BOOKHOOKER
 
 
Bookhooker Agency is a small booking office from Arnhem-The Netherlands and for all those who are interested in setting up a gig somehow somewhere, REZ thought it would be a good thing to take a closer look at how small booking agencies run their business. We had a nice conversation with Jeroen "Bookhooker" Brom...
     
Hi Jeroen! Some of our readers might think "Hey, isn't Jeroen also the singer in the Dutch band Dimension Seven?" Well, you are. Please tell us when and why you decided to start a booking agency next to being very busy with your succesful band?
Well, I cannot make a living out of Dimension Seven yet. Instead of keep doing dirty jobs in lousy offices and dito factories I choose for being a booking agent. I already booked Dimension Seven from the very beginning till now on so I know all the Dutch venues and most of their programming directors. This made it real easy to choose for more bands than just Dimension Seven. For me no more shitty jobs or working for bosses.


What does a booking agent do exactly? Please give us an inside view on your work.
As a booking agent you keep the contact between the venue/festival and the band. You simply try to get your bands as much gigs as possible without doing concessions for your bands. You keep the festivals, venues and magazines updated with all the latest news about the great Bookhooker bands and you try to convince a programming director that a Bookhooker Band is a good band and brings an almighty show on stage and brings in a lot of people (= money for promotor).
As soon as a show is booked you send contracts/technical and specific catering riders/promo to the venue so they can work out the publicity and prepare for the show.... Another part of the job is bandscouting. I visit a lot of shows of bands of whom I think they can make it in the rock- or metalscene. If I really believe in a band I ask them if it is okay to do their bookings...


You're the booking agent for bands like Disabuse. Did you approach these guys or did they contact you?
Some bands (like Chillburn, Whispering Gallery & Cirrha Niva) I contacted myself, Disabuse and Wish contacted me themselves. All these bands are real good live-performers which make them interesting bands. For example Chillburn, the band is the ex-Brotherhood Foundation!, now creates a completely new industrial rock style. These guys really 'rock'. Besides: a couple of weeks I was in the studio with those crazy Disabuse guys to do some additional vocals on a couple of songs. Their new killer album will be released very soon.

Tell us more about all the bands you book. Why did you pick these particular bands? What are your criteria?
The bands I work for are: Cirrha Niva, Dimension Seven, Whispering Gallery, Chillburn, Wish, Disabuse, Cheesy Victims and C of E. Beside all these bands I sometimes do little tours for foreign touring bands in the Netherlands and some support acts for the headliners.
The criteria differ:
  • I want an agency with bands that others don't have. My bands have to be unique, at least for the area I work for: the Benelux.
  • I want an agency with headline bands for the bigger clubs, headline bands for small clubs and support acts for the headline bands.
  • I want to offer venues packages, touring bands and headline shows.

Did you have great successes or major fuck-ups so far? Of course we want to read the details…
I think I book Dimension Seven and Cirrha Niva quite well and yes, I have a lot of fuck-ups. You win shows/you loose shows but I really don't know what are interesting details to you...


Do you also book bands for gigs and tours outside The Netherlands? What's the difference between booking inside and outside our country?
I try to get Dimension Seven on foreign stages as much as possible. Dimension Seven is my own band. If possible I suggest other Bookhooker bands to tourmanagers. Most of the time it is hard enough to get things done for my own band. The deal with the other Bookhooker bands is that I only arrange Benelux gigs for them.

The difference between booking inside and outside our country is quite simple: to get an unknown Dutch band on a foreign stage is really hard. Give me one good reason why a tour agent will take your unknown band on his stage. In Holland you can convince a promotor that tour band brings in people. The other thing is: in the Netherlands I can speak Dutch and more convincing.


Jeroen, do you think we have a healthy Dutch scene for rock and metal bands to play live? If so, why? If not, what could be improved?
If there were not so many clubs with financial support from the government I think it wouldn't be impossible for a lot of clubs to keep a positive financial situation. If there are less clubs, less bands are needed so it would be more difficult to do this Bookhooker job. I do not think the situation is healthy because the huge financial support leads to a lot of wanabee's who think they have the know-how while they don't know shit.

It might sound a bit arrogant out of the mouth of a small booker but I really believe there are too much people who think how to handle but again: they think too big too fast and don't know what really counts. I know it's easy to complain about the bad things but I think we are lucky to live and work in this country.


What's your goal with Bookhooker Agency and how do you want to achieve this?
My main goal is Dimension Seven. Bookhooker Agency is my second goal. I want to work hard to do the things I like and keep them doing it my way. I hope I can make a normal living (rent/taxes/food/drink and a little car) out of it someday....


Do you cooperate with other Dutch/foreign booking agencies or not and what's your opinion on this?
I prefer working alone because my schedules with Dimension Seven are too tight. It makes cooperation very hard. But Jeps Salfischberger, my collegue/friend at Mojo asked me to book some if his tours (mostly foreign bands) because he is too fucking busy. I will try cooperating with him because his way of working gives me enough space to do these things. If Jeps says 1 word I know what he means so it works, I think. No other words needed. I hope I am able to help him sometimes.


What's the story on Dimension Seven? Already recording a new album and what about touring?
Maybe Dimension Seven (DS) will be touring with American Head Charge (AHC) in May. AHC is doing a huge world tour, sometimes with and sometimes without Slipknot. We met these incredible cool guys at the Metalfests in 013, Podium & Nighttown where we played together last February. Those were real fucked up shows!! AHC liked us and invited us on their tour. I hope Paul Buck agency in London agrees with getting Dimension Seven on the bill next May. DS is also writing new songs right now and if I may say so: It's gonna be a killer album!!! Pfff.....believe me: the new DS shit is absolutely cruel.


Is there anything REZ forgot to ask you? Any last comment?
No further comments Johan. Thank you for giving notice of my new agency. I really appreciate it! I wish you all the best with R-E-Zine. Let's drink beer together somewhere at a great rockshow of one of my bands....
Cheers, Jeroen the Bookhooker.


 


(Johan Godschalk)

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