I have recently gotten around to importing my cd collection into itunes (about damn time), so i am seeing cd's that I have not even looked at in like 15 years. When I was younger I would keep my concert ticket stub in the cd case for which album I saw them on tour. For example Primus in 1993 was in Sailing the Seas of Cheese. In recent years major concert ticket pricing has skyrocketed and I often wonder why we put up with it. 
 
I have a few recent examples:
 Metallica - 1991 Black Album $17.25 vs. in 2009 $85 - They were a much better / bigger band in 1991.
Van Halen - 1992 F.U.C.K. tour $19.25 vs. in 2008 $125 - Granted this is with Roth and I payed it twice, still.. that is huge.
Primus - 1993 $15 vs. in 2010 $30. These guys get it. 
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, I love the music. but seriously it is $100 plus fees. 
 
It seems that we have gotten used to paying that, but really what are we getting that is any different than before? Yes the stage show might have more lights, but people want to hear the music and see their heroes. I don't know when it all derailed, but it isn't good. Maybe it has to do with record sales being so down (on that note, pay for your damn music), but some major band / singer needs to buck the trend so people can afford to go to these things. A concert shouldn't be a once every 3 months thing, there are too many shows out there, and if people priced accordingly we could get to them all. 
 
Oh well, enough ranting.
 
p.s.  f $45 concert t-shirts. It is a crime that you have to pay nearly half the ticket price for a shirt that cost them $3 to make at most.   

I've never been to a concert that costs more than $30 to get into, I think that was The Presidents of the USA. Those prices are outrageous.

I think you nailed it on the head here. 
@wafflestomp said:

" Maybe it has to do with record sales being so down (on that note, pay for your damn music)"

They've got dudes calculating costs and prices, and if they came up with $100 or whatever for a ticket, there must be a reason.  That reason could also be that the band is so full of themselves they feel you need to cough up big bucks just to be in their presence though.

This is one of the main reasons i love phish so much(besides the awesome music) every show, no matter what place or time, tickets are always 50 bucks, every seat in the house 50 bucks, as long as you can get them before scalpers :(.... 
 
The only phish shows that are more expencive are fesitvals of course which are usually like 150 for a 3-day pass, or new years shows which are usually like 60 bucks a ticket. 
 
Also i dont think record sales have much to do with it, record money usually goes straight to the company with the band seeing very little of the profit unless it sells huge, Bands have to recoup that money with Concerts, usually the only time the money goes directly through to the band is show merch or show tickets. Unless the band owns their own label. The record companies take such a chunk from record sales that the band has to rape their fans in a lot of cases to make their money, it really sucks.

Concert tickets are like Apple products; overpriced simply because fools are willing to pay that much.
 
But there's nothing you can do about it. Sure, you can take a stand and just not go to the gig, but unless there's a mass boycott ticket prices are always gonna be expensive.

I just paid 85 dollars for a Rush concert
 
hell yeah

I've been going to a lot of concerts, particularly in the last year or so, and the most I've ever paid for a ticket is $100. The band was Metallica, my favorite of all time, and the ticket was actually worth $60, but I was buying through a classmate because the event had already sold out. Generally, I don't have a huge problem with today's ticket prices. When Megadeth and Slayer announced the American leg of their tour, they charged $10 for most of the seats to commemorate the last time they had toured together (which was the early 90's I believe). That was definitely the cheapest concert ticket I've bought. The most expensive concert I've been to was the re-united Alice in Chains back in March. I paid around $60 for a ticket (fees included) and $35 for a shirt. They put on a Hell of a show, but I still don't know if that t-shirt was worth it... 
 
I think the real problem lies with online ticket fees. It's great to be able to hop online the minute seats go on sale, but when you're paying an extra $10 in "convenience fees", it gets a little out of hand, especially when you're buying tickets for your friends too. I bought 5th row tickets for Slightly Stoopid last weekend for $32 a pop, and then $12 in fees...for each ticket. It's better than waiting outside a box office for hours before opening, I guess. 

"I think the real problem lies with online ticket fees. It's great to be able to hop online the minute seats go on sale, but when you're paying an extra $10 in "convenience fees", it gets a little out of hand, especially when you're buying tickets for your friends too. I bought 5th row tickets for Slightly Stoopid last weekend for $32 a pop, and then $12 in fees...for each ticket. It's better than waiting outside a box office for hours before opening, I guess.  "

" Concert tickets are like Apple products; overpriced simply because fools are willing to pay that much. "

I've never really noticed a problem with ticket costs, all the bands I've seen were a decent price; about £25 each. The bands aren't the most popular around any more but are hardly unknown either [Opeth, Megadeth, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Rush etc]

I paid $225 per ticket to see the Police with Elvis Costello, that was robbery, but I was like 30 feet from the Stage and it was the only time I will ever get to see the Police. I'm also the type of person that wants to be in the lower level and as close as possible. I know I can get cheaper tickets, but still.. it is outrageous.

