans' minds in the wake of Radiohead's latest tour announcement, made last week, which finds Michigan again eschewed in favor of shows in Cleveland and Indianapolis. Those cities are part of a 23-date North American run that launches next month and stretches into August.
Radiohead's absence has become so conspicuous that several explanatory tales have gelled as gospel, widely circulated around town and the Internet with a mix of titillation and frustration, often delivered with a flourish of insider insight. Radiohead, they say, is boycotting Detroit.
But they're wrong, say the close-knit handful of people privy to the band's dealings. There is indeed a reason we haven't seen Radiohead in Detroit since that transcendent performance at the State Theatre in August 1997. It's just not what fans think.
Talk to Radiohead fans in Detroit -- even just typical rock buffs -- and they're sure to acknowledge the band's absenteeism.
The frustration is ripe. Radiohead is widely considered one of modern rock's most important acts, a mystique-laden band whose epic music has broken new ground and elevated the group among the all-time greats.
"They have a lot of fans here. It's unfortunate they won't come," says Phil Zott, a Royal Oak fan who will travel to the band's tour opener next month in Florida. "I want to sympathize with these guys because I love their music. But it's frustrating. We want to see them."
Detroit is strong Radiohead territory: The 2003 album "Hail to the Thief" sold 16,000 copies here, according to Nielsen Soundscan. That makes Detroit the album's 13th-best market, well ahead of tour sites Indianapolis (8,000 copies) and Cleveland (10,000).
Around Detroit this decade, three tales have dominated the chatter.
First: that the band's equipment trailer was burglarized after its State Theatre concert, prompting the group to boycott Detroit forever.
Completely false, says a Radiohead spokesman, a position supported by others who worked with the band that evening, including the theater's former manager. (The Detroit Police Department says it has no report of such an incident that night outside the State, now known as the Fillmore.)
Radiohead was indeed a victim of equipment theft -- in Denver in 1995. The band, which was fleeced of several vintage guitars, has played that market twice since.
Then there's the overexcited-crowd rumor. Concertgoers at the State Theatre were moshing so hard, the story goes, that they offended the artsy sensibilities of Radiohead, who wrote off rowdy Detroit Rock City for good.
Wrong, say those close to the band, including the man who has worked with Radiohead longer and more intimately than any other stateside music executive.
"The band has never, ever had anything negative to say about Detroit or the fans there," says Phil Costello, a former Capitol Records vice president and head of ATO Records, which released Radiohead's latest album. "I've heard remarks about L.A., other places they've played. But I'll reiterate: I've never heard anything negative about Detroit fans."
Others who are privy to Radiohead's scheduling laughed when told of the mortified-by-moshing rumor.
Former State Theatre manager Joe Nieporte says he's familiar with the tale. He even grants that band members, backstage after the State show, may have noted the unusual response of the Detroit crowd.
"But that's not a reason you'd stop playing a market," says Nieporte, who now runs the Emerald Theatre in Mt. Clemens. "That's not it."
Finally, there's the anti-promoter rumor: Radiohead is snubbing Detroit, so it's said, because of a falling-out with the local office of mega-promoter Live Nation, formerly Cellar Door, during the State date.
That would seem plausible ... except that Live Nation's Detroit office is staging Radiohead's upcoming shows in Cleveland and Indianapolis.
That office also worked with the band in an ultimately unsuccessful effort to stage a Radiohead show in Detroit in 2001, the band's first U.S. tour after 1997.
"The band was attempting to come back here," says former Live Nation staffer DeAnna Park, echoing others familiar with the goings-on. "They were looking at out-of-the-ordinary places to play," including Belle Isle.
And that appropriately brings us to the real reason Radiohead hasn't played here in 11 years:
Metro Detroit doesn't have a venue the band likes.
From that 2001 tour onward, Radiohead has sought a particular sort of concert setting: outdoors, out-of-the-way, pastoral. Browse the band's itineraries and you'll find a host of venues fitting that bill -- places such as the rustic Gorge Amphitheater in Washington state and the riverside Parc Jean Drapeau in Montreal.
But DTE Energy Music Theatre, this market's top outdoor venue and the one that would best fit the band's criteria, is a no-go for a very specific reason: It has too many corporate-sponsor signs for Radiohead's taste.
