Ever been sacked from a band STRAIGHT after spending 4 days recording a demo?!?!

[addylewis]

Same old story "I've had a talk with the guys and...we don't think you fit in, sorry..."

We recorded our demo for 4 days and I gave them £85 towards it (nearly 2 weeks wages now I've lost shifts at work for said band...) then the singer/guitarist texts me and says basically "We gotta talk, come round to mine..." I just KNEW something major was about to change, he just doesn't send us messages like that...

We met up and he basically sacked me - I was just in shock after 1 minute, the whole meeting only lasted 5 at most...

What gets me most is that we'd been in the studio from the tuesday-friday the week before and nobody mentioned it or gave any CLUE it may happen...

I'm getting my bloody money back, PLUS the money from shifts I had to get covered at work AND a copy of the demo...if they like it or not, 2 of them work full-time and I can't afford to spend that kind of money on a project I have just been ejected from, hopefully the guys will understand that and just give me the money and a copy of the recordings no problem

They weren't really my kind of band anyway, a bit too rocky for me - and, like I said to the singer when he sacked me "I'm not the old bassist or you so I WILL put my own spin on the stuff, and you constantly STILL telling me to play it "like this coz the old guy did" IS annoying me, your right..."

The fact that they said "it's just not working - its not your image or playing, its just...I dunno - I'd like to still be mates coz your a cool guy" and all that. I just said "WHY have you just screwed it up whilst, although not perfectly, it WAS WORKING?!?!"

Sod it, back to the drawing board again, I REALLY gotta start writing my own stuff!

[kesslari]

Good luck getting some money back.
Sounds like you were screwed pretty badly, and with bad intent.
If you can get control of the recordings you'll have more leverage.
If not, you can make it clear that they can't distribute anything with your playing on it without your permission. Your permission should cost, as per your original post.

Sometimes, the more I hear about people, the better I like my dogs...

[LowendinFL]

When I was with the last band we recorded a demo, and that was the last time we played together. I knew it would be it for me because I was tired of the singer. He was a star in his own mind, yet was near talentless! However the guitar player and I started jamming with this other front man he knew doing cover tunes, and a couple of months later we needed a steady drummer so we gave our old drummer a call and he had nothing going on. He fit in perfect and now we have 40 - 50 songs down good and are near ready for our first gig!! (we just need a good PA)

So keep your feelers out and find dudes to jam with and before you know it you will find your self in another project.

[Steve]

I don't know guy, clearly there was trouble in paradise.

You thought the band was too rocky, they thought your lines were not what they wanted...

That's not a place where I would feel comfortable investing non-disposable income.

Frequently things that get overlooked at normal gigs and rehearsals due to "the fog of war" become painfully evident at mix down when everyone is focused on the critical listening.

I'm not saying it's right or wrong but, it does happen.

You are entitled to get your money back. You won't.
You should at the very least get a copy of the work you did. That'll be doable.

That's one of the reasons I keep a mercenary attitude and don't break my butt on original projects.

All that effort can go right down the toilet for a thousand reasons good and bad and you're left with nothing except lessons learned. Spend that energy learning your craft and instrument and you will gain something that nobody can take away from you.

I feel your pain and hate to see a fellow player get knocked around but there's plenty to be learned here that's worth more than the studio fees.

[fenderhutz]

I have actually quit after going to the studio because I couldn't hear how bad the band was in the loud practice area. Does that count?

[spc]

I've been canned. It stinks, but you learn from it. I had just finished a couple of months rehearsal, and 2 days of recording, and I was asked to leave. The singer (his tunes, his project) was very polite, and explained that I wasn't getting enough done on the tunes. And he was right, I wasn't doing the homework. I thought I could squeak by. We shook hands, and they scrapped my tracks. Too bad that, I had a track where I played a fretless and overdubbed a fretless. Would have liked to have had that. Oh well, those notes are gone...
When I get the chance to play now, I do the work. And then some.
Learn from it. Get a copy of the demo if you can.



namaste!
shawn

[Roadman]

That sucks, man. It's kind of like being dumped by a woman though. Weather they may give you the "it's not you, it's me" line, or just have someone else in mind. Either way, when it's over...it's just over, and you may never know why.

Chalk it up to experience and go write yourself a good Blues song.

[JimK]

Sometimes, bands (w/ a majority of original tunes) will record a 'demo'...with the intent of giving someone das boot soon after. The 'demo' is for the new member to use as a learning tool.

