Category → Profile
Profilin’: Neal G.
Neal G. is totally rad. He sells, wheels and deals, and charms the hell out of our future clients. He’s super tall, quite handsome, has a LOVELY wife who is much smaller than him. Oh… and he also runs to work sometimes. Yes, he runs all the way from home into downtown and to work. HOTT.
1) What do you do at Front Gate Tickets?
Talk with venues, festivals, and promoters all across North America about the awesome products and features Front Gate Tickets offers that can help them sell more tickets and promote and grow their business. If you’re interested in selling tickets through Front Gate, call me. Seriously – I’m your guy.
2) What are some bands you’re really digging right now?
All over the place right now – Robert Ellis, Perfume Genius, Kurt Vile, Sbtrkt, JD McPherson. Last week I only listened to Radiohead though because I went going to their ACL Live taping.
3) What’s the best show you’ve ever seen?
Sticking with Radiohead on this one – summer of 2000 I saw Radiohead in Florence’s Piazza Santa Croce . I walked to the Piazza at about 11am just to make sure I’d be front and center by the time they came on. “How to Disappear Completely”, “Planet Telex”, “Bones”, all the new Kid A stuff… the Italians were going nuts and I really thought I may have been crushed to death during a few sets, but it was epic. Hum in ’95 or ’96 in Houston was awesome too. (Hum rules. – Shrie)
4) What’s your absolute favorite book and why?
“The Young Lions” by Irwin Shaw. It’s an old WWII novel that twists your conscience, blurring the line between good vs evil, and leaves you attached to men on both sides of the battle.
5) If you could hang out with one band/artist or music industry mogul who would it be and why?
Right now it’d be Bill Graham – just to see him in action and hear his story in person would be incredibly inspiring. He persevered through some serious obstacles and setbacks in his early life which would have sidelined most people, but, in spite of it all, really did amazing things in his life. It’d also be really cool to hang with Levon Helm.
6) Would you care to share an interesting tidbit about yourself?
I’m feeling very uninteresting compared to my coworkers – semi–pro violinist, heir to the zipper inventor, food critic – that’s a high bar! Hmmm, as a summer job in college I worked on an offshore oil rig. That’s interesting, right? My boss was a legally blind crane operator everyone called Pork Chop (I never knew his real name) and he nearly killed me on two separate occasions… one of which I ended up with a broken ankle. We also rode out two hurricanes one summer and I was once somehow the only one around when a fire broke out. Looking back, I’m really glad I stuck with it, but even more glad I don’t have to go back. Now at the Front Gate office the worst injury I may sustain is a Nerf gun hit to the head. I’ll take it.
Profilin’: Tess Y.
Rustle up a loud and rowdy “Hey y’all!” for our fifth company profile candidate, Tess Y.! She’s a whip smart gal, wrangling her clients with ease and walloping wily events into shape in a hurry. She’s the perpetual shining face on the 3rd floor, helping manage a bevy of projects AND being the go-to gal for her roster of clients.
1) What do you do at Front Gate Tickets?
I’m an Account Manager for the Venues & Promoters department. I help clients with their day-to-day ticketing needs, ensuring that their events go off without a hitch.
2) What are some bands that you’re really digging right now?
I’ll be honest, I’ve been lacking in my music knowledge this year. So I don’t really know the newest and coolest band out there. But there’s still one band that when I first heard them a couple years ago, I fell in love with music all over again: Mumford & Sons. I’m not sure if I could ever get enough of them. The banjo, the harmonies, the build-ups within each song…(sigh) it’s all just pretty magical, if you ask me. I am definitely looking forward to their next album.
3) What’s the best show you’ve ever seen?
The show that most prominently sticks out in my brain is Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros at ACL 2010. I was lucky enough to watch their set while on their stage. Then, as if that wasn’t cool enough, they called all of us out on stage with the band, while they were getting into the 2nd half of “Home”. From there, it just turned into one huge happy hippie dance party. Me, Ed and the gang, and thousands upon thousands of ACL-goers. COOLEST. MOMENT. EVER.
