Things are looking up. The long days of summer are here. After months of lockdown, live music fans are fired up (and mostly vaccinated), artists are ready, some tradeshows have returned (see our ISE Report on page 9), public officials have given thumbs-up to re-open indoor and outdoor venues and tours / festivals / events postings are all over the Internet. But the full-on return to the pre-pandemic “good old days” is marred by a lack of personnel, many of whom have seemingly left the biz for an endless number of reasons. And it’s not just in the audio industry, but a critical lack of employees has also affected the restaurant, construction and retail industries.
Now I understand that flipping burgers, busing tables or stocking store shelves may not be anybody’s dream job, but when there are staff shortages in sound companies (an industry where gigs were once hard to come by), the issue is harder to grasp. In fact, this month, St. Louis-based (and Parnelli Award-nominated) sound company Logic Systems is taking the unprecedented move of holding a job fair to attract
employees. By the way, Logic Systems is a great company to work for — if you link up, tell them George sent you!
Meanwhile, as Baker Lee reports on page 20, the tour industry is also being affected by a paucity of availability in ancillary services — ranging from porta-potties to trucking and tour bus companies. None of these are exactly glamour positions, but all are essential segments of the concert microcosm we all depend on.
So we’re not quite there, but edging ever closer and hopefully there will be plenty of gigs (and ample crews) for a great summer season.
Stay safe!
