Embarassing (performance) video

[gregoire1]

I remember the gig well. The crowd was into it, the sound was great! Our singer never (and I mean NEVER) misses a note, and our vocal harmonies are good too.

Last night I saw a camcorder video of that show, and yikes! The singer sounded off key, vocal harmonies were off, I couldn't hear bass guitar at all, and our whole stage persona was, well, dull!

I know the video doesn't do us justice, but am devastated anyway.

Please only respond if you have a similar story or wish to console me. My delicate ego can't take anymore.

[gregoire1]

... and NO I will NOT post the video!

[TomA1234]

No video no embarrasing performance!

[fishtx]

The video may not have done your band justice...but it obviously opened your eyes to some issues that need to be addressed...take it as a learning experience and watch it with the band...and have a critical discussion...

[Joe Gress]

Watching yourself is the best way to improve technique, presence, posture, and whatnot. You may think it looks horrible at first, but it opens up your mind on what you need to do differently.

[James Hart]

Originally Posted by Joe Gress

Watching yourself is the best way to improve technique, presence, posture, and whatnot. You may think it looks horrible at first, but it opens up your mind on what you need to do differently.

as does hearing yourself... I record every jam / rehearsal / performance I can. What you think you hear is usually a bit different from how you actually sound.

[Joe Gress]

Originally Posted by James Hart

as does hearing yourself... I record every jam / rehearsal / performance I can. What you think you hear is usually a bit different from how you actually sound.

+1

[BritPicker]

Originally Posted by James Hart

as does hearing yourself... I record every jam / rehearsal / performance I can. What you think you hear is usually a bit different from how you actually sound.

It can work both ways.

I've played gigs and not been very happy with how it went - making mistakes and so on, then reluctantly listening to the recording and being blown away by it.

The recording don't lie!

[manutabora]

Yes, the video indeed does not lie! If the singer was out of tune in the video, you can be pretty sure he was out of tune in the actual performance as well
Sometimes when you're caught up in the energy of the moment you don't hear things that may later become obvious in a more controlled environment. However, sometimes putting out good energy in your show is more important than not missing notes or playing/singing in tune.

[BishopM05]

See, I've always been curious about this issue...obviously I haven't seen too many videos of myself or my band, but maybe some more vets can chime in:

With the average recording tech and such, will getting video of a live performance really capture the live show as if you were an audience member? I mean, yes it will pinpoint the smallest flaws and show you what you might want to do differently during the show to improve stage presence, but how much should you take to heart if the audio/video quality isn't top notch? If you put yourself too far down, you're forgetting the audience members are humans too and not video cameras with crappy audio input. They are affected just as much by the energy as the band.

[fullrangebass]

Originally Posted by James Hart

as does hearing yourself... I record every jam / rehearsal / performance I can. What you think you hear is usually a bit different from how you actually sound.

I do the same, and I always provide the recordings to the rest of the band so we can have a common denominator and something solid to talk over

[vagus]

For what it is worth, some video cameras on board mics are pretty weak and can distort the sound quite a bit. I'd take that into consideration for sure. We've taken to getting a line from the board to the camera because the built in mic is so bad.

[strummer21]

The video is actually what you looked/sounded like. Use it as a tool to help you get better. Take into consideration that it is a camcorder mic so the mix and sound quality will not be entirely accurate, listen with headphones to hear your bass. Don't be devastated by what you saw, if the crowd was into it then they probably didn't notice your mistakes. Remember you are going to look at your own performance much more critically than the casual observer.

[Yerf Dog]

Video, the great scrutinizer.

[chaosMK]

Early videos made me realize that I needed to exaggerate my "hip thrust" moves for them to really come out.

[gregoire1]

Originally Posted by strummer21

The video is actually what you looked/sounded like. Use it as a tool to help you get better. Take into consideration that it is a camcorder mic so the mix and sound quality will not be entirely accurate, listen with headphones to hear your bass. Don't be devastated by what you saw, if the crowd was into it then they probably didn't notice your mistakes. Remember you are going to look at your own performance much more critically than the casual observer.

I said I DIDN'T want to hear that!

[Rudreax]

Originally Posted by gregoire1

I said I DIDN'T want to hear that!

It's a public forum. You can't honestly think everyone is going to say what you want them to say.

[gregoire1]

Originally Posted by Rudreax

It's a public forum. You can't honestly think everyone is going to say what you want them to say.

My wife says people can't tell when I'm being sarcastic. (maybe I should have used a little face)

My own mental image of my performance and the brutal video were, night and day different! I re-listened to the audio again, and this time it wasn't so bad. the only problem was in some of the vocal harmonies. But the overall musicallity was quite good, you just couldn't hear it.

My stage personna, now thats a different story. I looked like Frankensteins monster with a bass! I'm gonna suggest we video our next gig, for critical purposes.