I partially agree. In my 20's I'd be attracted to loud pub bands, mainly electric, blues-rock. Generally the pubs putting on these gigs were packed out, as they had a reputation as music pubs and people knew what they were getting.

What does annoy me (and more so as I'm getting older*) is over-amplified "acoustic" bands or performers. PA is often a necessary evil but is at it's best when it's invisible sound reinforcement, or used sensitively to as an extension of the instrument. Bob Brozman is in my opinion one of the best exponents of this - there's an example of what I mean here and some of his live sound hints here. But when PA is done badly, especially for acoustic performers, I'd agree that it could drive folks away.

Cheers,

Pete.



*which is better than the alternative