NEWS TODAY MAY 8th 08

NEWS JUST IN MAY 8th.....We have had the news we were waiting for and its worse than i ever could have thought.. The new company are'nt doing anything with the pub at the moment they are going to wait and see if they can sell it or something.. We are now out of a job and we've got to get out of our house by the end of the month.
So we are going in there tonight to emty the lines, drink the bar dry and have a few games of pool before we hand in the keys tomorw.. All drinks will be for a donation of £1 or more, what ever you feel like..Please come along and say goodbye with us and some of the great people we have been able to spend time with these last few years..we'll be there about 7ish..
Sarah & Gareth
PS its only for invited people only..

Today was worse. 22/4/08

For those of you that have read the Blog you will all know about our Recent incident with the flyaway Roof..

All Joking aside the damage was awful and the aftermath of this event has set in quicker than even I thought It would.

We HaveTtoday ( WED) been informed by the owners that..TOMS ROCK BAR IS NOW CLOSED FOR  RE-ROOFING AND FULL REFURB.. WE are totally gutted as we didn't see this coming so soon, we were hoping to give notice to the bands and promoters that were booked in at least until the end of the month. We were hoping to be able to to have at least one massive party to end one more chapter in the TOMS SAGA before the next Chapter started.

What can I say to you all.. I knew nothing about this until earlier today. As for the rest of the day, I've been trying to find out reasons and any other option etc..

It all comes down to Health and Safety and Insurance puposes. The powers that be, have been trying to get to us for years, now it looks like they may have actually found a legal way to do it. For NOW!!!!!!!

FEAR NOT The Owners are awaiting a report from The roofing contractors Very Soon and a full structual survey on the building. At least then we know where we are and how long its gonna take. I'm just gutted its happened this way without any notice..

Who knows, we may be told that everything is fine and it'll only take a week and we will then be back on course but just in case... Please stay in touch. We'll keep you all informed and as soon as we get any info we'll let you know
Sarah

3:59 PM - 11 Comments - 14 Kudos - Add Comment

ROOF

Just as things were picking up, and we were hosting some KICH ARSE,  WELL SUPPORTED SHOWS

WE have had yet another setback in our fight to return our venue, to what it once was....

As many of you have heard, the entire Roof came off at 5am this morning..
Closed Wood Rd for over 5 hrs, Took out the streetlighting, four cars, our phone line... GOOD THING NOBODY WAS UP WALKING, AT THAT TIME SO NOBODY WAS INJURED..

Sarah

9:27 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

news

you should have recieved a freind request from Raven Shows and bookings, if not add them yourselves..
we will soon be handing most of our gigs over to them..
I will still have some contact with them as I do some PR/ Scouting work with the company,  but due to circumstances beyond my control I cannot continue to run the venue and be the promoter for 4/5 nights a week , as I have done it for the last five years and YES it is getting too much for me..

I will still be working with the current promotes ie CAT CORPSE, PENGUIN, LOST IN BASS, INTOXICATED, INCARCERATION, and RAVEN SHOWS AND BOOKINGS

I will still be around most nights a week.
I just need a bit more time to concentrate on the running of the venue..

I will be deleting some of the bands and this site will concentrate on the fans of the venue.. please all of you add the Booking agent and we can still all work together.

Sarah

7:03 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

BANDS WISHING to play at Toms PLEASE READ!!!!!

ALL BANDS READ FIRST as I spend so much time sending the same details over and over again I’ve decided to write it here.. I may not always get back to you if you request these details by message.

There are a few methods by which we organise gigs at our venue....check them out, see which works best for you and/or your band and then let me know.

1. Event Hire... Please Read Seperate Blog..

2. We are happy to book your band to play with us, even if I hav’nt seen you play live before, as we like to promote new music. All styles and types of music from Metal & Punk to Accoustic and Jazz are all welcome.

Please send all DEMO’s and Press kits to TOMS Music Venue & Rock Bar,

71 Wood Rd, Treforest, Pontypridd, S.Wales CF 37 1RH

c/o Sarah Long.

