Hey guys, I'm putting together a rock band at my school. I have a guitarist and drummer, both of which are very talented. We're aiming for a kind of laid back 311 style rock band. When I first had the idea I thought it would be awesome to get a female vocalist. Both Danny & Brennan (the guitarist and drummer) agreed that that would be really cool. I have a few girls in mind and I'll be auditioning them tomorrow. I've heard that they are all great singers but they are also all in school choirs, it seems to me like this would make them capable of doing most any kind of singing but I'm not really sure. This will be the first time I've done this so I'm not sure what kind of vocals to look for. Do you guys have any suggestions on what kind of abilities to look for as they sing?

Hire the one who is the best kisser!:D

Seriously, choir singing is so totally unrelated to 'real world' rock singing that they might all sound really inappropriate for your style of music. Best to find somebody who has a good handle on pitch, who likes the same kinds of music you do, who isn't afraid to spend money on gear and will help set up / tear down at the gigs. If you find all these things, marry her!

Tuning. Very important.

Look for a sensitive singer - someone who appears to actually listen, to the band, and to herself.

Seriously, choir singing is so totally unrelated to 'real world' rock singing that they might all sound really inappropriate for your style of music.

That's what I'm afraid of, but going by word of mouth I always seem to get sent to these girls that are in choirs. :(

EDIT: By the way-does anyone have any good ideas for names? I suck at making up those kinds of things.

Eavesdrop on girls while they are singing to their fav tunes!!!:D
My band has a female vocalist that does a good portion of the songs, which works out kinda cool. I asked her to join cause I heard her singing along with my cd's in the van one day :D. The band still isn't officially off the ground though. I have 2 or 3 prominent local bands promising me a gig once we get a good set togather though..hmmm. :cool:

If you don't intend to write lyrics yourself, make sure the vocalist you select has a creative bent and can write decent lyrics fairly prolifically. It's frustrating when the band has a bunch of songs written and the vocalist takes weeks to come up with the lyrics.

For me, the most important thing is if the singer can sing on key.

1) A good voice;

2) Good relative pitch;

3) Reading ability;

4) Dynamic control;

5) Range; and

5) Theory (this is icing).

In addition to pitch and expressiveness (dynamics/breath control), singers need to be good entertainers/front people if you plan to do anything besides recording. Look for someone who *loves* to sing and really wants to share their gift with others. Enthusiasm is infectious and the best vocalists establish a genuine connection with the audience. If you want to make money, looks matter too. When you find somebody with all of these talents combined, stick with them!

yeah, and it wouldn't hurt if they either have or are willing to get their own equipment too. A lot of people think they're good singers and that it's real easy to do (just watch American Idol), but having to buy all that gear (mic, amp, speakers, etc.) can help weed a few out.

But the biggest thing is how they sound while playing with you guys. You might want to try just doing an instrumental jam and see how she improvs to it. It'll show you a lot: how well she can come up with a melody line, how much she is into your type of music, if her voice can stand out against your playing (some people's voices--guys or girls--are just too weak to be heard over distortion), her relative pitch, and just general chemistry with the band.