I thought the rule was that the out of town band gets a decent spot in the lineup. For example if there's 3 bands that night, shouldn't the out of town band get the middle spot? Maybe I'm expecting too much but I thought this was just common curtsey among bands. Thoughts?

The out-of-town band should definitely play last (the "headlining" spot) IF people are there to see them. That's a big "IF," though. You don't give them the last slot just because they travelled the farthest, because as I've experienced, most people won't stick around for them if they haven't heard of them before. Sure, some MIGHT. But if there's something else going on that night (like another show across town), chances are you'll lose a large chunk of your audience and they're left playing for virtually no one (this actually happened the first time the Black Lips played in St. Louis!). That's why I like to have whatever band has the biggest fan base in town have the last slot... not because they deserve it more than the travelling band, but because you know that people will stick around. Have the travelling band play right before them, and that way the people who are there and have never heard of them before will get turned on to them, they'll be able to sell more merch, etc.

That said, I would never have the outta town band play first, or even before 10pm. The earliest I would put them on would be right before the last band (the one with the most "pull").

We haven't yet played out of town but from my experiences thus far (and they are definitely somewhat limited), is that we definitely like to play earlier in the lineup (second seems to be the sweet spot in a four-band lineup), especially if it's not a Friday or Saturday - that way people will have already gone in to see the other bands but it's still early enough before people start to leave. Obviously, weekends don't pose this kind of a problem near as much, but as a newish band, we have been playing a decent amount of weeknight/Sundays and going later has proven difficult to keep people around in many regards.

Ben said:

In a three band line-up, sticking the out of town group first or last is always a shitty thing to do and should be avoided at all costs -- even pissing off somebody local that thinks they've earned a better slot.

As a touring band merch sales can make or break your night and I can't tell you how many times we've juuuuuust barely had enough gas to make it to the next town. Door money almost always sucks and is nowhere near what you need (ESPECIALLY in a donation only scenario) and so getting as many eyeballs on that band that drove all day should be the primary goal of the lady/guy booking the show.

As far as I'm concerned.

Experience has proved there isn’t a dead set rule when it comes billing order.  The attendance usually varies depending on the situation. 

The way I like to work out of town gigs is:

If I have been invited by a band/promoter to play on a bill I will request a supporting slot when planning the gig to avoid any uncomfortable or surprising situations.  Gas isn’t getting any cheaper and, in my case, Canadian cities are generally 3-6 hours apart at best.  So, if I am unfamiliar with the history of the promoter/bands involved, I like to research the likelihood the event will reach a satisfactory attendance (subjective of course).  If the other bands on the bill are generally unknown, I usually reference the number of people that clicked ‘going’ on their previous Facebook invites.  No guarantees, but it’s a useful reference.  It’s also good to check if they’ve received any internet media attention.

I only really agree to close out of town shows if there is a bit of hype behind my band coming to play, or the event is reputable, or the promoter is offering a guarantee. If you don’t know the promoter or someone that has previously worked with him/her, get the fee in advance.

Basically, there is nothing more to be had by playing a poorly attended out of town gig as there is an empty room on your home turf.

I didn't think that was harsh and you make some good points. Your post did change my mind a little in the sense that I shouldn't have any expectations and just control the one thing we can control which is making sure we're ready for the show. I also love your point about making a band sorry they put you on first by out-playing them. I always feel a sense of friendly competition at shows to help get myself motivated to play the best I can so I should just extend that to the times where we get the crappy spot in the lineup and use it as motivation rather than let it bother me so thanks for that!

its kind of a slippery slope on this topic. i've been in both situations. and while it’s nice as a touring band to have a prime spot, if my band has never played the town or club and it’s a smaller market city chances are I am just happy to have a show booked. As a smaller /less known group in whatever area you playing you can’t expect to have a good spot on the line up, so the rule your talking about is more of courtesy, then a rule. Whenever I go out of town to play shows, I’m always just happy to play and never worry about anything other than playing a good show.

Personally I would rather play first and be hard to follow by the rest of the acts then sit through the whole show waiting my turn.  Most of the time first band loads right on to the stage and as an out of town band touring sometimes it nice to have the opportunity to fully set up gear right and not be rushed by the later time slots.  Also comes down to just getting paid. If that’s taken care of that’s really all that should matter for the out of town band.

On the flip side, my band plays with a lot touring bands (we are in a big market city: SF, so everybody comes here) so depending on the booker/venue or what not we always try make it a good show and everyone always gets paid.  My big issue about “touring band/prime spot rule” is that; when we play local in our home town we bust ass to make it a good show, promotion fliering, getting people to show up what not. So in a few instances it kind of rubs me the wrong way when a less known touring band gets a primo spot and my band gets stuck either playing to early or really late especially on week night. Just because you drove 500 miles shouldn’t earn you any special privileges. I think bands should get in the mindset of it’s more about putting a good show for the people that show up to support local music, not the bands ego’s because they think they deserve it because they drove 6 hours to play a show.  Maybe your band is a better in the opening slot then later on in the night? Or visa-versa? Work that shit out with the booker and make the best show possible for the people that come out.

Not meaning to sound harsh on any of this. just my two cents. 

I was just curious about how other bands felt outside of my area. I recently finished up a mini-tour and I felt like on some nights the local band on the bill was trying to position themselves in the best spot but I didn't say anything since I wasn't sure if this was a known "rule".

Your example of a record release show is definitely an exception. That's your night to be the center of attention without a doubt.

What's your band called, Doc?

The only time my band didn't offer the out-of-towners the last and prime slot will be when we have our record release party in a few weeks, but I think it's ok to be selfish when you're celebrating yourself. But then we won't take any money but pay the other bands.

Since no one of us is in it for the money, I guess it's fair that the band that spends the most money gets back the most money, and the band that has the most trouble arriving gets the most rewarding slot.

BTW, Ben, why are you asking?

Exactly! You're in it for the fun of it but when it costs you a small fortune and someone is making a lot of money if kinda takes the fun out of it!

I'm glad I'm not alone here! The last band I was in we would even give our cut of the door to the traveling band (which amounts to about a 1/2 tank of gas) but still,  knowing how expensive travel is and how much of a pain in the nutz it can be we felt it was the right thing to do. When you make $0-$80 a show you sure as hell aren't in it for the money anyway! :)

Yeah, I agree though we've seen it work both ways! We played one gig where the rule was that it went in order of who travelled furthest which was good for us since we'd come about 500 miles! :)

That makes sense. Either the out-of-town band gets the middle slot or the last slot, depending on the band's pull (and who else is on the bill). If most of the people coming are there to see one of the local support bands, then that band should play last, otherwise you'll have a mass exodus right before the out-of-town band goes on stage. So the theory is you let the out-of-town band play right before the local with the most pull, thereby ensuring that you have a big audience for them.