VoA drops from Sonata Tour, rips Finberg

[Stingray11214]

Visions of Atlantis, featuring former Aesma Daeva frontwoman, Melissa Ferlaak, quit the upcoming USA tour with Sonata Arctica. They did so in a hail of verbal gunfire at US agent, John Finberg. The statement read:

"After weeks of very unprofessional behaviour of former North American booking agent John Finberg, Visions of Atlantis decided together with Napalm Records, to pull off the Sonata Arctica tour. We are very sorry for all fans who had looked forward to this, but we will surely be back another time and wish Sonata Arctica a great tour.

Things just got out of control with the "booking agent" and we are happy not having to work with this person anymore."

http://www.visionsofatlantis.com/english/index.htm

Happy reading!

 

[J-Man]

What can I say, except......... never mind.

 

[shaq]

that sucks, VoA puts on a good show

 

[nailz]

Wouldn't it be hard for them to drop the tour with the record label's blessing if they didn't have a valid reason?

 

[sh0kr0k]

Having been on both sides of the industry, I can only imagine what must have happened. Maybe the agent was unprofessional, but then maybe the band didn't get what they wanted and are calling that unprofessional. Believe me, some bands will come up with the craziest things to be upset about - mostly valid, some unreasonable. To drop off in the middle of a tour is not very professional on their part because that does more than just cause problems with the booking agent. It disrupts, literally, everything because when a venue "buys the tour package" they are expecting to receive what they paid for, and nothing less.

Imagine I try to sell you a pack of hot dogs for $2.00 and I'll deliver it in 90+ days, but when you get it there are 3 hot dogs missing. Now, you wouldn't want less than what you paid for, so naturally we would have to renegotiate the price of the package, and that is usually subjective and decided by you the customer so that you remain happy and loyal to my products. I'd have to do that with all the people that bought full packs but are being delivered less than what they paid for. Now I can only collect less than $2.00 per package, I need to re-adjust my percentages and what gets paid to the hot dog makers. Also, you've been advertising that you will have a full pack of hot dogs and people should pay you to watch your hot dogs. They bought tickets and are excited to see ALL the hot dogs that you've promised. But now you have to make a deal with them too, whether it be full refunds or you need to replace the missing hot dogs with something just as appealing, though you'll still have some unhappy clients. /analogy

Well anyway, I'm sure VoA had a good reason to drop off the tour, whatever it really is.

 

[sh0kr0k]

Wouldn't it be hard for them to drop the tour with the record label's blessing if they didn't have a valid reason?

Pfftt.. yeah I must have over-looked that terribly important fact. I think the record label's decision to let them off the tour is also unprofessional baring extreme circumstances. These tours aren't for fun, and aren't just for the bands to make money. There are many people that are depending on these shows being successful and no venue makes a hasty decision to buy a tour package. There are very few reasons I can think of that are legitimate enough to drop off a tour when the other bands/venues/promoters haven't also come forward with disputes. Death or injury are first to come to mind, "unprofessionalism" isn't unless the agent purposefully was sabotaging VoA purposefully (which most agents wouldn't want to jeopardize their career over one bitchy band).

Apparently this agent as been professional enough with everyone else to put together a successful and thus-far reliable national tour, but he was somehow unsatisfactory to Visions of Atlantis only... ? Bottom line, I don't know what happened, but I can also see through the bullshit. Maybe the label finally gave up on trying to make VoA happy on the tour and just said, "fine, go home!" and VoA printed that as "permission from our label"... who really knows. But I just can't automatically take the band's word for it when clearly they aren't concerned with the bigger picture of people involved. One thing I can say about VoA is that they didn't air their dirty laundry in public. Oh... nevermind. At least they didn't give a laundry list of what they considered unprofessional behaviour, though I'd sure like to see it!

Not every band has their head on straight, but you're allowed to believe whatever you like

 

[TheWhisper]

Imagine I try to sell you a pack of hot dogs for $2.00 and I'll deliver it in 90+ days, but when you get it there are 3 hot dogs missing.

That's where those three hot dogs went...

 

[sh0kr0k]

That's where those three hot dogs went...

Busted.

 

[7thSaviour]

I wonder whom SA can get to fill the open slot on such short notice?

 

[J-Man]

Until VoA or the label issues a more in depth press release as to the situation, i think people should not try and second guess what really happened. There has to be circumstances that we as the public don't know, and shouldn't speculate about. It is just a crying shame that this had to happen to such a bunch of nice people as the members of VoA. I know they will be back on tour again, and things will work out.

