holy shit
this here is just to say that we were more than taken aback and surprised about the speed of ticket sales for the april 2nd MSG gig, as well as the effectiveness of scalper pieces of fucking shit at getting their hands on said tickets before fans could, and it’s knocked us on our asses.
no—we didn’t have a smart paperless ticketing system in place, and no—we didn’t have the pre-sale worked out very well, but this is simply because we’ve never sold anything out so quickly in our LIVES, and certainly never sold out anything as big as MSG. i personally thought i was being bold in suggesting to our manager that we might sell it out “in 10 days”. that was my bold claim. everyone laughed at me. it’s us and liquid liquid. that’s it. we had MEETINGS and MEETINGS about the “other band” we needed to “fill the place”, as we were definitely considered to be nowhere near big enough (most of these bands were, like, way bigger than us, by the way).
we didn’t sell out hollywood bowl, and that was with both hot chip and sleigh bells. there was, i repeat, no expectation of our selling this out either. my main concerns at the time were things like ticketmaster charges—how they were going to make the tickets ridiculously costly… we never dreamed some shitbags would try to get THOUSANDS for our show. it’s insane.
but it happened. we all looked at each other in horror and sat there. i mean, aren’t you supposed to be psyched? your band sold out madison square garden! i live in nyc, and that’s THE PLACE. i saw the jackson’s victory tour there when i was a kid.
but there it was—the shit was gone, and people—not just people, but fucking proper fans—were PISSED. nancy from the band tried to buy tickets. failed. i tried. failed. our best friends—not wanting to hassle us for guestlist spots tried—failed. i bought 2 tickets to my own show for 3 times the value like an idiot to see if real tickets showed up. my family got burned.
it was, to say the least, weird.
we tried getting another day at MSG. i’d mentioned this before and most everyone kind of rolled their eyes at me. “2 madison square garden shows, dude? really?” i thought, well, just in case, you know? maybe some people would fly from other places or something. but MSG, being one of the most popular venues on the planet, was unsurprisingly booked. (for the record: just because it doesn’t look booked on the internet, doesn’t mean it’s available. just saying.)
we tried calling our lawyer about the ticket scalping. “it’s legal”. no joke. it’s fucking legal. i tramped around with friends and band getting insane. i wanted to buy some expensive tickets and then track the seller down to BEAT him. i acted stupid. i did some classic, shakespearean vain “fist shaking”, etc. i made angry tweets. (i’m wondering now what on earth could be less effective and more of a first-world spoiled idiotic move than “angry tweets”? jesus.) i read conspiracy theories about how this was some cash-grab i orchestrated. i read that there are 50,000 seats at MSG (i think our show will have 13k). i read that people had already bought flights, hotels. wanted to bring their kids. waited in the cold. i read that some people thought this was one of the reasons we were calling it quits (check). i read that this was a media stunt we planned. i read very funny comments from my friend aziz, one of which was taken seriously (that MSG had given me 30,000 tickets personally for guest list). i read that i was giving all the tickets to my “new celebrity friends” (aziz is about the closest thing i have to a “celebrity friend”, and we met at terminal 5 watching hot chip when we were, well, not very “celebrated”). i read that we should cancel the show and put the tickets up on sale in a better fashion. i read that we should NOT do that, for fuck’s sake. i read that we should go fuck ourselves.
i read a lot of stuff, waiting to hear if we could get another night at MSG, which seemed like the only option. but it failed. then i kind of sat in my house, trying not to worry for 20 minutes, and made a very, very good coffee.
i don’t know what people think about us, really. i’d love to say i don’t care, but i do. these people in my band—they are my very good friends. i love them very much. i love this band very much. everything about it. i’m very proud of it—of us, and i get defensive when people talk shit about us. i feel like we’ve been able to do something sort of special for 9 years: making music we like the way we like it. going on tour and playing, no computers or bullshit. no in-ears. a bunch of weird substitute teachers just trying to play something like the bands we loved growing up. whenever anyone said shit about us being sellouts or something, it stung, because i consider this entire thing—the band, everything—to be a communication between us and whoever is listening, and not just a thing unto itself. i remember being a fan and seeing bands, thinking “this is us. this is you playing and me/us watching” and how real that connection was, and i always wanted to honor that strange relationship with our band. so when someone felt wronged or hurt or outraged, it stung. it stung because, on some level, regardless of the “you can’t please everyone” stuff that gets rationally said to you when this shit happens, it meant that i’d failed. i’d failed to communicate. on the other hand, i’ve had my world turned upside down by a lot of amazing things people have said about us, or to us. i’ve met fans and made friends, and felt very strongly how that relationship actually works—and how we brought ourselves, each other, finally here, to where we play our last show—and biggest show ever—together, at this amazing place.
