February 26, 2007
Snapshots: Wristband Mania!
SXSW co-creator Louis Black (left) looks on as folks wait anxiously in line at Waterloo Records for SXSW Music wristbands earlier this afternoon.
First 2,000 are $130 and the next 2,000 shoot up to $160--nearly twice as much as they were five years ago, when the first round of wristbands were $85. Lines stretched around the block, with eager Austinites showing up in increasing numbers even as we left at 1:30pm. In '05, the last of the first-round tickets sold out at 6pm that same day.
Only two hours have passed and the first wristband appears on Craigslist for $250.
Photo by Patrick Dentler
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The epitome of "fat & happy," no?
Oh, and smug, neurotic and narcissistic.
I thought this festival wasn't for the consumers, Louis. Why even sell wristbands? Oh, yea, to make close to $1,000,000 from people for whom the festival is not.
I agree! What a putz! Where's that Brent guy who made all smart ass comments about how SXSW is not for the "joe consumer". He should be standing there! Yep, money is the great equalizer. They just can't get enough can they? Hey SXSW...gee, thanks for including us in your elitist event!! Thanks for the favor and I hope you choke on our money! Fuckers!
I guess Louis Black found some time to take a break from writing another one of his boring as ballz Chronicle editorials.
Everybody knows the Chronicle and SXSW are the same thing, right?
Here's an idea. Don't go. I for one enjoy only having to pay $130 to see several hundred great bands over a few days and eat free BBQ and ejoy free beer. SXSW is what you make of it.
BTW - while people have put their wristbands out for sale already, there is no lack of posters willing to pay $200 for on either. Its all about supply and demand.
Do you guys compain this much when a show gets sold out at Emo's or Stubb's?
im not buying that wristband this year. im gonna hit up all the FREE stuff I can. but,,,,geez....gonna miss kings of leon. ill probably be too drunk to go anyways by that point.
revolt!
Clue me in here, what is the huge beef with Louis Black/SXSW that the three of you seem to have?
f the band. go see the free stuff!!!!
You can almost see the thought bubble over Louis's head alternating between "Ca-ching, ca-ching" and "Suckers!".
As for smug and narcissistic, you really don't know Louis or read his Page Two's, do you? He's got to be one of the most self-effacing, self-denigrating people on the planet. So really, why all the sourpuss comments? It was Brent Grulke that said that SXSW was first and foremost an industry event. That didn't mean that they don't want the community or music lovers to attend. If they didn't, they wouldn't bother selling wristbands. What he was trying to say was that they wanted to make sure the industry would be best served. Think about it, if they're well served, then they might sign your favorite band. Also, limiting ticket sales makes everyone's experience more pleasant. So, who's the real music lover here?
Chuck, a word to the wise - any time you spend trying to figure out the irrational hatreds and personal vendettas of Austinist posters is an exercise in futility.
Never got the text so thanks sxsw. Saw the crazy ass line and thought this is a preview of the line waiting I'll be doing as all the other badge holders etc. are let in the shows. No thanks you can have my place in line.
Hey Edward...you can almost see him rubbing his hands in anticipation of grabbing that cash out o' Waterloo's register all while calling Roland Swenson to check on the money coming into their Visa account! Ha! Daddy needs a new house on the lake!!!!
At least he's there. What is the last show you went to where the promoter was greeting people at the ticket booth?
What was the last show you went to where the promoter met you at the ticket booth to say enjoy the event Edward?
Bruno,
Yeah, it's SXSW's fault. It couldn't be your phone and/or service provider's fault right?
Is there some sort of vindication process of saying "No, I won't spend my money on your wristband (or ACL fest ticket) and I want to spout about it on a blog" that goes on? This isn't limited to Austinist -- the same thing happens yearly on Donewaiting.com.
People on that site seem to make up fictious bullshit too, like that the wristbands sell out in 15 minutes, etc. And then they complain that SXSW released too few and they sold out for $900 a piece (when clearly this isn't the case).
If you want to go to SXSW, go. If you want to go to free shows only, go. But until someone can rationally explain how a music industry event owes you a cheap and easy ticket, I'll continue to be bewildered.
It's not cheap to get into Winter CES out in Vegas and that's also an industry event that focuses on consumer products. I'd rather hear Bill Gates make his keynote than hear Pete Townshend, but I don't hear people bitching that Vegas residents can't attend that shindig for $130 and an hour on a line.