4) What’s your absolute fave movie and why?
Always has been and always will be: Dirty Dancing!! Watching Baby lose her teenage innocence, while getting her lambada on and spitting out some epic one-liners about life and love…that’s just top notch right there!
5) If you could hang out with one band/artist or music industry mogul who would it be?
Easy. JOURNEY, circa 1983 while they were on set, taping their first choreographed music video “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)”. Have you seen this amazingness? If not, YouTube it immediately. Any music video that begins with band members playing imaginary instruments is #1 in my book. I wanna hang out with those guys for sure.
6) Would you care about sharing an interesting tidbit about yourself?
This is going to sound absolutely crazy (and I’m prepared to seem that way). Growing up, my 3 sisters and I developed this weird complex which involves words that describe food. The very sound of someone at the dinner table saying “Wow Martha, this chicken you prepared is extremely tender!” would make all of us cringe and push our plates away. We have quite the long working document, chock-full of descriptive words that are simply forbidden at our family dinners. Here’s a sampler: moist, creamy, juicy, succulent……you get the idea. If we could do away with those words at the dinner table, well then I think the world would be a better place.
Profilin’: Ashley T.
In our fourth company profile feature, we meet Ashley T., woman about town/wrangler of all things FGT and an all-round damn good woman. She keeps us all on our toes, drops off holiday cookies sometimes and buys us breakfast tacos every other Friday. In other words, SHE IS THE BEST AND WE LOVE HER FOREVER.
1) What do you do at Front Gate Tickets?
I’m the Operations Manager for the Venues & Promoters department. I manage two Account Managers (Tess Y. & Lauren L.) and a Ticketing Assistant (Jamie K.) in addition to supporting my own roster of clients. I help clients setup and manage their events and work festival box offices from time to time. In addition, I help with development and bugs in the system.
2) What are some bands that you’re really digging right now?
I have to say that I am definitely not as hip as Natalie and Lauren, who have already been introduced. In fact, I’m probably less hip than 85% of the employees at FGT. Now, to answer your question… I am constantly listening to Taylor Swift, Miranda Lambert, Pistol Annies, A.A. Bondy, Ryan Adams and I just recently let Bon Iver in to my life.
3) What’s the best show you’ve ever seen?
I’m not a Marilyn Manson fan, but I saw him perform at Roseland Ballroom in NY a few years ago and it BLEW my mind. I was so scared pretty much the entire time… it really stuck with me.
4) What’s your absolute fave movie and why?
I think it might be Jurassic Park. I was just thinking recently that I’ve probably seen that movie more than any other movie in my life. I watch the entire thing almost every single time it’s on TV and we all know that’s at least 1-2 times per month. That must mean it’s my favorite movie, right? (I’ve seen it SO much as well. Great flick. – Shrie)
5) If you could hang out with one band/artist or music industry mogul who would it be?
Honestly, I don’t really have a dream to hang out with anyone in particular. I’ve met plenty of moguls and artists and I learned pretty quickly that they’re just people. Some are interesting, some are not… some are a-holes and some could be your next best friend.
6) Would you care about sharing an interesting tidbit about yourself?
I play classical violin. I guess I should say that I played it since I haven’t opened the case this year but it’s just like riding a bike… I play the violin. I started in 5th grade and I spent every waking moment from elementary through senior year of high school practicing and playing in orchestra at school and around town. I wanted nothing more than to be a professional violinist up until my last year of high school when I honestly think I chickened out. A bunch of my friends actually did it and I kind of regret not sticking with it now but the idea of relying on a talent that could be ended so swiftly with a broken finger scared me. So, here I am… working in ticketing!
Profilin’: Paul H.
Over the holiday weekend, feelings of togetherness and all that warm stuff seemed to overcome our desperate young hearts at the dinner table on the eve of Thanksgiving. It was a consensus around the office that what we were most thankful was you! Yes, you; our confidant, customer and fellow member of the music mafia.
