Pearl Jam Rejects Camping at Alpine Valley
Vedder_Girl77
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Alpine Valley concert decline amps up concern
By DARRYL ENRIQUEZ ( Contact ) Sunday, July 3, 2011
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LAFAYETTE TOWNSHIP — The decline in Alpine Valley Music Theatre concerts this season has lead law enforcement and community officials to wonder about the dip in shows.
Curiosity about the concert venue is up because Alpine Valley officials worked hard during the off season to get approvals from the town, Walworth County Sheriff’s Office and county for overnight camping in a parking lot.
Despite the approvals, camping was not offered at Alpine Valley’s first summer concert and it will not be available for what appears to be the venue’s only other summer show.
Attendance for Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band on June 25 was more than 28,000, according to the sheriff’s office.
Camping again will not be offered at Alpine’s next two concerts, Pearl Jam on Sept. 3 and 4, general manager David Shaw said.
Neither Sheriff’s Capt. Dana Nigbor, who coordinates paid security at Alpine, nor Barbara Fischer, LaFayette’s clerk treasurer, knows why only two bands are playing Alpine this summer.
Both expressed curiosity as to why only three shows were scheduled for a venue that had seven shows in 2009 and six in 2010.
Shaw would not comment.
Others speculated.
The sheriff’s office must receive a 60-day notice of a concert, meaning an announced concert could not take the stage until after Pearl Jam plays. The sheriff can waive that requirement.
Teri Adlam, Waukesha County Expo Center manager, said competition to book bands this summer was intensified by the increasing number of venues, such as Indian casinos.
The Expo Center is home to the Waukesha County Fair.
The cost of top acts has risen dramatically, leading some venues to question the profitability of booking them, Adlam said.
Walworth County Fair Manager Susan Pruessing said top bands “are becoming a little more pickier” about where they play.
Concert halls in Branson, Mo., Las Vegas and Chicago have become more appealing to bands, she said. Casinos can bring in musicians, lose money on ticket sales but profit on dinners, drinks and gambling, she said.
When the Dave Matthews Band, once a regular at Alpine Valley, plays Chicago, standard contracts prohibit the band from playing anywhere else within 100 miles, Pruessing said.
Dave Matthews is playing Chicago July 8-10.
The prohibition can last 60 days before and after he plays, Pruessing said.
“You don’t want a band to saturate the market,” she said.
Other bands that made Alpine a regular tour stop have taken a break this summer to work in studios or chose to tour Europe or the East Coast, she said.
Fischer in her connections with Alpine said bands are becoming more selective about the stages and lighting available in performance areas.
A band that travels with its own stage and lighting does not want to play a venue where it can use only the venue’s equipment, Fischer said.
Shaw would not say if that dilemma was affecting Alpine.
Pearl Jam rejected camping at Alpine during its Labor Day performances, according to a Shaw letter to the county.
“I wanted to let you know that unfortunately we will not be having any camping at Alpine Valley Music Theatre this summer,” Shaw wrote.
“We were going to do it for Pearl Jam on Labor Day weekend, but the band met and decided that having camping for their shows is just not the scene/vibe they wanted to create, so they nixed it.
“Hopefully we’ll take another look at this for 2012. I’m aware we need to go through the entire process all over.”
Sheriff’s Capt. Nigbor said her office does not make or lose money by providing traffic and internal security at Alpine. The number of concerts makes no difference to the bottom line of the department’s budget, she said.
A $1.90 security surcharge is included in the cost of each concert ticket. The money is used to pay related expenses and salaries of sheriff’s deputies who work on their own time doing traffic control and security, Nigbor said.
Undersheriff Kurt Picknell said that a six-concert season brings about $250,000 and a seven-concert season brings about $300,000 to the sheriff’s office.
Under contract, Alpine must make sure all expenses from the sheriff’s office are covered.
The downturn in concerts could hurt deputies in their personal pocketbooks who make extra money at Alpine, Nigbor said.
“Some guys don’t mind because they’d rather have their summer weekends off,” she said.
Apparently, non-touring bands feel the same way.
