As I start my year end wrap up posts, today some stats to keep it in perspective. This was an amazing year in live music in Durham and in Raleigh and in Chapel Hill. I didn’t even see most of it (though I came closest in Durham) but, bow howdy, I saw a lot of it.
[All stats include shows I know I’ll see and shoot before the year is over. Stats do not include shows I went to without my camera (it happens)]
I saw and shot 209 shows at 33 venues in 2011 (this counts each day of a festival as a single show): 150 shows in Durham, 23 in Chapel Hill, 22 in Raleigh, 13 in Carrboro, 1 in Winston-Salem.
Counting each set by band I saw and shot 565 sets in 2011: 381 bands in Durham, 85 bands in Raleigh, 66 bands in Chapel Hill, 31 bands in Carrboro, 2 bands in Winston.
Looking at the venues I shot the most out of the 33 total venues: I shot 58 shows at Motorco, 47 shows at Pinhook, 13 shows at Casbah, 13 shows at Local 506, 11 shows at Motorco Garage, 10 shows at Cat’s Cradle.
Going by number of band sets, not shows: I shot 155 bands at Motorco, 108 bands at Pinhook, 38 bands at Casbah, 37 bands at Local 506, 34 bands at Motorco Garage, 23 bands at Cat’s Cradle, 21 bands at Kings, and 20 at Nightlight.
All together I saw and shot 358 bands this year, almost a band for each day of the year. 276 of those bands I saw only once. 65 of the bands I saw between 2 and 4 times. And 17 of the bands I saw 5 or more times:
Band – # of shows
JKutchma (w/ the 5/5 or solo) – 19
Midtown Dickens- 10
Almost People – 10
Phil Cook & His Feat – 8
Magnolia Collective – 7
Pink Flag – 7
Onward, Soldiers – 6
Mount Moriah – 6
Free Electric State – 6
Gray Young – 6
Hammer No More The Fingers – 6
Birds & Arrows – 6
American Aquarium – 5
Effingham – 5
Humble Tripe – 5
Red Collar – 5
The Moaners – 5
A special nod to JKutchma, Midtown Dickens, Phil Cook & His Feat, Gray Young, Mount Moriah, Birds & Arrows, and The Moaners, all of whom I saw play in at least 5 different venues.
And, yes, if anyone is curious, I’m happy to share the excel spreadsheet where I store all this info if you are curious about the nitty gritty details or want to look at lots of pivot tables.
In summary, I saw and shot a ton of shows and bands. I shot in venues all around the area and also really focused on shooting in Durham. I got to see many of my favorite bands play a bunch, some of my favorite bands not nearly enough, and just about everything in between. I found new music, new friends, new angles, new light, and so much more at shows
And between now and the end of the year, I have posts coming to try and pull from that magnitude of music: my favorite shows, my favorite concert moments, my favorite photos, my favorite albums.
Links to all year end coverage:
Top Ten Albums of 2011
Twenty Favorite Photos of 2011
Ten Favorite Shows of 2011
Great Moments of 2011
Ash Crowe Photography 