In our third company profile feature, it’s our pleasure to introduce you to our tech guru, Paul H. Paul is the affable problem solver around Front Gate Tickets these days. He fixes our phone lines (when we can’t figure out how to set our own passwords) and navigates the difficult world of networking our printers. When we forget our email passwords he’s there to save the day… but he does SO much more… meet PAUL H.!
1) What do you do at Front Gate Tickets?
I’m a Systems Administrator! I help the developers keep everything running and sane, while also fixing everyone’s desk computers, phones, and being the go-to guy for any technical advice. That’s the basics, though the challenges change every day. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
2) What are some bands that you’re really digging right now?
I’ve been listening to A LOT of the new Los Campesinos! album, “Hello Sadness”. It’s not quite as awesome as their last couple, but has the same energy that their previous endeavors had. Other than that, Mike Doughty’s new album is also pretty great, but is a little too Soul Coughing to someone who started listening to him solo.
3) What’s the best show you’ve ever seen?
It wasn’t the largest, and wasn’t the most important, but my best experience was seeing The Futureheads at Emo’s indoor stage about six months ago. They were on tour with The So-So Glos and Young the Giant (!), and for their encore they brought everyone on the tour out and we all sang along to “Hounds of Love” in a huge chorus. Glorious.
4) What’s your absolute fave movie and why?
True Stories! It’s the story of a small, fictional, Texas town in the 1980s, as told by David Byrne with music from the Talking Heads. Starring Byrne and ridiculously young John Goodman, it’s just awesome and inspirational without being sappy, and is infused with intense surrealism in any scene. If you have a chance to see it in a theater (The Alamo Drafthouse here in Austin played it for one of their events), take it! It just might change your life. Also, if you didn’t grow up in Texas, it’s a great primer for how the chip manufacturing industry affected this state in the 70s and 80s. – (This movie is totally awesome. – Shrie S.)
5) If you could hang out with one band/artist or music industry mogul who would it be?
Ted Leo. That might seem random, but he’s a witty political guy who is an enormous nerd. In the same vein, David Byrne. It’d be hard to choose.
6) Would you care about sharing an interesting tidbit about yourself?
I’ve only ever lived in capitals, moving to Austin from Washington, DC about 5 years ago. I’m not sure if that’s a tidbit or a factoid, so if you can be more specific I’ll totally answer something else.
Blog post created by Richard R., the intern
Profilin’: Natalie D.
You TOTALLY love us and want to grab a beer sometime… when we’re not busy selling tickets to the raddest shows around, building kick-ass websites for our sweet clients and coming up with new and groundbreaking ticketing technology! BUT, alas you don’t really know us. And we certainly don’t get into cars with strangers.
But hey, maybe we could make this work. We see a future here… so sit back, relax and let us continue to introduce ourselves to you. Ya know, so we can grab that beer.
In our second company profile feature, we call your attention to the girl that’s hipper than the zipper, Natalie D. Ever wonder who injects the fun into our festivals? If you guessed Natalie, you’d be right. By learning more about our girl below, I’m sure you’ll be able to come to the same conclusion in no time at all.
1) What do you do at Front Gate Tickets?
I am the Account Coordinator in the Festivals department, so I work on a smorgasbord of festival-related things. I try to help clients and patrons have the best festival experience ever.
2) What are some bands that you’re really digging right now?
I’ve been watching way too much “Felicity” on Netflix, so I’ve mostly been listening to sad and sensitive musicians of past and present. Elliott Smith is in that rotation pretty heavily- Felicity definitely would’ve been upset by his untimely demise. I have also really enjoyed Other Lives’ “Tamer Animals,” Laura Marling’s “A Creature I Don’t Know,” Active Child’s “You Are All I See,” and Gotye’s “Making Mirrors.” Please listen to Gotye, he’s amazing (http://soundcloud.com/gotye). Also, I will never remove Sun Kil Moon’s “Ghosts of the Great Highway” from my earholes. That is the greatest record ever recorded.