"That is absolutely, 100%" the reason Radiohead did not include Detroit on this year's U.S. outing, says a source who has been involved in tour negotiations, but asked not to be identified. Instead, the band opted for less-branded amphitheaters in Cleveland and Indianapolis -- facilities that also have capacities significantly higher than DTE's 15,000 seats.
The source is backed up by others familiar with the situation. In standard music-biz fashion, they declined to speak for attribution because of ongoing business relationships.
Label chief Costello is not versed on the DTE specifics. But he says Radiohead's anti-sponsor position is a core philosophy for band members, especially vocalist Thom Yorke.
"Thom is a real stickler about that," says Costello. "Two albums ago, he read a book or an article about corporate sponsorship, and it just sent him crawling up the wall. He decided there would be no more of the bullshit on the side" of the stage. "They've really drilled in to see who's doing what" in terms of sponsor presence at venues.
Officials at Palace Sports & Entertainment say that's news to them. The Palace owns DTE, though it would not necessarily be involved in negotiations for a Radiohead concert booked by an outside promoter such as Live Nation.
"We are not aware of Radiohead's concerns about sponsor signage," says spokesman Jeff Corey.
Live Nation officials declined to provide a statement about Radiohead's choice of venues.
The former Pine Knob is regarded by industry insiders as one of the nation's most successful sponsorship operations. In addition to the title rights -- for which DTE Energy paid $10 million in 2001 -- the venue has secured deals with many big-name corporations.
Last summer's stage and video screens were flanked by an array of ads for Belle Tire and Verizon, among others. Their target: the 634,000 sets of eyeballs on the venue grounds in 2007 to once again make DTE the nation's busiest music amphitheater. (Detroit Media Partnership, which manages Free Press business, is a Palace and DTE sponsor.)
Radiohead aims for venues that have no sponsor signs or that will mask them, such as the Verizon Wireless Music Center in Indianapolis.
"We know they don't want sponsorships, so all that will be covered up," says venue publicist Susan Kreiner.
Asked if DTE officials would consider removing or covering ads at a performer's request, Corey said the company does not comment on sponsor signage.
The Radiohead situation offers a rare if hazy peek into the deeply guarded innards of the new music world.
With record sales bottoming out, the music business has turned to a variety of fresh revenue streams: television song licensing, tour sponsorship deals, advertising tie-ins. What was once perceived as rock's natural foe -- corporate America -- now can be a lifeline.
North American corporations are projected to spend $1.04 billion this year for venue, tour and festival sponsorships, according to IEG LLC, a Chicago firm that tracks the industry. That's up nearly 17% from 2006.
By declining to buy in and sell out, Radiohead makes itself an anachronism of sorts. Costello says Yorke's anti-sponsor epiphany can be spied on the cover of 2003's "Hail to the Thief," with its ironic splay of ad slogans.
Artists remain sensitive about the appearance of corporate ties, but Radiohead is an especially striking example, says William Chipps, senior editor of IEG Sponsorship Report.
"Radiohead seems to be taking it to another degree," he says. "If they don't want to play in a particular venue because of in-your-face sponsorships -- that's unique."
A venue with an unusually high amount of sponsor signage faces a challenge if a performer requests it be covered, says Chipps: "The venue would have to work with every sponsor to say, 'Hey, are you guys OK with this?' They know who butters their bread."
A facility might decide it's not worth all the trouble, opting to instead "use those nights to sell seats for acts that don't mind logos," he says.
For Detroit-area Radiohead fans such as Leslie Sullivan, the lack of a local date has one upside: She gets to take a road trip.
"They really need to come here," says Sullivan, who was 6 years old when the band played the State. "But Radiohead is so great that people will do anything, and go out of their way, to see them."
Contact BRIAN McCOLLUM at 313-223-4450 or <!-- e --><a href="mailto:bmccollum@freepress.com">bmccollum@freepress.com</a><!-- e -->.
4)Radiohead sucks and thom yorke is a whiney bitch.