By DARRYL ENRIQUEZ ( Contact ) Sunday, July 3, 2011
EMAIL SHARE PRINT
ADVERTISEMENT Beloit Snappers
First National Bank
LAFAYETTE TOWNSHIP — The decline in Alpine Valley Music Theatre concerts this season has lead law enforcement and community officials to wonder about the dip in shows.
Curiosity about the concert venue is up because Alpine Valley officials worked hard during the off season to get approvals from the town, Walworth County Sheriff’s Office and county for overnight camping in a parking lot.
Despite the approvals, camping was not offered at Alpine Valley’s first summer concert and it will not be available for what appears to be the venue’s only other summer show.
Attendance for Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band on June 25 was more than 28,000, according to the sheriff’s office.
Camping again will not be offered at Alpine’s next two concerts, Pearl Jam on Sept. 3 and 4, general manager David Shaw said.
Neither Sheriff’s Capt. Dana Nigbor, who coordinates paid security at Alpine, nor Barbara Fischer, LaFayette’s clerk treasurer, knows why only two bands are playing Alpine this summer.
Both expressed curiosity as to why only three shows were scheduled for a venue that had seven shows in 2009 and six in 2010.
Shaw would not comment.
Others speculated.
The sheriff’s office must receive a 60-day notice of a concert, meaning an announced concert could not take the stage until after Pearl Jam plays. The sheriff can waive that requirement.
Teri Adlam, Waukesha County Expo Center manager, said competition to book bands this summer was intensified by the increasing number of venues, such as Indian casinos.
The Expo Center is home to the Waukesha County Fair.
The cost of top acts has risen dramatically, leading some venues to question the profitability of booking them, Adlam said.
Walworth County Fair Manager Susan Pruessing said top bands “are becoming a little more pickier” about where they play.
Concert halls in Branson, Mo., Las Vegas and Chicago have become more appealing to bands, she said. Casinos can bring in musicians, lose money on ticket sales but profit on dinners, drinks and gambling, she said.
When the Dave Matthews Band, once a regular at Alpine Valley, plays Chicago, standard contracts prohibit the band from playing anywhere else within 100 miles, Pruessing said.
Dave Matthews is playing Chicago July 8-10.
The prohibition can last 60 days before and after he plays, Pruessing said.
“You don’t want a band to saturate the market,” she said.
Other bands that made Alpine a regular tour stop have taken a break this summer to work in studios or chose to tour Europe or the East Coast, she said.
Fischer in her connections with Alpine said bands are becoming more selective about the stages and lighting available in performance areas.
A band that travels with its own stage and lighting does not want to play a venue where it can use only the venue’s equipment, Fischer said.
Shaw would not say if that dilemma was affecting Alpine.
Pearl Jam rejected camping at Alpine during its Labor Day performances, according to a Shaw letter to the county.
“I wanted to let you know that unfortunately we will not be having any camping at Alpine Valley Music Theatre this summer,” Shaw wrote.
“We were going to do it for Pearl Jam on Labor Day weekend, but the band met and decided that having camping for their shows is just not the scene/vibe they wanted to create, so they nixed it.
“Hopefully we’ll take another look at this for 2012. I’m aware we need to go through the entire process all over.”
Sheriff’s Capt. Nigbor said her office does not make or lose money by providing traffic and internal security at Alpine. The number of concerts makes no difference to the bottom line of the department’s budget, she said.
A $1.90 security surcharge is included in the cost of each concert ticket. The money is used to pay related expenses and salaries of sheriff’s deputies who work on their own time doing traffic control and security, Nigbor said.
Undersheriff Kurt Picknell said that a six-concert season brings about $250,000 and a seven-concert season brings about $300,000 to the sheriff’s office.
Under contract, Alpine must make sure all expenses from the sheriff’s office are covered.
The downturn in concerts could hurt deputies in their personal pocketbooks who make extra money at Alpine, Nigbor said.
“Some guys don’t mind because they’d rather have their summer weekends off,” she said.
Apparently, non-touring bands feel the same way.