3) What’s the best show you’ve ever seen?
It’s a tie! First, the Arcade Fire at Emo’s Outdoor (R.I.P.) in January of 2005. It was right after they released “Funeral,” so they had all this fresh band energy, and I had fallen in love with the record over Christmas. Seeing them in such a small space right before they clobbered over America was a special thing. Close second would be The Dismemberment Plan at The Starlight Ballroom in Philly on their reunion tour in January of 2011. I danced on stage during “The Ice of Boston,” and if you know anything about the Plan, you know that dancing near Travis Morrison while he’s singing about black ice will beat out every other experience of your life.
4) What’s your absolute fave movie and why?
“I was told there’d be no math on this exam.” I’m not going to pretend I have some lofty “Lawrence of Arabia” favorite. My favorite movie is “Reality Bites,” and it will be forever.
5) If you could hang out with one band/artist or music industry mogul who would it be?
My answer would be no musician ever, as the experience of meeting them always disengages you from their music, no matter how cool that person is. Ian Mackaye is the only exception to that rule. My actual answer is Chris or Josh from Barsuk Records. They have the best taste in music of all time. Any label that signs Nada Surf and the Dismemberment Plan are shooting arrows into my heart.
6) Would you care about sharing an interesting tidbit about yourself?
My great-great Grandfather invented the zipper, and I spent all 13 years of my public schooling trying to convince people of that interesting fact. It just sounds too fake. Also, if I had a time machine, I’d gun it to 88 and stop my GGGF from selling patents so recklessly. I’d be real awesome at being rich.
Blog post created by Richard R., the intern
Profilin’: Lauren L.
As we continue to make your acquaintance through the interwebs, we find it necessary to introduce you to some of the people at Front Gate Tickets that really make this proverbial train “go!” In our inaugural company profile feature, we highlight our lovely Account Manager, Lauren L. With a keen sense of humor and impressive musical muscles, she can make even the most prude swoon. But hey, if you don’t take my word for it, learn more about our ace in the hole below:
1) What do you do at Front Gate Tickets?
I’m an Account Manager in the Venues and Promoters department, so I set up and support ticketing for my clients and make sure they have everything they need to have a successful event.
2) What are some bands that you’re really digging right now?
Most recently I was blown away by the new Youth Lagoon album, The Year Of Hibernation. It’s just a really beautiful, cohesive album, and I’m really looking forward to their show at Emo’s on 11/7. I’ve also been loving this resurgence of the R&B sound in indie releases, with artists like The Weeknd and Frank Ocean. I’ve had Ocean’s nostalgia, ULTRAmixtape in heavy rotation since it got released this past February.
3) What’s the best show you’ve ever seen?
A couple years ago I got to see Ryan Adams at the Paramount Theater from the second row. He is one of my all time favorites, and it just felt like his set was tailored specifically to me. He even played my favorite song, “Desire,” off his Demolition album. More recently though, I went to a show at Stubb’s this past march with Local Natives and GAYNGS co-headlining. There’s not much that can top dancing and singing to two of your favorite bands with about 20 of your best friends. It was a really great night.
4) What’s your absolute fave movie and why?
As cliché as it might be, working in the music industry, I’d have to say Almost Famous. The first time I saw that movie I was so affected by the idea that music could be my profession. I grew up with my mom playing all the music that movie revolves around, and that just made it all the more personal. I also identified with William, probably to an embarrassing degree.
5) If you could hang out with one band/artist or music industry mogul who would it be?
Janis Joplin was my first musical obsession. I remember hearing Pearl and being totally engrossed by her raw emotion and musicality, though I definitely couldn’t have articulated that at the time. I think if she had lived she would have some real wisdom to share, and we’d probably have a pretty fun time together in Austin.
6) Would you care to share an interesting tidbit about yourself?
I know every word of Salt-N-Pepa’s “Whatta Man,” and it may or may not dictate my standards in a guy.
Blog post created by Richard R., the intern