Then, just take a look in the gig guide, see what dates are available and then let us know which dates are good for you. often the style of the night is on there too. If a night is TBC it may still have space on it I’m just awaiting confirmation from some bands. This is the easiest way for me, as you know when your all available.It saves days of messages back and forth. and i’ll usually try and confirm within the week.

3. We often book bands from Agencies and Management Companies. If your band is on a touring rosta for any company, please let us know as we have deals already in place with many of them.

Payment..This is always a difficult subject as there are so many ways to upsets bands when dealing with payment so this is our policy.. 

HEADLINING bands will get paid, even if its a door split/flyer deal or a contribution towards petrol usually £30. ...(This is not applicable if its a free entry gig) But this must be sorted with Myself before the Gig. No Payment Will be made to any band on the night who does not sort this with me before the event.

SUPPORT bands will not get paid unless there has been a a flyer deal in place. A flyer deal can be sorted out for any show just let me know when we book the gig if this is good with you, and we can organise it. £1 for every flyer that comes in over the door is Normal procedure.

All bands are required to promote their shows as much as possible, even if only a five friends per band turn up, then everyone has someone to play to. Bands who don’t advertise their shows or do not bring anyone to their shows will not get booked for return shows. All support bands are requested to stick around and SUPPORT the headlining band. There is nothing worse than playing to an empty room..Again, bands who do not stick around will not get rebooked

WE DO NOT OPERATE PAY TO PLAY..

ALL BANDS please note...Regularly asked questions!!!

1.There is a Basic drum kit at the venue which is available to use. If theres a problem with the kit I’ll let you know , otherwise All stands, cymbols, pedal, Snare etc are to be supplied by each band. AMPS  are required by each band as we don’t have any at the venue.

2. Unless told otherwise load in time is usually 6-6.30pm

3. It makes my life easier ( and the sound guys) if you can arrange between yourselves about  Cab share.. if there is a problem let me know asap and i’ll arrange it so it works out, even if it means longer changeover times for the main band. 

4. I am always grateful for any bands who can help with posters and flyers for thier gigs, as on average we have 3-4 bands a night for at least 3 nights a week. So any help is greatfully appreciated.

5. Door fee for is usually £3 for most of our gigs, but can change if other promoters are putting on shows.We do some free entry night also so please check the gig guide.

HOPE THIS HELPS YOU ALL OUT

Sorry for any inconvience to any bands who were’nt aware of  this policy. But there has been so much confusion in the past. We thought it would be better in Black & white.

Sarah

2:10 AM - 5 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

Nice Things People Say

hey sarah.
this is a bit late,due to computer trouble, but....
thankyou so much for last thursday (3rd arpil), was a great night and all the staff at toms were amazing.
great venue,great staff,great crowds.....and the drinks were nicely priced aswell :)
hope to work with you again
thanks again
earth unit one

*********************************************************

Sarah
Your venue is lovely, as are your staff. So sorry to hear you’re getting stresses from local Council, etc.
Just wanted to say thank you very much for inviting us to play Sunday night. We’re very likely playing a date in Cardiff again in January; we’d love to pop back up your way again.
Two other messages, if alright:
Firstly, to your assistant manager (who’s name I’ve embarrasingly forgotten): would love to check out his brother’s band. What are they called?
And then to Dan, who was doing sound: please do let us know if his radio station would be up for having us do a session (acoustic or electric) in Jan.
Thanks a mill, good luck and stay cool
adam xxx
********************************************************
Hey Sarah
Sorry for the delay...........we played at Toms last Thursday 4th Oct.
Just wanted to say we had a awesome night, the sound was great and we all had an ace time.
Thanks for letting us play and hope to play at Toms again very soon in the near future.

Silver!
FATAL TAUNT

..TR>

Subject:	Lastnight
	Hey, we would just like to thank you again for letting us play at your venue! We really appreciate the opportunity and enjoyed ourselves! And would love to play there in the future if possible! Thanks again T.F.D ___________________________________________________

TOMSFEST  this is one of the responses we had from One of the best punk bands in ENGLAND...