8/29/00, 7/3/03, 5/24/06,6/28/08 & 6/30/08, 10/9/09,10/28/09, 10/30/09 & 10/31/09, 5/15/10, 5/17/10, 5/18/10, 5/20/10 & 5/21/10, 10/23/10 & 10/24/10, 9/3/11, 9/4/11, 9/11/11, 9/12/11, 9/23/11, 9/22/12, 9/30/12, 7/16/13, 7/19/13
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Comments
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strange, you would think cheap camping is better then expensive hotels especially with tons of people coming from all over the place.
M===
"OH Canada...You are so Beautiful when you are Drunk." Eddie
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03-05-30 Vanc;05-09-08 Wpg
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05-09-05 Edm Alb;05-09-02 Vanc
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I have never camped out for or at a concert, but would have tried it here. Oh well."...would you like some forks?" EV 12-02-060
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They must have been worried about potential S'mores-fueled mayhem.
It's all fun and games until someone loses a marshmallow.15 years of sharks 06/30/08 (MA), 05/17/10 (Boston), 09/03/11 (Alpine Valley), 09/04/11 (Alpine Valley), 09/30/12 (Missoula), 07/19/13 (Wrigley), 10/15/13 (Worcester), 10/16/13 (Worcester), 10/25/13 (Hartford), 12/4/13 (Vancouver), 12/6/13 (Seattle), 6/26/14 (Berlin), 6/28/14 (Stockholm), 10/16/14 (Detroit)0 -
How cool that would be pearl jam fans camping out, one big happy family!!
That means more lines,traffic and more tickets written out they better not fuck this weekend up
This is much the fans show as it is the bands
should we protest? and all 30,000 people just stay there just put up a tent and wait till morning
and the next band. Probably to late for that but it sure would've saved me a lot of money!!!Post edited by jopetto75 onuntil next time......0 -
didn't tim on the AET say something about space and how alpine valley requires every camper have a certain amount of space and that not a lot of people would have camping and other reasons why that i can't think of right now that may have to do with RVs?PJ: 9/29/04, 5/12/06, 5/13/06, 6/22/08, 6/24/08, 6/25/08, 6/27/08, 6/30/08, 10/30/09, 10/31/09, 5/18/10, 5/20/10, 5/21/10, 9/3/11, 9/4/11, 10/18/13, 8/7/16
eV: 8/4/08, 8/5/08, 6/21/11
SG: 10/4/08<-- MET STONE!!!0 -
I guess they were going for the kinda vibe that would make us scramble for over-priced and limited local hotel rooms....I don't get it.90 shows and counting...some of my favs: Randall's Island night 2, Milwaukee '95 night 2, Hawaii '06, St Johns '05, PJ20!0
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washedinblack91 wrote:didn't tim on the AET say something about space and how alpine valley requires every camper have a certain amount of space and that not a lot of people would have camping and other reasons why that i can't think of right now that may have to do with RVs?
I know I read something a while back about the camping regs. I think it was a link from the AV website. It was definitely assigned tenting sites, no more than (I think) one tent per site, and no RVs at all. It was when I was thinking I would drive out with my camping trailer.
My impression was those were the site's rules. Not unlike campground policies.
I don't remember what the fees were.15 years of sharks 06/30/08 (MA), 05/17/10 (Boston), 09/03/11 (Alpine Valley), 09/04/11 (Alpine Valley), 09/30/12 (Missoula), 07/19/13 (Wrigley), 10/15/13 (Worcester), 10/16/13 (Worcester), 10/25/13 (Hartford), 12/4/13 (Vancouver), 12/6/13 (Seattle), 6/26/14 (Berlin), 6/28/14 (Stockholm), 10/16/14 (Detroit)0 -
Didn't I also read that there was a very limited number of sites they would have made available?...like 100 or something? Wouldn't that be a lot of time, money and effort to arrange 24 hr security and facilities just to give a couple hundred people a place to sleep?0
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"just not the scene/vibe they wanted to create"
really?? what vibe and scene are you trying to create? one where people have to inconveniently travel across the country or overseas to see you?
often you've stated on and off stage that the FANS are the reason you're where you are? THAT'S FUCKING RIGHT. So why not let the FANS decide whether or not they can camp at a venue or at least leave it up to the venue.
