The short answer is "all of the above" - demo CD (not cassettes), song list, photo, bio etc. Also, a recon trip to potential venues prior to approaching them is essential, to avoid the situation you discovered (eg. stage too small for a 5 piece, regular bands who play there are from different genres, no dance floor etc).

Agents are not essential to getting work, although in most capital cities you'll need to promote yourselves to certain agents who control most of the better venues if you hope to get gigs at those venues.

The more professionally you present yourself, the more gigs you'll get. Treat a visit to a venue manager as a job interview.

Business cards are cheap these days - for example there are online DIY Australian printing sites that deliver 500 full colour business cards to you in 2 days for around $70.

Similarly, demo CDs needn't be an expensive exercise. You won't need any more than 2 or 3 songs, since most venue managers or agents don't have time to listen to more than a few minutes of each demo CD they receive. Recording 3 songs at a studio shouldn't cost much more than $250, and for the cost of a CD burner, which come with most new computers these days (you probably have a friend or relative with a CD burner) you can churn out copies of your demo CD for around $1 apiece. Spend at least a bit of time printing some nice looking labels (black and white looks great) rather than handing out demo CDs with handwritten info on them. Make sure your demo CD includes your contact information.

If you're having some photos taken for your promotional kit, give some thought to what the band is wearing, make sure it looks professional and fits your image.

Above all, be persistent. You'll get lots of knock backs, and it gets frustrating at times, however stick with it.

Best of luck
Cheers
Mark
'65 Mustang
http://go.to/'65mustang

Hi,
I just want to add to what Mark (previous rant)said, most venue owners or managers do not have a clue about band needs and playing conditions (they don't care anyway); definitely it is a "long way to the top" but to persistance you have to add objectivity. Be able to assess your approach from time to time, if you are getting nowhere after a while sit down and think why, maybe the repertoire is not commercial enough, maybe the band sound is not tight enough, (don't need to tell you that bass & drums have to lock), go and check good working bands, learn and be very, very open minded.
I don't want to strech this to long, you sound like a very sincere, down to earth person, I you believe you've got what it takes don't give up.
Sincerely wish you the best of lucks
Gus
(Sexual Chocolate)

The best advice I could give you, is to check out the best bands in your area to see what they're doing. Don't copy what they do though!!!! Just get a general idea of what songs they are playing that get a good reaction from the crowd, and see what the band does onstage visually. You guys will get there in the end, as long as you keep your s#%t together, study the venues you want to play at, and play the songs the crowd wants to hear.

Demos, Bios and Posters are needed of course, but don't spend a fortune on them. Demos get listened to once, and are usually thrown away along with the bio, and posters tend to disappear mysteriously from venues. Just get a basic poster made up, and a cheap demo recorded. The bio is usually just a songlist, and the band members photos and names. The more songs you have, the better.

Hope that helped a little.

John Healy (Felix)

http://felixband.itgo.com