 

[rms]

Had no idea SA was touring USA again

 

[Flavio CotM]

I wonder whom SA can get to fill the open slot on such short notice?

Please no Leaves Eyes or Into Eternity please god!!!!!!

 

[MetalRose]

I just have to comment on the attacks of VoA-

I have known Melissa for years. I have spent time and hung out with VoA before. From what I have seen they are nothing but professionals and are definatly NOT "divas". They do, however, run a very tight ship.

I don't know what happened, none of us do at this point. But we all know that it is a combination of things that cause a band to pull out of a tour. There will be 3 sides to this story, VoA's side, the booking side and the truth.

I just had to comment on your thoughts in regards to the band and making them sound like monsters, because in my experience with them was nothing but pleasant and how they behaved and ran their leg of the tour that I saw, was nothing but professional.

Yes, there are promoters and bookers, sometimes they are the same thing, other times they are two different people. It could have been that there is a booker for SA and a booker for VoA- who combined with another booker/promoter and sold the package to venues. So the same tour may have not had all the same people. Or VoA could have had issues with the booker/promoter while SA didn't.

Anyone in the industry knows that not all bands are treated equal, even by the same people.

My $0.02.

Flavio-

I doubt Into Eternity will be on this tour, they are touring with SX in the spring.

-Metal

 

[nailz]

stuff

Not every band has their head on straight, but you're allowed to believe whatever you like

No, I was just wondering, since I have no knowladge of how "the industry" works. Some interesting points that I never thought of, especially who stands to profit or lose out from touring bands. Interesting stuff, thanks.

 

[Purveyor Of Evil]

SANCTITY replaced VoA.

 

[sh0kr0k]

I just have to comment on the attacks of VoA-

Hun, you know me better than that. Re-read what I wrote, it is meant for any band and more as a "why is everyone so quick to defend the band in these issues because we DON'T know what happened." I'm glad that you were able to speak up in their defense because I was starting to convince myself that I didn't like the band because of this, forgetting that we don't know what happened. ((hot new pic, btw!))

And John, ditto that. Do you really think I'd get on the band's case? Naw, just showing both sides of the story and that not every case is the booking agent the sole one to blame.

My apologies to anyone who thought I was downright saying VoA are liars and "monsters".. It wasn't my intention, but I do think there are two sides to every story. I'm not so certain the blame can be laid completely on the booking agent, nor did they have to call him out publicly. Whatever...

No, I was just wondering, since I have no knowladge of how "the industry" works. Some interesting points that I never thought of, especially who stands to profit or lose out from touring bands. Interesting stuff, thanks.

Hey, thank you! You make me look somewhat understandable because at least one person got what I was trying to say

 

[...AndTimeBegan]

They either couldn't afford to buy on to the tour, or Roadrunner bought Sanctity on Nuclear Blast style. Simple as that.

 

[Jibrille]

They either couldn't afford to buy on to the tour, or Roadrunner bought Sanctity on Nuclear Blast style. Simple as that.

They were already announced as on the tour with tickets being sold. Can't imagine that'd be the issue 4 months after. I'm of the mind that likely they went into this expecting so much and suddenly were told something different once more dates were confirmed. Not necessarily a knock on the booker but sometimes just the way things go.
It must be something major considering that Sonata tours have a much larger audience than Epica's headlining tour so you'd think they stand to make more money on merchandise sales alone. Unfortunately when they opened for Epica I didn't have any money to pick up anything of theirs as all of it went to The Agonist & Unexpect.

 

[rockyracoon]

Until VoA or the label issues a more in depth press release as to the situation, i think people should not try and second guess what really happened. There has to be circumstances that we as the public don't know, and shouldn't speculate about. It is just a crying shame that this had to happen to such a bunch of nice people as the members of VoA. I know they will be back on tour again, and things will work out.

When you issue such a vague statement regarding pulling out of a tour, you are downright asking for speculation/second guessing.

 

[...AndTimeBegan]

They were already announced as on the tour with tickets being sold.

Doesn't matter.

It must be something major considering that Sonata tours have a much larger audience than Epica's headlining tour so you'd think they stand to make more money on merchandise sales alone.

Yes and that major "thing" is probably what I mentioned earlier. Sonata's tours are larger, and thus it is more expensive to buy onto the tour.

Another possibility is that Roadrunner had bought Sanctity on as direct support and bumped VoA down to opener status- thus increasing the fee to play for VoA even more and since Napalm is a fairly small label... well.