I’m a big, fat Radiohead loser, part 1
August 7, 2008 at 6:14 pm in Music
How I sacrificed my dignity to score tickets to the summer’s hottest concert
Tickets for Radiohead’s Hollywood Bowl shows on August 24th and 25th went on sale ages ago. Thanks to Ticketmaster’s constant flow of email blasts, of which I’m a recipient, I knew the precise moment they would be made available.
And I did nothing, for a variety of reasons; like, I have a few days because they’re not going to sell out right away, and I just care about getting in because the Bowl is a satisfying experience no matter where you are sitting thanks to the huge video screens flanking the stage; or, yeah, I still have their last album, In Rainbows, in heavy rotation 10 months after its release so do I really need to see them play songs I’m overly familiar with; or even, I’ll do it after I wash my car… you get the procrastinatory picture by now.
So, of course, they sold out in a few minutes– or they may as well have as far as I was concerned.
Last week, the epiphany of what-have-I-done?-ness came out of nowhere, or, as I like to think of it, Flavorpill, which is my homepage these days. In a frenzy, I started with Craig’s List, which had a few ads from people with either extra tickets or looking to swap nights. The majority of the CL ads though were from ticket brokers, primarily Turbo Ticket. Did I want to spend $4000 for two pool circle seats? Does anyone?
I checked Ticketmaster’s re-sell sight. There were plenty available in all sections but at much higher prices than Turbo Ticket for similar locations. (If you hate Ticketmaster already, I suggest you skip this next part and I take no responsibility for any stress related injuries.)
But the beauty part of Ticketmaster’s re-sell sight is how lucrative it is for Ticketmaster. In the first place, they charge a service fee (er, in TM lingo that’s known as a “convenience” fee) plus a transaction fee to the original buyer. When the buyer wants to re-sell the tickets through TM’s service, they pay a commission to TM, plus the second buyer pays a service fee to TM.
Yes, Ticketmaster gets three service fees out of the same ticket(s.)
Based on price and principal (I actually do have a few; go figure.) I went with Turbo Ticket, paying $230 ($95 per ticket, plus service fee and shipping) for a pair of $39 seats in W3, which is so far up and back at the Bowl that if I lean back too far I’ll fall into the parking lot.
But that’s where I’ll happily be on August 25th, with the BF, and if you’re there too and you got your tickets in a more dignified manner, feel free to find me and let me know what a big, fat Radiohead loser I truly am. (And, dear reader, if it makes any difference when gauging my dignity, rest assured I got tickets for Sigur Ros’ performance at the Greek Theater in October the old fashioned way; I bought them at the box office.)
Next in part 2: The tickets arrive.
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