I just don't get it.
He is probably making sure they dont short change him. Please do not tell me sxsw is not about money. These guys send out more cease and desist letters than you can count....and for what because someone wants to use sxsw in a flyer!!
Please what are they protecting? Most of these bands end up being let down anyway,sxsw is like playing in front of penguins.
I guess it is my turn,
There has got to be a better way to distribute the first 4,000 wristbands other than by herding people in the heat for 3-4 hours like the sheeple they are. Hey SXSW have you ever heard of email, and secret one-time use passwords?
SXSW is not about the unrecognized bands, the fans, or Austin. It's about making money (which is okay with me, but don't act like it isn't about that).
SXSW books already popular bands forcing the unknown acts to play at odd hours in lame boutiques and art galleries far away from the center of town. All the while letting the big name acts, who do not need any more recognition, take up the majority of the suitable venues in town. The reason there are huge names on the SXSW bill is obviously not for stardom or fame, it's so Louis B & Co. can justify charging $160 for a ticket which supposedly gives you access to a gateway of unknown bands.
I guess it is my turn,
There has got to be a better way to distribute the first 4,000 wristbands other than by herding people in the heat for 3-4 hours like the sheeple they are. Hey SXSW have you ever heard of email, and secret one-time use passwords?
SXSW is not about the unrecognized bands, the fans, or Austin. It's about making money (which is okay with me, but don't act like it isn't about that).
SXSW books already popular bands forcing the unknown acts to play at odd hours in lame boutiques and art galleries far away from the center of town. All the while letting the big name acts, who do not need any more recognition, take up the majority of the suitable venues in town. The reason there are huge names on the SXSW bill is obviously not for stardom or fame, it's so Louis B & Co. can justify charging $160 for a ticket which supposedly gives you access to a gateway of unknown bands.
I'll echo the kind sentiments towards Mr. Black - it's always obvious to me when the haters start piling on how few of them have ever actually encountered him.
Also, as of 6:15 there was no one in line at Waterloo, and wristbands were still available.
I'll echo the kind sentiments towards Mr. Black - it's always obvious to me when the haters start piling on how few of them have ever actually encountered him.
Also, as of 6:15 there was no one in line at Waterloo, and wristbands were still available.
Stew,
Not disagreeing, but every single festival, conference, and system is flawed. Nothing is perfect. If the festival was booking bands no one ever heard of, it would be boring and no one would come. It would be the North Texas New Music Festival or the festival in Indianapolis, if not worse.
It's been better, it's been worse, and if people don't want to go, don't go.
I don't recall SXSW advertising itself as a nonprofit, philanthropy event, or charity case. There's no "we're out for the common man and the future of humanity bullshit" -- they're just a business like every other business, except people are generally more passionate about music than the stamp collecting convention.
it's 7:30 and there are still wristbands available.
Really, as an industry event, SXSW could give the finger to Austin locals and not sell wristbands or single admission tickets at all. And while wristbands aren't super cheap, their price is realistic considering how many shows they can get you into.
seriously kids, pop some midol.
The capacity for people to be bitter and denigrating on this -ist never ceases to amaze me.
Louis Black doesn't owe you anything, people. Neither does SXSW. There was a time when it was relatively cheap and easy to get into. Now it's not, because it's been so competently and intelligently put together for so many years that it's become an important industry event.
Even so, it still pumps millions into the local economy and always results in plenty of free and easy-to-get-into fun, from the film screenings (hardly ever difficult to get into, even for non-badge/pass/wristband holders) to the big shows on Auditorium Shores.
I mean, I've never had the opportunity to get a wristband, both for cost reasons and because, as an under-21er until very recently, I wouldn't be able to get into half the venues anyway. But there's never been any shortage of great in-store appearances, free day parties, cool movies, and other cool stuff (like Flatstock) to keep me occupied the entire week.
So, y'know, quit the whining. Let's see some love.