Hey Sarah and Gareth,
Just wanted to say a great big thanks for having us down Toms last week, it was a bloody top night and we had a right good time. We love coming to Toms, it’s always fun and I have to say that last week was by far the best one so far!!
I truly hope that your place can keep going and providing the South Wales area with the top Rock/Punk/Alternative music that always has.
So, thanks again, all the best to the pair of you (and staff, of course) and if you ever need a couple o’ monkeys to help out, you know where we are.
Take it easy and see ya soon
Pete - 2SM
P.S. Ta very much for goody bags...it was like Christmas!!! ha ha ha )

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

this was put out as a bulletin earlier today. From Danny Vaughn, I though it was a really nice thing to say. it is really difficult to put on big shows and when somebody apprieciates your efforts and what you’ve tried to do it makes it all worth While... please read (I have only pasted some of it as there was loads..)

I can only hope that summer is as beautiful where you are as it has been here at home. Last year I was locked away in the studio for the entire month of June so I’m really enjoying spending the summer with less to do this time. But that doesn’t mean we won’t be busy somehow.
A big thank you to everyone that came out and supported, clapped, cheered, and fed us on these last 3 shows in the UK!

THE NITE OWL in CHELTENHAM- A small but enthusiastic crowd and a very nice group of people running a very cool club. There was, of course, a Spinal Tap moment. After many years in this business, I had thought that I had really pretty much had all the new ST moments I would ever experience and everything else would just be repeats from now on. That was until I saw "the cage". A 5 foot high, 4 foot square, mini elevator (cage wire on all 4 sides) that runs up and down the outside of the building in the rear alley leading up to the 4th floor, which is where the gig stage is!!!! It took 10 plus trips to get all of the gear up there and we could only laugh and thank god that it wasn’t raining. Rest assured, as much as we love the club, it’s not a gig I’ll be booking in the wintertime. Opening up were "Interstate" and "Rattlesnake Remedy" and the audience sounded very happy about it from where I was sitting. It was a really great stage with an excellent sound man so we all played very well, I thought. A special thanks to an old friend, Steve Grimmett, who put in a surprise appearance with his family in tow. It meant a lot to have you there, mate. Good luck with your new album!

The last gig was TOM’S PUB in PONTYPRIDD. After years of internet badgering we finally found a place to play in Wales. It’s a family run operation and deserves all of the support that you can give. Because they care about the music. They are musicians and music lovers themselves and that makes all the difference. The band and I can’t thank them enough for looking after us so well. Opening up were local favourites "Interstate" and "Circle Of One" and both did excellent sets. We snuck in and watched from the back. Thanks to all of the loud and happy people of Wales (and from several other places as far away as Ireland) that came out to have a good time.
It was one of those hot and sweaty ones where you have to dig a little deeper when you’re on stage just to keep from passing out. And we love those! All in all, it was a good way to wind things up. For now. Tony’s off getting married over the summer and there are some other things happening, but we will keep pounding away with Traveller as well as starting the rumblings of our next album somewhere down the line. The band and I had the best time we’ve ever had together on this little jaunt and we want to extend our thanks to all of you out there as both fans and family for making the ride a pleasant one.
Have a great summer and we’ll be in touch soon.
All the best,
Danny, Tony, Lee, Steve, and Pat.

3:32 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

New Year, New Hours, New Ideas
Current mood: exhausted
Category: Music

NEW YEAR, NEW HOURS, NEW IDEAS

Ongoing Struggle... Updated Situation

After 12 Difficult months We have decided to close down the upstairs Venue. The Attendance at these gigs/ Shows/Events has steadly got less and less over the last 6-8 Months with even the big touring bands being unable to pull in the numbers, required to keep the venue running....

BUT, ALL IS NOT OVER FOR US AT TOMS... We have decided to concentrate our efforts on the d/stairs area. We are going to update the PA, add the lighting rig from upstairs and to start with, put on 18+ Shows on Thurs, Fri & Sat Nights, With all ages on a Sunday afternoons. We belive that we can save this awsome venue, so anyone who wants to play in 2008 get in touch and I'll sort you out a show. We hope, that if the situation improves, that once again we can open the entire Venue. but with all the new Laws, council restrictions, The smoking Ban and increasing beer prices, trying to continue as we were , was completly pointless.

