Live music used to be a guessing game. Concert times were posted, but exactly when the headlining performers would take the stage — let alone leave it — was often unclear. Touring artists could be expected to showcase their latest albums, but finding out which older hits they might be dusting off required deep sleuthing. Identifying rarities or covers demanded specialized knowledge.
Enter Setlist.fm. The wikilike site, where users document what songs artists play each night on tour, has grown into a vast archive, updated in real time but also reaching back into the historical annals. From the era of Mozart (seriously!) to last night’s Chappell Roan show, Setlist.fm offers reams of statistics — which songs artists play most often, when they last broke out a particular tune. In recent years, the site has begun posting data about average concert start times and set lengths.
That knowledge, of course, has inevitably changed the live-music experience. Like most internet-age innovations, having easy access to boatloads of information is, as Jay-Z (last full show: April 14, 2023) might say, a gift and a curse.
For some artists, Setlist.fm provides a handy way to be sure they don’t duplicate what they performed on their last trip through a city, or a prompt to keep things fresh for their audiences. For fans, it may serve as a consumer guide to avoid spending lavishly on a gig they may not enjoy, or a way to plan when to grab a beer or how late the babysitter might be needed. To critics, it can also be an example of how the internet has drained mystery out of a thrilling in-person encounter.
Sounds like 1001tracklists, but for a broader range of artists.