Hey thatwasawkward...heads up...the SXSW Wristband does NOT guarantee you entrance the venues. As a matter of fact as far as I know the system goes like this: SXSW Badges have first priority, then the SXSW Wristbands if there is any room, and then some cover charges allowed if absolutely no one is in line. This means you stand in line at whatever venue this years "buzz band" is at and watch all the Badges waltz by you and maybe, just maybe, there might be room. (This goes on all night as when anyone leaves the venue a badge will fill it if there is a line.) Also, don't be surprised if shows like Iggy and the Stooges, et al, do not allow wristbands as SXSW will make the most popular shows "BADGE ONLY" events. This is so the guy from New York who paid $600 bucks for his badge gets in, you, not so much. You will not be gliding in and out of venues at will. My suggestion...get at the venue by 6:00pm and wait!! (and STAY if you want to see a particular act!) Good luck! Me, I'll stick to the free day shows with ALL the SXSW bands playing and FREE BEER! Hope you get you $140 bucks worth out of that SXSW Wristband! Ha!
I laugh at all of y'all that say Louis Black and the club and bar owners are just making a business decision which doesn't need to include public opinion, but then bitch & moan when the club and bar owners want to make their own business decisions by allowing smoking in their establishments regardless of public opinion.
Mick,
I absolutely understand how wristbands work. I'm not in it for the big shows. I like going and seeing people who don't get the opportunity to come to Texas ofter or see people who are pretty unheard of. I know that in order to get people to come, South By needs to book some popular acts as attention-getters. If there are people I absolutely have to see before I die, I'll buy single admission tickets and see them next time they hit somewhere nearby.
So if I want to go see some acts completely foreign to me, 160 dollars for nights of music doesn't seem like that big of a deal. Especially since the cheap tickets for Iggy in NYC are 35 plus service fees, multiply that by four nights and we're talking about the price of a wristband.
Badges don't guarantee admission either. SXSW is organized to give you multiple options at once. And really, while the festival has grown and gets most of the attention, the panels run into capacity issues too.
I'm sorry you feel so combative about the issue. I'm not going into this blindly, I've done my research on SXSW over the years. I think most people understand exactly what wristbands are and what they get you. It's idiotic to purchase something that costs that much without looking into it. I'm just happy that SXSW pumps money into our economy and gives me the chance to hear new stuff.
I do believe "mick" is the same as the "sxswsux" bloke on donewaiting that's acting like a total buzzkill for sxsw this year. word has it he's a disgruntled ex-sxsw "worker" who's trying to turn folks to the dark side. if you invested in a badge or a wristband this year, do what you can to max it out and enjoy as much music as possible. and also go to as many free day shows as possible. sxsw is not an either-or experience. do whatever you can to do as much as you can.
If you can't find someone you want to see at SXSW, you don't know your music. Period. And you don't know how to "do" the festival. Its also a good point that if you don't understand what the wristbands really are, don't buy one. Save them for the REAL music fans. In fact, there will be numerous quality acts that I want to see that I won't be able to, because I can't split in half.
Saying that, the new rules were an utter joke. They were thwarted at every turn. Go to craigslist and see the hundreds of wristbands for sale. Bad news, SXSW, Austin is no longer a small town. You've got big city problems that can't be overcome by your control issues.
And the Houstonians will be there in force with our wristbands!
Huzzah!
Someone call the waaaaahhhmbulance for Mick and Stew. How unfortunate for them that they live in a town where once a year 1500 bands from all over the world play over 5 nights in clubs and bars in their backyard. It has got to royally suck that for a mere $160 they can see at least 7 bands a night for those 5 nights and they have 1500 to choose from. You know what's even worse? God, I am tearing up... There are hundreds of FREE day shows during the entire 5 days, and the majority of headlining acts and buzz bands play at least 2 of them. And to add insult to injury: there's free beer at most of these parties. Man, how can they stand it? It sounds like a miserable existence. Maybe they should off themselves. I know I would if I were subjected to such horror where I live.
Guest, no I don't know Louis personally, but I have read plenty of his page twos's and, yes, they often are self-denigrating but not intentionally. Especially during the whole McMansion fiasco, and often before and since then as well, Mr. Black has come off as a juvenile smug jackass who has to have the last word and doesn't respect any opinions other than his own. Prove me wrong, please! With all the people lining up in this town to either directly or indirectly make a living sucking at his teet, I'd much rather believe that he *isn't* the egotistical close minded jackass that he comes off to be in print.
