My rehearsal rules poster idea became redundant yesterday
My band took a few weeks off then on coming back to rehearsal last weekend the singer shows up late telling us his friend trying out for lead guitar is coming after all (he postponed a while earlier). Like we're prepared for that after a break and no real notice of an audition.
So we're playing a song in Drop D tuning when the guy shows up and sets up his amp next to the drummer, mid song, then proceeds to come in randomly, in standard tuning, and blow us all away with his 120W cranked Marshall stack.
After that song, he rips into the opening to Paranoid so we all join in why not awesom song... but we're still drop tuned. Our resident guitarist forgets to compensate for the tuning and at the end of the song the new guy starts correcting our resident guitarist ... on their very first exchange. No "hi how are you I'm blahblah", nothing. Neither of them click that tuning is the problem while they discuss the correction.
While thats going on, I check the settings on the Marshall to see why my ears have exploded and why our drummer is scrambling to find his ear plugs and a cloth to wipe poop from his seat... everything trying to get to 11 except the master volume...which did find 11, 11 oclock!!! When I say something about the settings he just snaps back "Set it to what you want! I'm trying to keep up with you".
I mutter under my breath I don't play guitar so I'm not setting the tone. I roll the volume down half which still mixes him in front and ask him to roll off some bass to his liking and I don't mind about the rest of his tone
The drummer laughs because usually I'm really interested in other peoples' tone and and take a few minutes discussing how they achieve it.
Then the singer calls a song from our set at random that we haven't practiced in ages and that the new guy can't play so the guitarists haggle over parts while I tune back up. The resident guitarist forgets to tune up, the song sounds like squat and the singer asks what happened and is looking at me?
They fix the tuning when I said it needed doing but the random calling of old songs by the singer goes on for about 4 more songs then (thankfully) the resident guitarist gets called home for a child emergency so we help him load up and leave. I go out and say goodbye and he tells me he's worried he'll lose his spot that guy is heaps better and I tell him yes technically he is a better player but don't stress, I'll wind things up and "As I said before you're my friend man, and as long as you keep up with us there will always be a spot for you in any band I'm in where I have a say on members".
I went back inside, jammed another song that noone else knew properly, tore down and went home thinking that singer is becoming more and more an issue and feeling guilty for feeling relieved an emergency cropped up to end the rehearsal.
On the following Monday, the singer sends an email out that rehearsal was rubbish and that he was dissappointed on the day and with our progress to date and that he is always the most prepared and how he thinks the drummer and guitars need work and that it was "gut check time".
I send a politically correct response and leave work only to get the fallout emails the following morning. When I get to the singers reply to the guitarists reply, the singer has just up and quit. Guess he didn't have the guts
So I'm not sure whats happening. I have the option to keep leading this mob, start a new band or look to get into a bass player wanted situation.
Which ever way things work out, I know Talkbass will be here to help and I want to say a huge "Thanks" to Talkbass and the contributing members for all the help and advice I've gleaned and sourced from here on playing bass and managing bands.
/Rant
