By Cortney Harding

NEW YORK (Billboard) - The indie music scene is starting to feel the pinch from the incipient recession.

Ticket sales are falling and clubs are bouncing checks, according to managers and promoters. Many music fans will still shell out money to see hot buzz bands, but they could be hesitant to see them more than once every few years.

With gas prices falling and ticket prices for regional bands hovering in the $5-$15 range, attendance at small clubs might remain the same as it was before the financial meltdown. But developing acts that play shows in the $20-plus range can expect trouble as cash-strapped fans cut their spending.

"I hate to say it," says Rev Ciancio, co-owner of New Jersey-based marketing and management firm the Syndicate, "but being out of the marketplace right now almost has more value than being in it."

One problem is that tickets cost more than the prices printed on them, because of service fees. "A $20 ticket really costs $28 when it comes down to it," says Windish Agency booking agent Tom Windish, who works with such acts as Atlas Sound, Crystal Castles, and Matt and Kim.

Ciancio says he has seen presales drop as customers look to avoid service charges. "We're seeing a massive increase in walk-up ticketing, because people are trying to save a few bucks," he says. "But not having a good sense of our numbers as we go from market to market makes things very uncertain."

That's the least of many bands' worries. "For us, ticket sales really came to a stop after Labor Day," says High Road Touring agent Jackson Haring, who works with such acts as Adam Green, Grand Archives, and Matthew Sweet. "A lot of people got hurt on shows and things haven't gotten better. For the first time since the '80s, I've had checks from clubs bounce."

Things aren't much better for those clubs. "Big-ticket shows aren't doing as well," says Alicia Rose of Portland, Oregon's 250-capacity Doug Fir Lounge, which hosts such artists as Lykke Li and Brett Dennan. "I've been pretty aggressive with keeping ticket prices down as low as possible."

Unlike major touring acts, some indies take a percentage of the door instead of a guarantee, which means that the ticket price has a direct impact on how much they make. Depending on the relationship with the promoter, some agents will accept half of a guarantee upfront and half after the show. If tickets sell poorly, that second half can disappear.

For some bands, the only solution is to cut ticket prices--and by extension, cut back on their touring budgets. "All the bands we have going out now are cutting costs," Crush Management's Bob McLynn says. "They are cutting extra crew and cutting the amount of vehicles on the road.

"The challenge is to do this and not compromise quality of the show," he continues. "The fan that buys the ticket is the most important link in the chain. If they can't afford to go to the show, none of the other stuff matters."

Reuters/Billboard