Someone call the waaaaahhhmbulance for Mick and Stew. How unfortunate for them that they live in a town where once a year 1500 bands from all over the world play over 5 nights in clubs and bars in their backyard. It has got to royally suck that for a mere $160 they can see at least 7 bands a night for those 5 nights and they have 1500 to choose from. You know what's even worse? God, I am tearing up... There are hundreds of FREE day shows during the entire 5 days, and the majority of headlining acts and buzz bands play at least 2 of them. And to add insult to injury; there's free beer at most of these parties. Man, how can they stand it? It sounds like a miserable existence. Maybe they should off themselves. I know I would if I were subjected to such horror where I live.
I know several former Chronicle editors who've worked with Louis on a daily basis. They all agree he's an egocentric asshole, and they know he makes shitloads of money off of SXSW while paying both his salaried employees and his freelancers veritable slave wages. The Statesman (not that I'm a fan of it) even did an expose a few years back about the multimillion-dollar Westlake houses he and Nick Barbaro purchased with their SXSW proceeds (since God knows the Chronicle doesn't pull in that kind of bread).
That said, I don't have a big problem with how the wristband-sale thing is set up. If you're frenzied enough to wait four hours in 85-degree heat to try to get one of the first batch of $130 wristbands, that's your prerogative, just as it's mine to wait until 6:45pm and get one for thirty bucks more with no line at all, as I did tonight.
As for wristband entry vs. badges: Yes, it sucks that I didn't see the Beasties or Flaming Lips last year (didn't even bother trying to get in) and will miss some good shit this year as well, but the fest's primary raison d'etre is fomenting industry-centered hype, not giving us locals a four-day roster of really cool shit to see. (Note that I do not that argue the purpose of South By is fomenting the signing of cool bands, since most of the hyped ones are not only already signed but here to promote their new albums, many conveniently dropping in the month of March, e.g. Bloc Party. I also know of precious few bands, at least in recent years, who've gotten signed as a direct result of the fest.)
Smartcookie,
If it keeps people like you out of Austin, then go ahead and take SXSW to another city Mr. Black.
y'all are a bunch of super sissies. i have lived in austin and attended sxsw for the past 8 years, only had a wristband ONE of those years. its kind of a no-brainer--if its a show you REALLY want to see, you dish out the door cash and stand in line for it pretty much from 7:00. i've never had any problem going this route. and if you're SO CONCERNED that you won't get into a show simply because you're wristband-less, then buy a wristband for the exorborant amount of money sxsw and louis black is asking for and shut your damn traps.
Stew,
You're right. SXSW gives people cancer.
sxsw is like playing in front of penguins.
QUOTE OF THE YEAR MOTHERFUCKERS
Go get your awesome SXSW package on ebay. Just head to item 230097909543.
SXSW-more like Screamo Xanax-poppers Sucking Wiener.
Let's go to Cancun, bros!
Stan,
Guess what can also give you cancer:
Acetaldehyde, acrylamide, acrylonitril, abortion, agent orange, alar, alcohol, air pollution, aldrin, alfatoxin, arsenic, arsine, asbestos, asphalt fumes, atrazine, AZT, baby food, barbequed meat, benzene, benzidine, benzopyrene, beryllium, beta-carotene, betel nuts, birth control pills, bottled water, bracken, bread, breasts, bus stations, calcium channel blockers, cadmium, captan, carbon black, carbon tetrachloride, careers for women, casual sex, car fumes, celery, charred foods, chewing gum, Chinese food, Chinese herbal supplements, chips, chloramphenicol, chlordane, chlorinated camphene, chlorinated water, chlorodiphenyl, chloroform, cholesterol, low cholesterol, chromium, coal tar, coffee, coke ovens, crackers, creosote, cyclamates, dairy products, deodorants, depleted uranium, depression, dichloryacetylene, DDT, dieldrin, diesel exhaust, diet soda, dimethyl sulphate, dinitrotouluene, dioxin, dioxane, epichlorhydrin, ethyle acrilate, ethylene, ethilene dibromide, ethnic beliefs,ethylene dichloride, Ex-Lax, fat, fluoridation, flying, formaldehyde, free radicals, french fries, fruit, gasoline, genes, gingerbread, global