and then, this fucking ticket thing happened.
so to the point. you can’t make everyone happy, and i’m sure this will wind someone up somewhere (“but i paid $600 for one seat at MSG!!!) or seem like some shitty “plan” to someone else (“they were gonna do it all along!!! it’s all a big retirement money plan to bilk the fans!!!”) or something else that someone who theoretically likes our band thinks (why are you trying to buy a ticket?? how could you even listen to a band that you think is capable of some of this shit!??) but we’ve come up with the best solution i can think of, as quickly as possible so as to deflate the market for those scalping scumfucks.
we’re going to play 4 shows at terminal 5 in nyc leading up to the MSG show, and they will include most if not all of the songs we play at MSG. the farewell run-up to the last dance. it’ll be the 28th, 29th, 30th and 31st of march. OBVIOUSLY we’re going to look seriously at the way we sell these tickets. not “paperless, (i’ve been advised that the “paperless” thing is apparently now ILLEGAL in NY… seriously—don’t ask me) but there are some ideas floating around that could be just as effective (though it’ll take a minute to get folks in the door.)
we’ll announce the shows officially early in the week, and tickets will be on sale soon after. we’re announcing all the shows at once, and if they don’t sell out, i don’t care. i just want to give people who actually want to see us a chance to see us. for a reasonable ticket price. and i want to drop the price of the MSG tickets being sold by piece of shit scalpers.
oh—and a small thing to scalpers: “it’s legal” is what people say when they don’t have ethics. the law is there to set the LIMIT of what is PUNISHABLE (aka where the state needs to intervene) but we are supposed to have ethics, and that should be the primary guiding force in our actions, you fucking fuck.
and to everyone else: thank you. you rule. don’t let the shitbags win.
i feel like conan o’brien.
james
and this, james murphy confirms you are the coolest dude in the world.
if you wernt threatening to disappear then this problem would not exist.
if you were shit this problem would not exist
ANSWER. become shit and keep gigging. simples
:::thanks for being sincere and for being so inspiring. im losing my edge with this ticket situation, especially the timing with such an epic final run of shows. but i’ll see you again at the Coachella 2016 reunion show. in the meantime, keep trying new shit and pushing the boundaries. And for us fans in echo park PLEASE DO A LIVE BROADCAST OF THE MSG SHOW!! you told our friends how it starts, now i guess your gonna show us how it ends:::
Who’ll be my role model, now that my role model’s gone?
x
I love you James Murphy.
that was a moving message. you are a credit to musicians everywhere. what a clever and effective way to show that you care about your fans. hats off to you!
never have i been so surprised and delighted by the solution to a horrific crime against music. You guys fuckin rock.
i’ll be so glad to know i was there.
Wish you were doing final shows on the east and west coast. I mean, I really understand where your coming from james, But you do have a ridiculous amount of not-so-rich fans that want to see you in LA, and I’m not saying its not worth the effort to pay for a flight and go out to nyc to see you, im just saying, its not in alot of our budget to do so.
That said, i wish you guys the most farewell ever, at all of your shows, we love you very much and wish to see you in the future sometime as we get older.
I just wanted to thank you, mr. murphy. You are a class act and it is refreshing to see a band go out of it’s way to look out for their fans so much. I, like many others, were f’d in the a by ticketmaster today, and it’s becoming all too familiar. more important than the scalpers is the fact that ticketmaster continually lets this happen time and time again. they need to be held accountable for their actions, though i don’t see that happening anytime soon. anyways, thanks for adding those shows.
hopefully the show at msg won’t be the real last show. it rarely ever is :^p
I don’t claim to be a life long 9 year LCD fan but I saw you last year in Melbourne and you blew me away. This blows me away again and makes me wish I could see you again soon (didn’t get Bog Day Out tickets). Thank you for an incredibly well written letter, true to what I’m sure you feel. Good luck with the final shows, fuck the scalpers.