A little of the background of our situation ....Anyone who has been old enough to drink for the last two years, you will all know about the locals and the council's constant attack on us, because we are different. We have worked at Toms for 5 years in total but only bought it 2 years ago in Oct. We had owned it 24hrs when the council turned up and Said ' We have had a noise pollution problem with this venue for 61 years either turn it down or we shut you down you have 7 days to comply' we had the entire venue sound proofed within 7 days at a cost of £10,500 so they left us alone for a few Then Dec 05 we got hit with trading standards, health and safety fire officers etc, again we complied, we have had at least 10 council visits since that night and they always find nothing of concern, but they still turn up every month or so which puts off any potential local customers. for those of u who are new to our site welcome, and join the campaign, to be able to fight on an even level with all the other pubs and clubs in the Town without predjudice. I know they do not go through what we do.

On a personal Level, I hate to be pitied, I'm headstrong and Competetive, but without bullying and 'Ripping people off' I work hard, and hope to be treated in the same way that I treat other people. But Fair Is Fair, we cannot work this way, it is damaging to our buisness nobody wants to walk into a pub which is swaming with police as you arrive. it gives the wrong impression.

We do not have trouble at our Venue, we do not tolerate Drugs, we do not allow underage, unless on an underage only event. Please join our campaign and help us become a Venue that is able to compete fairly. Bands, Dj's, Artists, Musicians, Press, Promoters, local college students, media students, Anyone and everyone... we are licensed for everything  ( Cinema, Dancing, quizes, bands, etc) lets all get together and show the council we are as good as Them, and any of the council run Venues..

I want to Thank everybody who has stood by us and supported us over the past 5 years at Toms, customers and bands, I appreciate all of you, we just need all of your help to keep us going.. So if you wanna play, get in touch,  We can only keep this place open with your support without it we would close, so please try to visit as often as poss....Even if your not playing, come along, and support some of the other local bands that are on show....

Sarah & the Toms Team

6:50 AM - 26 Comments - 20 Kudos - Add Comment

If you want to complain
Current mood: irritated

Deleted most of the rant cos it was'nt worth the hassleWhat hurts me the most is... there are bands out there that think I treat people like shit..I would be really pleased if you anyone who has played with us, can comment on how well or badly you got treated by Me, the staff, the doormen, and the sound guy etc.  If anyone has a problem with the venue say it to me and not have a go behind my back.   Before Toms becomes yet another venue of the past, I need your feedback good or bad I need to know where we can improve. Do you know what's funny? one min they are having a go at me. Then they ask me for gigs ha ha ha ha ha.

5:28 AM - 18 Comments - 14 Kudos - Add Comment

ALL GIGS ARE OFF
Current mood: working
Category: Music

 Toms Rock Bar GIG LISTINGS.  .   

ALL GIGS ARE CURRENTLY OFF....

NEWS JUST IN....THURSDAY 8th MAY  We have had the news we were waiting for and its worse than i ever could have thought.. The new company are'nt doing anything with the pub at the moment they are going to wait and see if they can sell it or something..

 We are now out of a job and we've got to get out of our house by the end of the month.

So we are going in there tonight to emty the lines, drink the bar dry and have a few games of pool before we hand in the keys tomorw.. All drinks will be for a donation of £1 or more, what ever you feel like..Please come along and say goodbye with us and some of the great people we have been able to spend time with these last few years..we'll be there about 7ish..
Sarah & Gareth
PS its only for invited people only..

 Its raining indoors upstairs and down and we don't know whether the company who took us over are going to go ahead with things.
So we are totally unsure whats happening, but if they dont get something sorted with the roof soon the rain damage will ruin the entire inside and there won't be any shows there for at least a month.
also our house was tied in with the pub morgage and if the new owners pull out before paying the bank off, then we lose the house as well as the pub so we'll have lost everything and worked our arses off for the last 6 years for nothing.
hope things are better with you guys, I will let everyone know as soon as I get any info but right now i'm pulling my hair out, As Theres nothing I can do but sit and wait..
Sarah

2:15 AM - 32 Comments - 22 Kudos - Add Comment