warming, gluteraldehyde, granite, grilled meat, Gulf war, hair dyes, hamburgers, heliobacter pylori, hepatitis B virus, hexachlorbutadiene, hexachlorethane, high bone mass, HPMA, HRT, hydrazine, hydrogen peroxide, incense, infertility, jewellery, Kepone, kissing, lack of exercise, laxatives, lead, left handedness, Lindane, Listerine, low fibre diet, magnetic fields, malonaldehyde, mammograms, manganese, marijuana, methyl bromide, methylene chloride, menopause, microwave ovens, milk hormones, mixed spices, mobile phones, MTBE, nickel, night lighting, night shifts, nitrates, not breast feeding, not having a twin, nuclear power plants, Nutrasweet, obesity, oestrogen, olestra, olive oil, orange juice, oxygenated gasoline, oyster sauce, ozone, ozone depletion, passive smoking, PCBs, peanuts, pesticides, pet birds, plastic IV bags, polio vaccine, potato crisps (chips), power lines, proteins, Prozac, PVC, radio masts, radon, railway sleepers, red meat, Roundup, saccharin, salt, selenium, semiconductor plants, shellfish, sick buildings, soy sauce, stress, strontium, styrene, sulphuric acid, sun beds, sunlight, sunscreen, talc, tetrachloroethylene, testosterone, tight bras, toast, toasters, tobacco, tooth fillings, toothpaste (with fluoride or bleach), train stations, trichloroethylene, under-arm shaving, unvented stoves, uranium, vegetables, vinyl bromide, vinyl chloride, vinyl fluoride, vinyl toys, vitamins, vitreous fibres, wallpaper, weedkiller (2-4 D), welding fumes, well water, weight gain, winter, wood dust, work, x-rays.
SUCK IT!
You guys really do nail me. Every ugly word is true. Nick Barbaro and I live in a multi-million dollar Westlake mansion where we wander around all day in our slippers thinking how we can screw Austinites out of even more money. The house is all white -- white walls, white furniture, white art but our slippers are red. There is no music because we hate music!
Sometimes we sit by the pool drowning locals who passed out while waiting on line for wristbands. I wish I was as tough and smart as you guys but you are all so right, I'm just a juvenile smug egocentric asshole paying slave wages -- fat and happy, smug and stupid, neurotic and narcissistic. In fact Nick's only complaint about our quite perfect life together, outside of our lack of house servants (only a couple of dozen) and his routine but unfair accusation that hogging the bodies of the poor and passed out I'm drowning more than my share, is that I read him my column each week over and over and over again, using different voices as well as parts of my body to make sound effects.
And we do SXSW all alone. Just the two of us (of course the slaves help) so that those truck loads of money don't have to be split with anyone. SXSW Managing Director Roland Swenson is too busy helping establish the New World Order and working for international bankers to care. I was surprised that so many of us saw through the ruse of the free Auditorium Shores Shows and the many, many doors that are at $5 to realize we make even more money that way.
SXSW happened when one day Roland woke us to point out that there were suddenly 1600 bands in town and tons of shows and parties. He suggested we invent a character named Brent Grulke (though i still think that name is so obviously made up) and take over everything and steal money. It's worked like a charm.
But damn you folks caught us. I am a bad guy and calling me an egotistical close minded jackass doesn't begin to describe what a pig I am. I'm only in it for the money, money, money! I wasn't rubbing my hands with glee, I was rubbing my balls which I use like an abacus to count that money.
That's right, 2000 wristbands at 130 and 2000 at 160 is a million dollars and it's mine. One big problem is that at any time during any SXSW night there are at least 40 - 50 clubs you can walk right into but we're working on closing that loophole.
Now wristbands have been on sale on the web for weeks even though not one had been distributed. And now there aren't hundreds being sold on-line but THOUSANDS!
Wristbands sold out at around noon on Tuesday.
But as smart as you all are none of you has yet figured out how it is that we make even more money by keeping the price the same as last year (for the $130) and limiting each person to two wristbands you fools!!!
I love Louis Black. I do. I would even work for free to be one of his slaves.
