Whats the hardest part about being in a band?

ubw newbie Joined: Dec 10, 2007 Posts: 36

The subject speeks for itself. Im just curious about what you all think.

moderator Joined: Jun 30, 2007 Posts: 333

i'm a one man band but seems that by my collabs experience that you must always sacrifiate a part of your thoughts in the name of th band/collab

Posted: Wed Dec 12, 2007 7:10 pm

Well geez where do i begin.....lol
the hardest part i find is everyone being on the same page as far as the music selection...and motivation.......and commitment.....

ubw newbie Joined: Oct 15, 2007 Posts: 47

I agree with gunner.. Commitment has always been a MAJOR issue....music selection is always a pain, and motivation is NOTORIOUSLY a problem.....one more point i might add....... it really bothers me when ppl refuse to play a song that everyone else in the band is on-board for...part of being in the music industry is from time to time you have to play songs that you are either played out on , or just plain dont like....one thing a lot of "armchair musicians" dont understand is this.....you HAVE to play what the crowd wants to hear, and they dont ALWAYS want to hear what YOU want to play....this is ESPECIALLY true if you play any covers.... If you play one cover, the crowd is gonna assume you do others, and they are gonna ASK you to. if you Cant suck it up and play a song you dont like once in a while, then in in MY opinion, you shouldnt be in the music industry......I have no ending for this, so I take a small Bow.

Posted: Wed Dec 12, 2007 10:27 pm

Well said PG (Padlockgrim)...lol
our band is a cover band for now...we do mostly classic rock...and if i have to play Mustang Sally one more time im gonna sell all of my gear and take up knitting!!!!!
jk....but you did make a very good point though, if you are a cover band, you have to play what's gonna get the girls out on the dance floor,
Girls on dancefloor=guys drinking to watch girls on dancefloor=money for the bar and us=we will be back..etc.etc.....so you have to play songs they want to hear...even if it means some yahoo yelling Freebird, which it happens almost every time...lol....when i go to see a cover band i yell out Slayer!!!!!!!!!!But then again...thats just me!

ubw newbie Joined: Oct 15, 2007 Posts: 47

yeah i understand.......we play about 85% originals, and we're VERRRY selective about which covers we pick......Since we live in the south, we are pretty much DOOMED to play SOME southern/classic rock. We acctually had a FOUNDING MEMBER of this band to quit PERMENANTLY all becouse he didnt want to cover "Soulshine" for a certain gig we had. The ppl at the venue already said thet they would really like it if we could play it, but dude STILL was like" Huh uh.... im not doing it" so we just kept on practicing without him, told him, if you dont wanna play it, then thats your chance to run and get all the rest of us a beer.... i guess he felt like he was being left out, and he just quit......not to toot our own horn, but we got a good thing going, and its unbelievable to think that someone would give up a good thing just because they dont want to play ONE song.... i mean, its rediculous, not to mention CHILDISH, and VERRRRY unprofesional, and this is NOT a buisness where you can afford to be EITHER of those........ Good point too, gunner, about the $$$ situation.... if the club sees ppl on the dance floor, then they WILL want you to come back..... and happy club owners are the key... without THEM you simply CANNOT build a fanbase.... and if you have no fanbase, you have NOTHING!!!! Your fanbase, and club owners go DIRECTLY hand in hand.... eating out of each others bowl, so to speak..... So ill stop rambling now......BTW gunner, we got you added on Myspace..... drop by and say hi sometime!!!!

ubw newbie Joined: Dec 10, 2007 Posts: 36

hey guys, yea very interesting stuff. But is it that hard to find a song everyone will play?? so many covers to be played, of course it depends of your fan base and your style (i still havnt checked out what you guys play but i will and ill get back at ya).
oh i just re-read your post gunner, you have a cover band...ok well Smile

yea that must be hard. Anyways We play originals and what i find to be incredibly difficult is the composition process with the other members. I understand that when your with the perfect ppl everything just seems to come together, but thats so improbable. I tend to produce ideas completly in my home studio then i propose them and nothin is more frustrating then producing what you consider to be a good verse or chorus and have another member just not accept it without giving any valuable reason. I mean i dont expect them to just accept everything I do, I would be the problem in that case. But when there is no communication, thats when things get hazy between members.

As for getting a fanbase, any pointers you could give me? the freind part isnt the problem. What im having trouble with is the promotion side. How do you guys promote your concert? How about dealing with club owners, any advice?

thx

Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2007 6:42 pm

Unfortunatly.....playing all originals at a venue is very tricky...you have to grab them at the first song or else....been there,done that...lol
ok...Gigdoggy, as far as the following or fanbase and club owners, your best bet is to put a cd together with about 3-4 of your best songs, go and talk directly to the bar owner...dont bs them at all...remember, they deal with musicians all the time, dont be cocky,but be confident, this will help you get your foot in the door, also, if you can play the same place twice, there will surely be people who remember you and word gets out, also, post your gig here, im sure there are a lot of people that live close that would come out and support you, another is Myspace, there are soooo many ways to promote a gig, you just have to use your resources at hand, and dont be afraid to make flyers and leave them everywhere,
hope this helps!!
GG

ubw newbie Joined: Dec 10, 2007 Posts: 36

hey thx gunner, helps alot
your reply is very appreciated. Yea, we network alot through myspace
Do you ever gig swap? if so whats your technique? plan a tour and give out dates to bands promising to help them out when they come in your home town?

cya

Gigdoggy

Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2007 11:07 pm

a couple of things you might want to do as well...if you live in a town with college radio, send them music! try to get an interview. any local free-press zines, send them your music! college newspapers are also good. on the day of the gig, get out anywhere there's people and hand out hand bills. if possible, and the weather permits it (as well as local law enforcement), get a couple of guys from the band and maybe do a few of your songs acoustically (that's where the 'if possible' comes in Pirate

). UBW, myspaz, and other sites are effing great, but nothing beats getting out there and chatting with people about your music. parties and the like are other great places to tell people about a gig if you hit one up a few days or a week beforehand. to me, just as important as building a fan base and getting in good with club owners is getting in good with other bands. if other bands like you and your music, they will probably ask you to do shows with them off and on. that has been one of the best methods for us, since we don't get out all that much anymore. we're friends with most of the bands in town, so they ask us to play out. we don't even play remotely the same style of music, but there's a lot of mutual respect. once you're in good with a few clubs, you can return the favor, or get someone to help fill the bill when you're in a jam trying to find that third band to play with. get in with those bands that see the scene as a community, not as a group of competitors. there's a good chance there will be a lot of the latter, especially in the rock scene. the older guys are usually the ones to get to know. they've mostly gotten past that cocky phase. Laughing

we'll, those are my 2 pennies for ya.

Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2007 11:33 pm

Well said.......
No we dont gig swap....why? you ask??.....because I dont know....lmaoooo
we might need to look into that soon.....sounds interesting!!

ubw newbie Joined: Jan 08, 2008 Posts: 3

Its gotta be getting people to come out to shows. hint: having a recorded demo/ep or full length will help some.

Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2008 8:00 pm

Ha Ha.. i think its just like 'Wife Swap' but with gigs???

i think the hardest part in being in a band is kind of EVERYTHING!!! i seem to average 2 months before it all breaks down for one reason or another... but if you want to do music then keep writing your own stuff and just find more musicians....easy....lmao... Laughing

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2008 9:36 pm

where to practice... seriously drums are noisy

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2008 11:13 pm

that also Smili......i want to get away from the band im in now and start my own...but finding a drummer with his own practice space for a band is hard...i havent any........

Whats the hardest part about being in a band?

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