" I've never really noticed a problem with ticket costs, all the bands I've seen were a decent price; about £25 each. The bands aren't the most popular around any more but are hardly unknown either [Opeth, Megadeth, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Rush etc] "

Paid 50 for MGMT. However 13.50 or whatever was for Ticketmaster Fees.
 
Prices increase when the artist is playing a bigger more well known venue. A lot of the older musicians now are in it for the money. Metallica is a prime example, a band that was so vocal against piracy when in reality a lot of bands are happy their music is being heard. Many people now a days in order to get into the industry whore themselves out by doing free shows, myspace album releases, etc. 
 
Big name concerts are rare occasions, at least for me. I generally stick to smaller venue shows that usually don't break 40 bucks after fees.

Because concerts and merch have replaced selling CDs. If you've ever stolen one song, then you've got no right to complain. If you haven't then.. where the hell were you between like 1999-2003 where everyone and their dog used napster/kazaa. 

I was playing live and teaching guitar those years. All these kids would come in with cd wallets full of burned cds (drove me nuts). I guess I never understood the music has no value mentality.

You gotta start liking less popular bands. Smaller shows sound better and are more fun anyway.

" Because concerts and merch have replaced selling CDs. If you've ever stolen one song, then you've got no right to complain. If you haven't then.. where the hell were you between like 1999-2003 where everyone and their dog used napster/kazaa.  "

" @WitchHunter_Z said:

" I've never really noticed a problem with ticket costs, all the bands I've seen were a decent price; about £25 each. The bands aren't the most popular around any more but are hardly unknown either [Opeth, Megadeth, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Rush etc] "

 when did you see rush? they are raping people for their tour this year. "

" @XII_Sniper said:

" Because concerts and merch have replaced selling CDs. If you've ever stolen one song, then you've got no right to complain. If you haven't then.. where the hell were you between like 1999-2003 where everyone and their dog used napster/kazaa.  "

Once again i really dont think this is true.  The way a record label works, how they front a band money to make an album then force the band to pay that amount back out of sales, then take a cut off the profits on top of that,  forces the band to have to charge more for tickets.  A band sees almost no money from the sales of records.  If it was merely a piracy issue, then there wouldnt be any bands at all charging reasonable prices, and there are a few that are. 
 
http://business.songstuff.com/articles.php?selected=78    Thats a decent article that explains a lot of the ways Record Companies stiff musicians.  "

It is simple economics.  They charge what they can and still sell out the arena.  Metallica is big enough that the show WILL sell out even at high prices.  If you sell at lower prices, the profit just goes to ticket resellers and brokers who buy up everything because there is no risk that the tickets won't resell.   
 
Another thing to consider is the average listener age and how it correlates to wealth.  Tickets where the seats are priced too low sell out quickly.  The average fan who listens to New Band X and is 22 is much more likely to prefer cheap tickets even if he has to camp out to get them.    
 
The average Van Halen fan is now at an age and often correlating income bracket that much higher prices are preferable as long as a seats can be obtained without such hassles.  It is why the Stones can charge an arm and a leg, their audience can afford it. 

yes, concert tickets are kind of expensive. sometimes there are good prices.  i'm not going to go to mayhem festival because there are not so great bands and the price is like $60. 
 
what is up with the processing fee's? i've noticed that a lot of times a ticket can cost like $20 but in the end it can cost like $40 total. they can like email the ticket for free but charge like $5 for it.

Wow, I have never payed more than around $39. The best concert I have been to was Zion I in 2005. only $8.

 
Once i paid 60 dollars to get into a Guns 'n' Roses concert.

I've never been to a concert because every concert I want to go to has tickets for $60-$120 and fuck that.

Most bands I see are relatively cheap, in the UK atleast. E.g. Pulled Apart By Horses at the end of November was only £9 :)

I went to heavy mtl which had Halford,Testament,Fear Factory,Slayer,Alice Cooper,Megadeth,Mastodon those are some of my favorite bands and I paid 80$CAN for it.It was worth it for sure,but before I got to see Yes for 5 bucks.5 Fucking dollars.