Metallica's Manager: Indonesia is on My Watch List

KOMPAS.com - The rock group Metallica has made a living for the past 30 years growling about death in apocalyptic anthems like “The Four Horsemen“ and “Enter Sandman.“

Now, the heavy-metal pioneers are sleeping with one eye open for a different reason: Europe's financial crisis. Metallica's longtime manager, Cliff Burnstein, is accelerating the band's tour plans to avoid getting sucked into Europe's debt troubles.

With the gloom among investors spreading to richer countries such as France, Mr. Burnstein is worried that the euro will tank, making it harder for concert promoters in the 17 countries that use the currency to pay Metallica's fees.

Instead of playing Europe in 2013, as originally envisaged, Metallica will take a “European Summer Vacation“ next year, including gigs at Germany's Rock Im Park and Rock Am Ring festivals in early June-where the top-grossing thrash band will play its chart-topping 1991 record known as “The Black Album“ in its entirety-before heading to Britain and Austria.

“Look, I'm not an economist, but I have a degree, so it helps,“ Mr. Burnstein said one afternoon, sitting in the back room of his midtown Manhattan office in jeans and a red Economist magazine T-shirt with “Think Responsibly“ printed on it. “You have to ask yourself, what's the best time to be doing what, when and where.“

The global music industry is already dogged by slumping record sales, exorbitant ticket prices and a limping economy. Now financial fears are making even the biggest rock 'n' roll rebels play it safe to protect their pocketbooks.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers, another group Mr. Burnstein manages with partner Peter Mensch, has also brought forward its European plans, having launched its first tour in four years this fall in Latin America despite complaints from Chili-starved U.S. fans. About 75% of the band's revenue comes from touring abroad, Mr. Burnstein said.

In the U.K., Anthony Addis, manager of British alternative-rockers Muse, says currency fluctuations have been especially tough for his non-U.S. clients, which tour Europe extensively and don't want to be paid in dollars.

Some rockers crash and burn-and then learn. Duff McKagan, the former bassist of Guns N' Roses, once unwittingly spent $40,000 on expensive suits in Italy because he didn't realize how much his purchases-then in Italian lira-were worth in dollars.

The lanky musician now sings a more sober tune: After taking business courses at Seattle University, he started writing about finance for Playboy (“Duffonomics“) and-most recently-launched a wealth-management firm for rockers: Meridian Rock Capital Management LP. Millionaire musicians, the 47-year-old told fans at New York City's Strand bookstore in October, are an “underserviced“ community.

After the 2008 global financial crisis, rock bands and their managers are paying closer attention to obscure concerns like currency rates and economic trends when inking contracts with foreign concert promoters.

Eight months before Metallica takes the stage in Germany, Mr. Burnstein decides whether the band should be paid in dollars, euros or a combination of the two. If exchange rates swing in a way that hurts Metallica's earnings, he buys derivative financial instruments to lock in a preferred rate.

Sometimes ticket prices are hiked to compensate for possible currency-related losses, though Mr. Burnstein shuns this strategy. “Nobody is looking to make a foreign-exchange trade to make money, but you don't want to be a loser,“ the scraggly bearded manager said.

The euro is what Mr. Burnstein fears the most. “Over the next few years, the dollar will be stronger and the euro weaker, and if that's the case, I want to take advantage of that by playing more of these European shows now, because they will be more profitable for us,“ he said.

Recently, David Rawlings, the guitarist who performs with American roots musician Gillian Welch-another client-called from Europe complaining about the still-strong euro. Unlike many top musicians, the duo drive from show to show, and found themselves shelling out four times as much on fuel, hotels and food as they do in America-something Mr. Burnstein jotted down.

“They really have a ground-level view of what things cost“ in Europe, he said. “That's another thing that confirms for me that, because of the exchange rates, prices in Europe are much higher, and this isn't a sustainable situation.“

By the same token, it makes sense for Metallica, whose costs are largely in dollars and not euros or pounds, to suck up those currencies next summer. “A weak dollar is the best thing for American rock 'n' roll,“ said Bill Zysblat, partner at RZO Productions, which has handled tours for the Rolling Stones and the Police.

Sometimes Mr. Burnstein's calculations are in harmony with his client's wishes. In September, the Chili Peppers trekked through South America, a popular destination for entertainers thanks in part to soaring currencies that make it easier for local promoters to pay U.S. acts especially well. Singer Anthony Kiedis and bassist Flea, surfing enthusiasts, drove an hour out of Rio de Janeiro, to find the best place to catch Brazilian waves.

Other times, things get hairy. Flea wants to play Africa, but the puckish Mr. Burnstein has pushed back, saying the continent's infrastructure and profit potential-excluding South Africa-isn't there yet. Band members sometimes disagree with Mr. Burnstein over where to play. “One guy will go, we played there in 2000, 2003 and 2007, I don't think we should go back.“

Mr. Burnstein is a stickler for details. For one of his bands, a musician's divorce and child-custody issues necessitated creative tour planning so the band member could repeatedly return home. “You give everybody a calendar and say, here's what your next year will look like,“ the 63-year-old former manager of Def Leppard and the Scorpions said.

“We have all the key events in their children's lives, first day of school, Halloween trick-or-treating, parent- teacher conferences, school vacations, graduation day,“ he said. “It's tricky,“ he added.

With clouds over Europe darkening, managers like Mr. Burnstein are increasingly turning their long-term focus to places with stronger currencies, like South America, Southeast Asia and Australia. When Metallica ended their “World Magnetic“ tour in Australia a year ago, they played not just Sydney and Melbourne but also harder-to-get-to Perth.

“We're a U.S. export the same way Coca-Cola is,“ he said. “We look for the best markets to go to.“ “Right now Indonesia is on my watch list,“ he smiled.