“big” day out. Quite the faux pa.
i don’t understand the problem with stubhub. you say “fans” as if there is some form of authenticity associated with only an ability to pay a lower ticket price. i respond, in an open market for tickets, don’t your fans pay whatever they can to see your last show? a fan will do whatever he/she can to see the show. he/she loves you. for art, money is nothing, right. so those who can afford an expensive ticket are “lesser” fans than those who can only afford the decided upon given cost? we true fans will pay what we can, because we love your music. my love is nothing less than any other fan–except i will pay more for a ticket. i will sacrifice. the fact is, you price your tickets far below an actual market price (stubhub indicates what people are willing to pay to see your last show) and the real demand to see your show reveals itself outside the pitchfork presale/ticketmaster sale. it’s far more “bullshit” to have fans, who are willing to pay whatever they can to see you, get fucked out of their hard earned money, versus fans, that can only pay $50, see you without the same stress. and this comes from a poor grad student. and i think you’re awesome, by the way.
my favorite band…. i will pay but man o man you make it worth it!!!! cant wait- ban stubhub from the buy- real fans need a chance!!
James
My girlfriend and I are huge fans. We’re sad that this is the end of lcd, but wish you all the best for future projects. We’re also sorry that the MSG ticket sale experienced the problems it did. But I’m sure that anyone who is reasonable, who has an inkling of common sense and an understanding of what lcd stands for, realises that this is out of your control – you were trying to do something good, something special for a final goodbye. And despite all that’s happened in the past 24 hours we hope that the show on the 2nd April is a fitting swansong. We wish we could be there – we have been trying to arrange flights from the UK as we really wanted to be part of that goodbye. Thank you for the great music and the unforgettable memories – you’ve been a part of our lives and will be greatly missed. We can’t wait too see what you do next! The Terminal 5 shows are a great response to the scalpers – I hope everyone who goes has a great time, and that you do as well.
Andy P
Can I just say this is amazing. I personally got MSG tkts way up stage left on Stub Hub for four of us and winced a little when I paid $192 for them. But I am sorry, I pay more for a basket of crap at Target often. I am not wealthy by any stretch. I am sorry the money won’t go to you. But I don’t blame you for the situation. I saw you at the Orpheum in Boston all by myself, a mom of two and 38, and was electrified and connected and joyful. That is why I didn’t twitter or freak or get mad, and just got my tickets in hand by 12pm yesterday. Didn’t feel entitled to them, but felt lucky to get them. Thank you for the music. I can’t even believe I’m commenting on a fan site but you have moved me to do it. Be kind to yourself today!
This letter shows me, a fan, that this band is composed of the exact type of people you’d always hoped it was. The integrity and modesty shown in your work, and this letter, are qualities often lacked by artists of your caliber. I hope that by some dumb luck or karmic intervention I can be at one of your last shows. This band means everything to me, and I’ve still yet to see you live, in person. I’ll be flying to New York. Even if I don’t get to see your show, know that I’ll be there.
Thank you LCD Soundsystem,
I’m sad to see you go, happy with the music you gave us, thrilled the show sold-out (testament to the talent), disappointed to hear about the scalpers (bastards!), excited about the new shows (still hoping to go), proud to be a fan…Yr City’s a Sucker, My City’s a Creep.
Love from France!
Thanks for this. We’ll be there!!
1. Terminal 5 sucks.
2. I had no problem obtaining the pitchfork presale tickets.
3. A secondary market for tickets is not a big deal. If artists want to prevent it, start having your “REAL FANS” bid on your tickets. You’ll still see the same douchebag pricing.
[...] before the MSG show at the smaller Terminal 5 venue from March 28th to 31st.Be sure to read the lengthy, honest and entertaining blog post from Murphy about the whole situation:this here is just to say that we were more than taken aback [...]
BEST NEWS OF THE WEEK (well apart from people liberating themselves from 30 years of dictatorial rule in Egypt, but you know what I mean…)
Now please please please, put in as many anti-sclaper measures as you can but dont make it impossible for people not in NY to get tickets!
I think part of the issue here is that LCD Soundsystem created something that touched a lot of people. Thier music actually means something. Reading what James wrote I get that same same passion that their music is infused with. It comes from a very real place, and that cant be faked.
No matter what you do, you are never going to keep everyone happy. Its not a black and white world. You are doing what you can by adding the extra shows, rational people will understand that.
