People // Matthew Siegel // Blog

Everyone knows that gas prices are through the roof, but I hadn't thought specifically about the impact they had on musicians. The Chicago Tribune did a great job highlighting the difficulty that rising oil prices create for indie bands on the road - check out the full article here.

"Traveling from town to town and playing for an audience is the lifeblood of any musician. It's a calling that has transcended centuries, generations and styles. But it's imperiled by the rising price of gasoline.

'We drove from Omaha to Madison to play a show and it cost us $240,' said Matt Maginn, bassist for the Omaha indie-rock band Cursive. 'My jaw just about hit the floor. That's double what it cost us before. If you're a new band driving cross-country in a van pulling a trailer of equipment that's getting 6 miles a gallon, and you're getting paid 50 or 75 bucks to play a gig, I don't know how you survive.'"

I feel a slew of songs about gas prices coming on. What do you say Indaba? Bueller?