I also see ticket prices increasing nationwide at rates far outstripping inflation not to mention income
It definitely sucks....the squeeze is on for the middle class
I think in this area a household income of 200k means middle class..
Median household income 2015, DC Metro $93,294
Median household income 2015, Entire US 55,775
https://www.washingtonian.com/2016/09/21/the-dc-area-has-the-highest-median-income-in-the-us-again/
I definitely go to less shows than I would like (and used to) because of rising ticket prices. Not just music, but theater and other stuff as well. C'est la vie, but I feel it.
I guess my thing is that I just love the intimate feel of a small venue. For me, the 9:30 Club is about as large a place I can imagine there being that intimacy, and that's only when I'm near the front. In theory, I'm willing to sacrifice that intimacy somewhat if it's one of a very few favorite bands...but if I'm going to a venue that holds five time (or more) the number of people than an intimate venue does...I don't want to be paying two or more times the price of the average ticket of the intimate venue...what's the point? I can stay at home and listen to the band for free and not have to deal with the hassles of going to a concert.
I think there are bands that can play well in the Anthem. Foo Fighters were able to pull it off. I'm sure that Nick Cave will be great as well. In general though, it is much harder to do.
My sense is that like most things in this country, the concert scene is becoming more stratified. People either play big venues like Anthem and charge top dollar or cannot draw much of a crowd at all. Fewer bands are in the middle.
There are still tons of shows going on at the Black Cat, 9:30, DC9, SongByrd, etc... and their prices haven't gone up that much. I just don't know the artists and I am unwilling to dedicate the time or the energy to finding new music in the same way.
The sad reality, at least for me, is that as I've gotten older my tastes are probably more mainstream and that means that I have to pay more for concerts.