[...] James Murphy and LCD Soundsystem put scalpers on alert late Friday night when they posted a scathing “f*ck you” letter on their website. Within the letter, Murphy announced that more “farewell” shows have been added to the calendar, specifically four shows at Terminal 5 on March 28th, 29th, 30th, and 31st, which will lead up to the final show at MSG on April 2nd. [...]
My boyfriend and I were lucky enough to see you 3 times in montreal over the years. I think it’s great you even tried with this whole tickets shenanigans. And yes, lcd succeeded in connecting with fans the way you said; each show felt like you were playing for just us. For what it’s worth, that’s what it was all about for me. We got to experience it; if we can get another crack in new york, great, but if not, still, success.
FUCKing right James.
I’m coming to these shows. AND! I’m wearing white.
Love from Scotland.
Mike
X
I was one of the lucky fans to get tickets, I’m going to fly from Ireland, don’t have the money but I’ll get it somewhere!
People keep telling me I should have bought extra tickets and scalped them to pay for the flights….but I just said it’s bad karma.
I can’t wait, good man James…..
Thanks for the new shows, sounds like a road trip to NYC, if you get a chance put me down for a couple of tickets – I really don’t want to miss these shows.
Sir you are a man of legend.
This is why I love you, James Murphy.
Talk to Trent Reznor about private ticketing. He did it successfully for for the last several tours.
Welp, based on this post I’ve decided to listed to LCD for the first time ever, several years too late. Nothing I love more than a musician who appreciates his/her fans. Gonna buy a cd today without ever laying ears on it, and even if its not my thing, I’ll know its far from a waste.
well at least they got MSG for April 2 and not April 1, can you fucking imagine?
I once saw James Murphy walking in Manhattan, while coincidentally listening to “New York I love you”, which was an amazing coincidence. I had recently moved here, had broken up with my girlfriend who I thought I would spend the rest of my life with. I knew few people, and things were a bit tough. I can’t really explain why that moment made me so happy, but the music took on more significance from that moment on. Two years after moving, things have picked up massively, and I was so looking forward to experiencing the music again now that this is my home. Not getting tickets was devastating.
This restores my faith! Thank you!
Never had the pleasure of seeing you guys live (Dallas isn’t exactly one of the places a lot of bands go through). Still, this is one of the many reasons why I love you guys. You actually give a shit about the experience. I only hope a soundboard recording is released of a few of these shows, produced by Mr. Murphy and Co. at DFA.
I don’t want you to think I’m not a fan of LCD and I’ve loved seeing you at shows and festivals around the country for years, but aren’t you just getting angry at others about your own mistake? Why didn’t you just limit the amount of tickets people could buy to one or two tickets, or “with ID”? Then we could all be paying reasonable prices to go to the show at an awesome venue. Bands do this all the time and it works. I’ve even been to MSG shows where they did this. You didn’t limit the ticket quantity to 2 tickets cause you were afraid supply would exceed demand, but when demand exceeded supply and your own fans were the victims, then its everybody else’s fault. It’s awesome that your mending the error, its an honest mistake, but it isn’t some guys fault who’s trying to make a buck that caused the issue. Just sayin’.
Scalping isn’t a big deal! Neither is heckling little league games or drilling holes in bed pans.
I will be in a Yankee jacket on the corner of 8 and 31. I’ll be the one that’s eight feet tall.
you added FOUR more shows to piss off a single group of idiots?
you are far more dedicated than i originally thought, james. but you aren’t the only ones outraged by people making money off the real fans in misery.
i’m recalling jack white using ebay auctions to sell some of his more prized third man records to the people who wanted them, not the “flippers” who made money off those people.
and maybe this would have been an acceptable solution. instead of the lottery system in place, perhaps staggered mass auctions (scaled by how good the seats were) could have deflated any attempts at scalping the tickets. in this way, the people that wanted the tickets could get them (at the price they were willing to pay!), and not by some ridiculous captcha (the squiggly words to make sure you’re not a robot) hack.
just know that many of us, at the very least, think you’re not a sellout. try not to get too pissed off by the ones that do.
peace and love,
sam.
why don’t you just retire to vegas and have a permanent show there for 3 years like wayne newton…that way everyone can see you…
You guys are so great, I love you seriously dude I dont know any band that is so passionate about this. I have had bands break up on me, try to go to shows on their final tours etc. and it didn’t work, things like this happened buuuuut, they didnt do anything about it. You guys are amazing and ethical for doing this. Thanks man!
