Marvels

victor1

Hi,
Have booked Marvels a couple of months ago for wedding. Price is quite steep, have seen them twice and are V good. Do they justify price?(2 to 2.5k?)

How Strange

We've contacted a few 'recommended' bands/groups and were very suprised that they quoted €1300-€1700. We're in the Dublin area.

€2k-€2.5k seems steep to me.

victor1

Yep it defo does, in fairness these guys have tremendous energy, can find NO negative reivews at all online, but as you say its steep, . I know entertainment is one area that should never be cheaped on, im thining for their style, you get what you pay for,

elvis jones

Great band and lovely lads.

They really put on a show and can play everything from the rock n roll to the modern stuff. Also the House of pain etc for us 90's lot.

I've played after them a good few times and they are a pleasure to deal with, Red is a gent and so easy to organise stuff with him.

Major thumbs up !!

victor1

Thats what i reckon'd, cheers

How Strange

Don't be afraid to haggle a little on the price. AFAIK, most bands/groups are willing to negotiate on the cost within reason of course.

texanman

I've seen the Marvels recently and they are an excellent band.
And really nice bunch of lads. Highly recommended.

victor1

There'e no disputing, these guys are an excellent band, but i was wondering in the current climate, that their price tag was a little expensive .....but as they are excellent, i guess you have to pay for what you want.
In general what is an acceptable price to pay for a band?(min 4 piece)?

How Strange

victor1 wrote: »

There'e no disputing, these guys are an excellent band, but i was wondering in the current climate, that their price tag was a little expensive .....but as they are excellent, i guess you have to pay for what you want.
In general what is an acceptable price to pay for a band?(min 4 piece)?

If they are €2k then it's on the slightly expensive side of ok but €2.5k is expensive

We're looking at a band who play professionally and not just at weddings. They get rave reviews and I've never seen a bad comment about them. I assumed they would be around €2-2.5k and they are charging €1.5-2k for a 4-5 piece which I was very happily suprised with.

You say you've already booked them so if you booked them last year then you're paying last years prices. From what I could see when we made enquiries with a few bands (we were also only looking at the excellent ones) and it seems they've dropped their prices in 2009.

victor1

Im sure some are changing prices to reflect the economic climate, but some are not, e.g The Camembert Quartet are 3k plus depending on location

clint_silver

How Strange wrote: »

If they are €2k then it's on the slightly expensive side of ok but €2.5k is expensive

We're looking at a band who play professionally and not just at weddings. They get rave reviews and I've never seen a bad comment about them. I assumed they would be around €2-2.5k and they are charging €1.5-2k for a 4-5 piece which I was very happily suprised with.

You say you've already booked them so if you booked them last year then you're paying last years prices. From what I could see when we made enquiries with a few bands (we were also only looking at the excellent ones) and it seems they've dropped their prices in 2009.

If you have already booked I would still ring up and try and negotiate. I get callers saying money isnt what it was can we reduce our quoted or booked price, we have taken a decision as a band to do this on a case by case basis.

With this in mind, several people have rang who either have already booked or are intereseted in booking but are finding money hard, stated their case and we have reduced the price.

Conversely, in summer past one fairly brazen father of the bride rang up the week before the wedding and said that he would be paying us 20% less then what we were charging take it or leave it. To this we said we wanted the whole amount the day before the wedding or we wouldnt be turning up at all and he'd also be losing the deposit. He paid.

Moral: Be nice, while bands dont have to drop a quote as a saturday in the summer can get rebooked rather easily, if you ask nicely you may find nice things happen.

On the actual price itself, while 2.5k might seem pricey its still a supply and demand case, a good band is trying to earn a living, and if you dont pay the 2.5k, someone else will and get the. If a band charges 2.5 and are regularly booked at that rate then thats what their rate is. If the diary wasnt filling up youd see the rate drop. I dont know that band but while they may be a 4-5 piece? they might have any of roadies, agents, manager etc as well who all need to get their cut.

I know several excellent bands that you can book for the 2k mark (with a dj), but I would only tentatively compare them to another band out for 2.5k as each band has its rate to go out for. But its not like a 2.5k band is 20% better then a 2k band on any given night, if you know what I mean.