Betterthanthevan.com is a social networking-style website dedicated essentially to putting bands and artists on the road in touch with people willing to host them in their homes for the night at no cost. Music fans and artists can also find shows to go to and venues to play at listed on the site.
How it works is that you create a profile for your band on the site and contact users in the areas you are touring or vice versa, and work out a place to crash. A typical profile will tell you the user’s gender, location, zip, availability, sleeping arrangements (i.e. floor, couch etc), type of location, parking situation, what they’re interested in and perhaps even if they’re willing to help promote for your show. Generally they’ll have a photo and a link to their twitter or other social media profile so you can check them out.
If you or someone in your band happen to have a big enough house or apartment back home that you and your housemates/ family wouldn’t be averse to opening up every now and again to guests, repaying the favour by also becoming a host to travelling bands when they visit your hometown is a great way to meet new bands and be exposed to new music, new musicians, new contacts and hopefully new friends – in fact you may even find your next band to partner up with and take over the world with a DIY tour, or collaborate with in other ways. A little ‘place to crash’ karma never hurts either, and your new friends can surely enlighten you on venues you’ve never heard of in their hometowns that might suit your band, sights to see and things to do, places to stay etc, and you can all share war stories and info about life on the road as a DIY touring musician.
Better Than the Van is a great resource for saving a little cash on motels and hotels while on the road, and is proof of just how powerful and necessary the internet has become as a tool for modern day musicians and tour booking, along with just about anything else you can think of. However like any other usage of the internet that moves into the offline world, be careful, and also be respectful. If you get a strange vibe from someone you are contacting via email on the site, go with your gut and avoid staying with them if you don’t have to – always protect yourself, yet on the flipside of that – be respectful of your hosts’ homes, don’t get too drunk or make a lot of mess or noise, be kind and courteous and be sure to put them on the guestlist for your show and if you can spare it, giving them some free merch or a signed CD wouldn’t go amiss either.