Sorry, but on independence day, this sort of made me puke in my mouth. i've lost a little respect today for this band.0 -
I like how no matter what PJ does, it is never enough for some.
What other band offers as much to their fans?
Oh, well. I guess if people what to piss and moan about ridiculously small issues, that's what the internet is for.0 -
jesus. you gonna be ok?starmap3333 wrote:"just not the scene/vibe they wanted to create"
really?? what vibe and scene are you trying to create? one where people have to inconveniently travel across the country or overseas to see you?
often you've stated on and off stage that the FANS are the reason you're where you are? THAT'S FUCKING RIGHT. So why not let the FANS decide whether or not they can camp at a venue or at least leave it up to the venue.
Sorry, but on independence day, this sort of made me puke in my mouth. i've lost a little respect today for this band.
So if my post above yours was right and there was only 100 spots available....would you now be here, veins-a-poppin, bitching that they didn't build you a bigger campground?
"You motherfuckers invoncenience me by MAKING me travel cross country to a show, and on top of that I don't get to stay in a dusty parking lot? I have to stay in a fucking HOTEL??? the NERVE! "
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Drowned Out wrote:
jesus. you gonna be ok?starmap3333 wrote:"just not the scene/vibe they wanted to create"
really?? what vibe and scene are you trying to create? one where people have to inconveniently travel across the country or overseas to see you?
often you've stated on and off stage that the FANS are the reason you're where you are? THAT'S FUCKING RIGHT. So why not let the FANS decide whether or not they can camp at a venue or at least leave it up to the venue.
Sorry, but on independence day, this sort of made me puke in my mouth. i've lost a little respect today for this band.
So if my post above yours was right and there was only 100 spots available....would you now be here, veins-a-poppin, bitching that they didn't build you a bigger campground?
"You motherfuckers invoncenience me by MAKING me travel cross country to a show, and on top of that I don't get to stay in a dusty parking lot? I have to stay in a fucking HOTEL??? the NERVE! "
hahaha.
i'm just opinionated, like everyone else here. i'm a fan of camping and other bands have been successful with it. 100 spots could be a litmus test for, maybe, more spots in the future for alpine. it's something that alpine was interested in trying and there was obviously interest from people going to PJ20. camping at shows that last 2 days or more has a nice feel and vibe to it from my experiences. they said they didn't want "that vibe/scene". like they're staying there anyway! that's all. i'm a fan, always have been, always will be. i'm probably a little jaded. i'll be there. 0 -
:thumbup:starmap3333 wrote:
hahaha. i'm just opinionated, like everyone else here. i'm a fan of camping and other bands have been successful with it. 100 spots could be a litmus test for, maybe, more spots in the future for alpine. it's something that alpine was interested in trying and there was obviously interest from people going to PJ20. camping at shows that last 2 days or more has a nice feel and vibe to it from my experiences. they said they didn't want "that vibe/scene". like they're staying there anyway! that's all. i'm a fan, always have been, always will be. i'm probably a little jaded. i'll be there.
I agree, camping would have been a nice option...I probably wouldn't have taken it myself, considering the logistics of travelling with camping gear....But I'm sure the Alpine people themselves want this option (infers as much in that article)...I think the problem is likely resistance to expanding the number of campers from the locals and their govt reps, and the fact that (as I mentioned), if it was only 100 spots, it's just too much hassle to accommodate too few people.0 -
Its funny for me. The LAST place I want to be if I was attending this, is camping out in a tent! ahhaha..Its the age thing I guess (37)..and I presume it might be the age thing with Pearl Jam too. I'm sure all they picture is drunken mayhem, with some potential for someone to get hurt and thats all it is.
Who knows though ;-)0 -
sward wrote:Its funny for me. The LAST place I want to be if I was attending this, is camping out in a tent! ahhaha..Its the age thing I guess (37)..and I presume it might be the age thing with Pearl Jam too. I'm sure all they picture is drunken mayhem, with some potential for someone to get hurt and thats all it is.
