Beyond their reputation as one of the most consistently great indie pop bands of the past couple of decades, Los Campesinos! are also among the most transparent. Since going full-on DIY with their seventh studio album, 2024's All Hell , the Welsh band has been remarkably straightforward about the financial side of things. Today, in a guest essay crossposted with permission from the Los Campesinos! newsletter , frontman Gareth David shares exactly how much it costs him and his bandmates to tour stateside. By now it’s widely accepted that the live industry is fucked for 99% of us. Be it artists struggling to cope with growing costs, or fans with diminishing disposable income being met with ever increasing ticket prices at arena and stadium gigs, from a gouging music industry. Bands and Music Biz Insiders are often keen to express their plight, but so often what they say falls short of being interesting because it doesn’t include any detail or tell us anything we don’t already broadly know as music fans.…