This is officially my favorite comment thread ever!
i really don't think that comment was from louis black. he can't be that thin-skinned about anti-sxsw comments as this sort of shit happens every year. if he is that thinned skin then i suggest a vacation or a job change as his position at the chronicle and sxsw put him in the line of fire every day (hell, if it is him then he should be a sight by the time sxsw opens...red faced and steam spewing from his ears! ha!). i also don't think that was louis black as this just the sort of comment he loves to spew on his page 2 of the chronicle (which by the way, always seems like an episode of "family guy" as he starts off on one subject and the next thing you know he's fighting some giant chicken with jim jarmusch or whatever actor/director he can name-drop at the hole in the wall in the mid 1970's) and this is too good to waste on the blog. if it is him then next week's page 2 will be priceless! if it really is him then we should feel sorry for louis and maybe buy a sxsw wristband or two so that all the money they do make at least some of it will go to therapy!
Oh Louis, you cad. I don't know whether to respect you for standing up for yourself or laugh at you for being as unfunny here as you can be in your own column. Or to just get pleasure at the fact that you have had to admit that austinist is a more dynamic and fun publication than yours and that you finally had to 'come down to their level,' even though their web presence must make you slightly nervous. Or, whatever. good on ya for stepping into the cyber world...does the Chronic still exist? See ya at the shows. kisses.
Ha! If that was Louis Black I have to say the line: "I wasn't rubbing my hands with glee, I was rubbing my balls which I use like an abacus to count that money" stands as the best thing he has ever written!! Wow, 20 some odd years the Chronicle has existed and countless years of journalism training, Louis, this statement will stand the sands of time! Ha! Louis you are a god with words! Now if only his Page 2 next week starts off with that line I will never miss an edition! This SXSW Smackdown gets better every year!!!
If that really was him, he pwned you muthafukahs.
So Louis is evil and stupid, but if he comments he's evil and stupid? No matter if it was him or not it was a decent reply. If you don't like it, don't go. If you do like it, go. Otherwise just shut the hell up. Well, don't shut up, keep yapping. But seriously. Wow.
great. I can never again look Louis black in the face without picturing his balls being used as an abacus. *shudder* THANKS A LOT, you juvenile smug egocentric asshole. :-p
If that is you LB, touché, sir. It would have been far too easy to just get all worked up and spout off some smartass, juvenile, smug, egocentric, asshole rant along the lines of:
“Hey all, we understand we’re never going to make everyone happy, but we’re going to continue to do our best because we love this town and appreciate the opportunity it’s given us to become successful.”
But not you, sir! You have truly used this forum to rise above the fray and win over your would be detractors with your mature thoughtful and dare I say, gracious, response. No surprise here, though, as it is completely consistent with the high caliber of the balanced and well-formed opinions that the public has come to expect you to humbly express on a weekly basis in your fine publication. Well done!
The only thing wrong with Louis Black's statement, albeit his smartass way of saying it, his so-called "free" SXSW outdoor shows have really sucked in the past and don't make any musical sense and his analogy of the "many" $5.00 shows is bullshit! I believe Beerland is the ONLY place that has one or two of the those cover charges and the so-called "40-50 clubs" you can seemingly walk right in are filled with complete dredge! Please there is a little overkill going on at SXSW. HOW MANY FUCKIN" LAME BANDS NOT TO MENTION CLUBS DO YOU NEED TO GET TO THE CENTER OF A SXSW FESTIVAL?!! Well let's see...one million and one dollars...one million and two dollars...
yeah. well i am pissed because while i signed up for text alerts to let me know that wristbands were on sale, it didn't work. booray for technology.
I can't believe people think Louis Black would bother responding on the Austinist and then get worked up over something that is clearly a joke.
This is the most retarded comment thread ever.
Another round of tissues for everyone!
will another set go on sale today?
Austinist should just make a forum for all there commenters to get the bs out so the rest of us dont have too look at it here.
After looking at all the post I've decided to throw my two cents in...
In regards to poster Patrick (post #23) quote:
"...it's (SXSW) been so competently and intelligently put together for so many years..."
ARE YOU FUCKING HIGH!!!...cause I wanna smoke whatever your are on cause clearly you are not on this planet!
""...it's (SXSW) been so competently and intelligently put together for so many years...""
I second that comment. I've been to every SXSW for the last 10 years, and aside from one or two glitches a year, they do an amazing job of running this festival.
It's amazing how little consideration of the size and scope of SXSW is given by the whiners.
Seriously Bob Dobbs...what drugs are you and Patrick on? I really want to know so that I can enjoy whatever festival you are seeing in your FUCKING DELUSIONAL MIND!!!!
SARS, just because you don't like the way wristbands are sold,