It does however sound Suffet as if (apart from the issues of travel distances in the USA outside towns) if what you say is so you should be able to start a new thing in stead of bewailing what there is.

And if the status quo is ageing so fast you surely have an inside track to change from the inside. Join something and pretty soon you'll be the only one left alive.

Incidentally Jon, the "schlep" thing still works. In the UK. I was asked to do a support slot at the pub venue I usually go to - and took my band which was really only just forming. We were asked to do two proper paid gigs, one there and one elsewhere. We went to a club in London to see some friends perform - did one song as a floor spot and were asked to do two gigs. We aren't Bellowhead, the Oysterband, Coope Boyes & Simpson, or Lynne Heraud and Pat Turner but a few people seem to like what we are doing and it's totally done on the odd floorspot and word of mouth.