I don’t know about you, but I can’t think of a better way to spend a Friday or Saturday night, or any night of the week for that matter, than experiencing live music. I am fortunate to live in city that has great live music seven nights a week (see Nashville, Where Country is Only the Tip of the Iceberg).

While part of me would like to spend every single night at a different venue, I’m not sure how long my ear drums or the “home-lifer” in me would put up with it. I do, however, try to make it to at least one or two shows a week. This got me thinking though. My ears and the convenience of the sofa aside, if I could go see live music every night of the week, where would I rather spend my time and money, the coffee shop, the club, or the arena?

Here’s what I decided. I’ve pretty much given up on the arena, stadium, and large amphitheater for experiencing great music. The only exception here is when Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers roll into town. Its not that you can’t hear “good” music at a large venue, but there are too many other negative factors that weigh in. First, these types of shows, if you’re even able to get tickets, are usually way over priced. I don’t want to point fingers as to who is responsible for high ticket prices because it is usually a combination of factors. But my days of jumping on the computer right as the “pre-sale” begins, only to be stuck in row 80 at $150.00 a pop before added fees are over.

Secondly, you have to order your tickets exclusively through Ticketmaster, pay the above mentioned additional fees, fight large crowds, and struggle to find parking. You usually have to plan to attend these types of shows months in advance and for me, that takes some of the spontaneity and fun out of the experience.

I don’t want this post to be about how you shouldn’t go these bigger shows, but rather, why it is better to support smaller national, regional, and local acts. First, for the cost of one arena show, you could see seven or eight shows at small venues and experience a lot more variety. Plus, I think there is a part of all of us that likes to support the underdog so to speak. While many of the acts that play club shows these days are really successful, there are just as many artists that are struggling to make it. I would rather support them than help an act on their eighth farewell tour buy a yacht. I also like the idea of supporting smaller independent promoters and venue owners.

Additionally, I get a much more up close and personal feeling at smaller shows. Many of these shows are general admission and providing that you are not fashionably late, you can sit or stand where ever you choose to. There are not additional parking fees, and entering a club or coffee shop usually isn’t a metal detector frisking affair.

So for my time and money, I’d much rather experience live music at the clubs and coffee shops where I feel like I am contributing to an artists career and my local community. I think we will see a rise in the number of smaller venue shows as many of the acts that are still able to fill the arena and amphitheaters permanently retire.

This week has been all about Radiohead, and I doubt there are many music blogs that have not commented on their bold move of distributing their new album exclusively through the band’s website and essentially giving it away for free. They have created an enormous buzz around this new concept causing some people to comment on what a brilliant promotional campaign Radiohead has orchestrated by basically turning the bloggers and e-news sources into free press.

And even though you can choose to pay as little as you want to for the album, I think we would all be surprised at how many people are actually paying something for the album. According to Murray Chalmers, a Radiohead spokesman, “Most people are deciding on a normal retail price with very few trying to buy it for a penny.” Surprised? I’m not, and here’s why.

Instead of looking at this move by Radiohead in terms of what it means for the well-being or detriment of the “music industry,” I am looking at what this means to Radiohead’s fans. If it is true that Radiohead fans are deciding to pay a reasonable retail price for what they could legitimately receive for next to nothing, I can really only think of one explanation. People value Radiohead, and are willing to support their favorite band if they (the fans) feel valued at the same time. By allowing fans to choose their price, there is no way anybody could possibly feel ripped-off after listening to the album, whether they like the album or not.

I know if I were a Radiohead fan right now that I would feel a deeper respect for the band and be willing to pay for the new album simply because I feel they respect me as a fan, and that they didn’t try to charge me for an $18.00 album that I might not even like. The added value here might stem from the fact that people have more freedom to choose what they want to pay. Again, I’d be willing to bet that the more each fan feels valued by the band, the more that fan will value the music, and will be willing to actually pay for the music.

Radiohead is not the only artist that has clued into this somewhat abstract idea that FREE can actually add value to a band. This past weekend I saw a great FREE show by a band based out of the Nashville, TN area called Glossary. Not only was their set great, but in the middle of it, they announced that they were giving away their new album for FREE on their website. After seeing what a great live show they put on, I downloaded the new album and fell in love with it. I’ve told everyone I know about how great they are, I’m going to BUY their previous records, and can’t wait to see them again live. I’m only one person, but I bet I’m not the only one who feels valued by Glossary. This is a win win situation for both the band and the fans. The fan comes away happy, and the band has gained the respect of a fan who is willing to pay for their music, merch, tickets etc.

When music consumers no longer feel that they are being squeezed for every last dollar, ($18.00 CDs with one or two decent songs, outrageous concert ticket prices with absurd “convenience charges”) and fans actually feel respected and valued by the music industry, people will be willing, not hesitant to fork over the cash for new music.

So I thought my first “real” post would be about Nashville, the amazing new city I live in and what an incredible music scene there is here! By no means do I claim to be an expert about Nashville, or the rich music history that seems to reveal itself everywhere, or even the current music scene. Like I said, I just started discovering it myself, but there are some things that are obvious even for a transplant like myself.

You can bet on being able to experience great live music seven days a week, and if you think I’m talking about country music, you’re wrong. There is a huge range of genres spanning from folk, to bluegrass, to punk, to hard rock, to the huge umbrella of Americana and everything in between from both local and nationally known touring acts. Also adding to the credibility of Music City as a major music hub is the Nashville Chamber Orchestra, one of the most innovative chamber orchestras in the country, and the Nashville Symphony just opened their season by doing a show with pop icon Elvis Costello. See what I mean, country is only a fraction of the music in Nashville these days.

Of course there is country music here, and if that’s what you’re into you won’t have a problem finding it. One of my favorite things to do is to check out some of the “writer nights” where you can hear the songwriters who write the songs you hear on Top 40 radio play their songs in raw form, often with just a guitar or piano.

The other thing about Nashville that I’ve noticed as a newbie is that many people value and support the music community here. I’ve never lived in a place where as far as I can tell, people care so much about and promote their local artists/musicians.

There is a lot more to be said about Nashville and the city’s music. If you have some extra time, check out Nashville’s Band of Outsiders by Ann Patchett which appeared the New York Times this past weekend. The article does a great job portraying Nashville’s rich music scene.