We got tickets legit tickets to the MGS show! We got lucky, and got them in the pre-sale for $60 a pop. Please don’t hate us James, not everyone at the MGS show is a SOB!!!
Great letter. And sincerely thank you for adding the extra shows, especially adding them at a more intimate venue. I’ll definitely fly from the Chi to be at one of them, and hopefully I can get a reasonably priced ticket for the MSG show. New York here I come
Thank you so much for adding more shows. I tried and failed both presale and regular sale to no avail, and sincerely angry that I didn’t go with my original plan to stand on line at the mercury lounge with the people to get actual tickets (avoiding the bullsht ticketmaster charges would have been a bonus.) I am almost happier that this happened. I didn’t want to pay some scalper an enormous amount to sit at a seat in the rafters in msg. I would rather be dancing like a fool on the floor. That is what seeing LCD Soundsystem is all about! Thanks again!
james, I love the fact that you care about the fans, and I 100% agree these scalpers are scumbags, but I scored a scalped ticket, something I’m not proud of. I bought the ticket before I knew about the controversy. Now I am worried that the MSG show is going to be canceled, or half empty. If you are offering the Term 5 shows as exactly the same thing but in a more intimate setting, that sort of takes away the uniqueness and buzz around the MSG show. I am not trying to give you a-damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t situation, I’m just saying for those of us who did get a ticket at MSG shouldn’t be left with a last LCD@MSG show that isn’t as good as we had paid extra for.
Btw, I hate the fact that I gave one of these shitbag scalpers my money.
I’d also like to say that the scalpers are obviously to blame, but what about Ticketmaster? On the day of the presale, there was tickets on StubHub instantaneously. that means these scalpers had, or claimed to have, tickets before they were on sale? Some dudes had 50 floor seats for sale. Something is fishy, how did the stinky scalpers get the tickets so quickly? doesn’t ticketmaster have something in place to prevent this from happening? If not, then what exactly are the offering?
I think ticketmaster is a seriously flawed company ethically and flawed business model, there has to be a better system.
Thank you James,
I’m planning to come to new york from montreal with my love for this =). Hopefully it all works out and we can get tickets and enjoy the “us” you mention again.
We miss you all.
are these terminal 5 gigs going to be as large in scale as msg? for example, are they still going to have the choir and string sections? and the dress code? please say yes.
I read this long piece twice since it’s so nice…
…And my English is bad.
James, all i can say is thank you. i appreciate that you not only saw the problem but are trying your damnest to fix it. i have been fortunate enough to see LCD a bunch of times as well as some solo gigs and i was able to get a ticket on the presale but i certainly felt for those who have just as much love for the music you guys create and were shut out. i am so happy you were able to come up with something to not only give the fans another chance but to say fuck you to the scalpers. it is with great sadness that we have to say goodbye to LCD but im quite ready for the party. i’ll see you on april 2nd Sir! look for me, i’ll be the one in black. cheers!
Brokers buy the tickets same way fans do. If fans ain’t getting tickets, it’s because they are not where they need to be when they need to be.
PS- sold out is never sold out. Someplace like MSG releases all the crappy seats first, and once they are sold out and demand has built, they release better seats. You have a better chance of scoring front-row on day-of than you do on on-sale date.
Don’t blame the brokers, blame the venues and TicketBastard for manipulating the amount of tickets available to maximize their profits.
Speaking for Chicago and someone who saw you three times last year…one more show in Chicago please! Why does NY get to have all the fun? I know everyone here in Chicago is very jealous
I am just excited that I may actually finally see a show before it’s over. I was sooo dissapointed when I couldn’t get msg tix but now I don’t feel so bad. I look forward to making one of your shows!!!!!
James, Thank you. I am on the forum and seeing so many people there and elsewhere among your fanbase get screwed must have really stung for someone who gives a damn the way you do. I know you are quitting LCD because you want to keep it special, but losing an artist who actually cares is a true loss. Because I am traveling cross country to see the show and I can’t miss work I will still have to pay some scalper for MSG seats. That makes me ill. (I was on TM both times and had no luck). I wish I could go to Terminal to support this awesome move. Either way, I would not miss it for the world
james, you are a proper man.