AGREED
haha. Radiohead is more talented than Pearl Jam. I love Pearl Jam, but there is nothing innovative or creative about them. They are the reason bands like Creed exist and are compared to them. It's the reason Radiohead is often referred to as "the best band in the world" and why when you speak of Pearl Jam the first thing people ask is "oh they are still around?'
just sayin
What's stupid about that? I did the reverse in 2006 and had a blast.
made him ... want to be everywhere
there's a ... lot to be said for nowhere."
Wow, nothing innovative or creative about Pearl Jam...you must be high! Here's an idea, drop your PJ membership so we don't have to listen to your bitching. I mean seriously, Radiohead is a good band but cannot touch PJ's talent. Nothing is more irritating than hearing people like you get on here and talk negative about the very band we are here to support. Boo hoo, they're not playing your city, get over it. The band has been around nearly 20 years, give them a break. At least we get a tour!
My favorite golfer is Ratief Goosen. I know Tiger is better and more talented, but he isn't my favorite. I'm not going to sit and say Ratief is better than Tiger, that would be crazy
and this isn't just about them leaving out every city in the midwest not named Chicago- it's a mixute of things they do now like signing deals with Verizon and Target, and charging their fans $80 to see them.
+1. I can't fucking stand this band.
I hope you're comparing Tiger to Pearl Jam and Ratief to Radiohead, because that would make sense. I think I get what you're saying now. I mean, Michael Jordan was my favorite player, but Dennis Rodman was more innovative, creative, and obviously more important to the game for those reasons. Makes sense....NOT!
Pearl Jam, on the other hand, seems to communicate with the crowd, and allow a sort of energy exchange between them and us. It's what I love most about a Pearl Jam show.
EV
Toronto Film Festival 9/11/2007, '08 - Toronto 1 & 2, '09 - Albany 1, '11 - Chicago 1
I hate bashing a band I love, but really, where is Pearl Jam's innovation or creativity? practically every song they have put out since 2000 sounds like it could have come out in 1995. When has Radiohead ever put out a Riot Act? Where is Pearl Jam's OK Computer, the album everyone points to as to how it changed a whole genre of music?
I feel exactly the same way. I love Pearl Jam for their live shows. I love how they make the crowd feel apart of it, while Radiohead doesn't do that. Radiohead's show was unbelievable sonically and visually, but you didn't feel apart of it as a crowd. I saw some of the most awesome things like guys playing 3-4 instruments at a time (Jonny playing guitar, drums, and synth all at the same time). I like both bands for different reasons, but I'm more impressed by Radiohead's ability
1) people who like radiohead
2) fucking morons who should not be allowed to breed.
EV
Toronto Film Festival 9/11/2007, '08 - Toronto 1 & 2, '09 - Albany 1, '11 - Chicago 1
That's a real intelligent statement. I don't like Radiohead so I guess I should never get married and have kids. Moron.
world needs plenty of bartenders. maybe you should have a go at it.
And your level of intelligence just keeps on showing.
They are my 2 favorite bands of all time, but I can see how someone could not like either one of them. Everyone has different tastes. Just because I think they are great doesn't mean they appeal to everyone.
SHOW COUNT: (164) 1990's=3, 2000's=53, 2010/20's=108, US=118, CAN=15, Europe=20 ,New Zealand=4, Australia=5
Mexico=1, Colombia=1
EV
Toronto Film Festival 9/11/2007, '08 - Toronto 1 & 2, '09 - Albany 1, '11 - Chicago 1
An opinion can't be wrong unless it conflicts with the facts and guess what saying Radiohead is awesome live is not a fact its an opinion.
SHOW COUNT: (164) 1990's=3, 2000's=53, 2010/20's=108, US=118, CAN=15, Europe=20 ,New Zealand=4, Australia=5
Mexico=1, Colombia=1
EV
Toronto Film Festival 9/11/2007, '08 - Toronto 1 & 2, '09 - Albany 1, '11 - Chicago 1
I love Pearl Jam much more, but Radiohead is great.
Did Radiohead announce an American tour????
for her to come home
eyes upon the horizon
in the dark before the
darkness leaves the dawn
+1. Definitely the best way to see any band anyway, but being able to see them up close (and watch Thoms dancing) is brilliant. The noise they make together is incredible. I love that they also mix up their sets a fair bit.