[toytech]

I got canned after 2 practices when I could not get up to speed with the bands material fast enough. Even after I had requested recordings or charts which they could not produce. It happens, on to something new.

[lump]

I got canned a few weeks back. Long story short, my schedule became a problem. We had played a few shows downtown and then had to take a few weeks off while I traveled on business and the singer took a trip to Europe. Everyone was back, we had one rehearsal on new material and I get one of those "Can you do a show tomorrow night? No biggie if you can't" emails. I said no, because my mom was in town for my son's graduation and we had dinner plans. Evidently that wasn't good enough for the geetar player, who sent me an email stating that they deserved a better explanation (taking two weeks off go to Europe was okay though). I corkscrewed into the ceiling and left him an voice mail essentially telling him to eff himself. If I commit to a date I'll be there, but if I can't commit it's for a good reason and I don't have to justify it to him or anyone else. Got the "I can't work with you anymore" email the next day. Wasn't exactly surprised. What started off as a casual gig started turning into "We want to be rock stars" and I just don't have the time for that. Plus I'm too frickin' old.

The happy ending here is that it freed me up for a church gig with some KILLER local players. Assuming I get the callback after our first rehearsal (lots of world-beat stuff a little outside my usual rock/pop/funk lane--I've got homework to do), we've got a huge show lined up downtown in a coupla weeks for World Youth Day. Even if I don't get the callback, it was a privilege playing with these guys. I'm crossing my fingers though.

[whitedk57]

Sounds like you were canned in favor of the previous guy. I would check up on them somehow to see if the other bassist is back with them.

Sounds like a relationship I had once with a girl. I was fun for her for a while, and then she sacked me (Had to use the British lingo there).

[Just J]

I passed on trying out for a original project because I kinda got the impression that the songs were all the singers. Lots of unison bass and guitar riffs and no regard for the songs groove.

Live and learn, if the singer is cool they should understand your situation and perhaps toss a few quid your way. Just don't be a jerk about it.

[steve66]

You got to put that band behind you and move on. Play with as many different people as possible and take names and get phone numbers. Start building you own musician network. Don't take things so seriously. Bands come and go, build relationships.

Good Luck

[jaywa]

I just went through the reverse situation, where a drummer bailed after our first live gig. This was AFTER he had already played on our demo (which he also produced in the studio he owns and where we rehearsed), and bought probably $10,000 USD worth of brand new sound & lights out of his own pocket. I would also say this is not "his" band, it is actually the guitarist's. Apparently he and the bandleader talked after the first gig and the drummer basically fired himself. Just a strange deal all around.

The rest of us are meeting tonight to figure out to do next. One of those things that just makes you go, what the heck.

[jmcgliss]

I voluntarily left a band after they sacked the drummer (good guy, just not hard hitting enough for that project). What I noticed from their CD releases is that former members' pics were on the CD jackets, but with altered names. Cheezy, huh?

[Jmassie]

I had the same deal, This band just starting out, needed a bassist, the drummer Was a very good friend of my and helped me out in the past. so After about a month it got rolling and we had 10 original songs down in 2 months. So after that they kicked me out ( the guitard got pissed because i pointed out he played out of key alot...), the **** end for them was, i had writtin all the songs and the funny thing was he asked to use the songs after.....psh no

[rutty24]

no, but i quit a band when the guitarist started to beatbox into the mic during gigs. i can't work with that!! the drummer is there to drum!!

[thumpbass1]

Sorry you got sacked but it's part of the beloved biz. It's tough if you have to fill the empty shoes of someone before you,but it's pretty common stuff actually. They got you in the studio to record what they wanted to hear,and were used to,and that pretty much spells out the job of session playing. I've been in this spot myself and it is tough at times, but my job is to deliver what the powers that be in charge happen to want as best as I can.

You should just add the experience to your resume of being a musician for good and bad and move on being wiser after it all. I'm sorry it didn't work out for you but for every gig that went bad for me in my own experience,I've found a lot of better ones to make up for the bad ones.

[Spinal Tapper]

Chalk it up to experience. But definitely try to get a copy of the demo for yourself and add it to the resume.

[TheDarkReaver]

Originally Posted by rutty24

no, but i quit a band when the guitarist started to beatbox into the mic during gigs. i can't work with that!! the drummer is there to drum!!

was he at least good at it?