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Are Music Festivals the Next Recession Casualty?

We're a long way from the height of summer music festival season, but already 2009 could be shaping up to be the year the music festival died. We’ve recently learned that two highlights of the winter music calendar have already been called off due to sluggish ticket sales.

South Florida's seventh annual Langerado Music Festival was scheduled for its first Miami outing March 6 to 8, but had to cancel even after booking big-name acts like Snoop Dogg and Death Cab for Cutie.

Across the country, the San Francisco Blues Festival, a mainstay in SF's great meadow for the past 36 years, is also taking a pass this year due to lack of funds, and may be done permanently.

Both festivals are offering full refunds--perhaps some fans will use the money to put a down payment on tickets to a summer music festival--Coachella, for one, just introduced a new layaway option to help recession-addled music fans cover their exorbitant $269 ticket price.

We've been complaining for some time that these festival are getting out-of-control expensive, but we don't want them to go away completely! We're hoping this one isn't a trend, but so far it's not looking so hot for live music in 2009.

Related Stories:
· Langerado Music Festival canceled due to poor ticket sales [Miami Herald]
· Funding woes cancel annual San Francisco blues festival [Jaunted]
· Coachella layaway plan [Official Site]
· Music festivals coverage [Jaunted]

Photo: [foolstopzanet]