Who knows though ;-)
+1 :thumbup:0 -
The decision was made *WITH* the fans in mind. We are not privy to why every decision is made (nor should we expect that). Take Ed's solo shows; there are some that feel slighted if Ed doesn't come outside after the show to shake hands, etc... The man gives everything he has to make the show itself special and no where on the ticket does it say "after show meet and greet". Yet he does it on occasion. But some still want more and still feel entitled. "PJ20" at Alpine is being designed as a celebration for everyone- including the rabid and dedicated fan base. They've taken care of us for 20 years and we've taken care of them. Here's to another 20.0
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Maybe they were concerned about drunken rowdy people wreaking havoc on fellow campers? I dunno. All I can say is that I've had bad experiences with really drunk people at campgrounds, some of them destroy property, start fights and people end up calling the cops, it's not pretty. Hoping it doesn't happen at the campground I'm staying at for PJ20. :?Chicago 2000 : Chicago 2003 : Chicago 2006 : Summerfest 2006 : Lollapalooza 2007 : Chicago 2009 : Noblesville (Indy) 2010 : PJ20 (East Troy) 2011 : Wrigley Field 2013 : Milwaukee (Yield) 2014 : Wrigley Field 20160
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it is pretty lame... especially considering the expensive hotel packages they had when tickets went on sale... that's the vibe they want? i know i'm in the younger demographic of their fan base, but it'd be nice if so many decisions and price points didn't seem SO catered to the well established 40 y.o. super fans around here... get back to your grunge roots... and cut back on drunk driving that weekendstarmap3333 wrote:"just not the scene/vibe they wanted to create"
really?? what vibe and scene are you trying to create? one where people have to inconveniently travel across the country or overseas to see you?
often you've stated on and off stage that the FANS are the reason you're where you are? THAT'S FUCKING RIGHT. So why not let the FANS decide whether or not they can camp at a venue or at least leave it up to the venue.
Sorry, but on independence day, this sort of made me puke in my mouth. i've lost a little respect today for this band.
not a huge deal... i'll find camping somewhere else or stay with a friend in milwaukee... but I was kinda excited to camp out there for the first time if possible0 -
I'm surprised that they didn't offer camping for PJ20. I'm sure it would have been a lot cheaper than the hotel packages they were offering.8/29/00, 7/3/03, 5/24/06,6/28/08 & 6/30/08, 10/9/09,10/28/09, 10/30/09 & 10/31/09, 5/15/10, 5/17/10, 5/18/10, 5/20/10 & 5/21/10, 10/23/10 & 10/24/10, 9/3/11, 9/4/11, 9/11/11, 9/12/11, 9/23/11, 9/22/12, 9/30/12, 7/16/13, 7/19/130
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I wonder if this just applies to Alpine Valley property??
I think I remember reading somewhere, maybe in one of the parking threads,
that there were other properties nearby (seem to remember something just across the street)
that also allowed parking / camping.
Anyone else remember reading this, or know about other places within walking distance to Alpine Valley
where camping is allowed? :ugeek:'96: Seattle: Key Arena
'98: Seattle: Memorial Stadium 1 & 2
'00: Columbus: Polaris
'03: Columbus: Germain
'10: Columbus: Nationwide Arena
'11: East Troy: Alpine Valley - PJ20 1 & 2 + EV Detroit
'12: Missoula + EV Jacksonville 1 & 2
'13: Chicago / Pittsburgh / Buffalo / Seattle
'14: Cincinnati / St. Louis / Tulsa / Lincoln / Memphis / Detroit / Moline
'15: New York City - Global Citizen Festival
'16: Greenville / Hampton / Raleigh / Columbia / Lexington / Ottawa / Toronto 1 & 2 / Wrigley 1 & 2
'17: Brooklyn - Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
'18: London 1 & 2 / Seattle 1 & 2 / Missoula / Wrigley 1
'22: Nashville / St. Louis0
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