Is a band ready to gig.

[phatphillss]

When everyone started at one point (playin out) what told you that the band was ready. I ask this ? only because my band has ON nights and way the f#@k OFF nights when we practice. We have 6 origial songs no covers and a few jams that can go somwhere if were ON. But when there is confusion its just a mess. What am I to do its kinda based around the drummer. He misses parts and forgets stuff, I smoke about a 1/4 of weed a week and i have no problem remebering anything, not to mention the 4-6 beers every practice, what the F is wrong with this kid .

So when is the right time to gig because when theres random people at one of our practices and we get through somthing they tell us were ready and sure as **** a day or two later its all messes up.Will I just know or are we ready. I real dont want to make a ass out of my band my friends or myself. I feel were not ready

I think once its second nature to every one then were ready but how long will that take. WE all learned how to play by locking our selfs in our bed rooms for years.Its been 7-8 months working on our demo and meshing with eachother.Are we taking to long our songs are not hard to play just sum have more changes than others.Howlong should a demo cd take with a new band from scratch, in my curcumstances.

heres the web page for some songs. not the best recordings but its there, tell me what you think about the band and all around my ?s

www.myspace.com/hein4twenty

[James Banner]

Don't do drugs!

[Jim Campbell]

Originally Posted by phatphillss

When everyone started at one point (playin out) what told you that the band was ready. I ask this ? only because my band has ON nights and way the f#@k OFF nights when we practice. We have 6 origial songs no covers and a few jams that can go somwhere if were ON. But when there is confusion its just a mess. What am I to do its kinda based around the drummer. He misses parts and forgets stuff, I smoke about a 1/4 of weed a week and i have no problem remebering anything, not to mention the 4-6 beers every practice, what the F is wrong with this kid .

So when is the right time to gig because when theres random people at one of our practices and we get through somthing they tell us were ready and sure as **** a day or two later its all messes up.Will I just know or are we ready. I real dont want to make a ass out of my band my friends or myself. I feel were not ready

I think once its second nature to every one then were ready but how long will that take. WE all learned how to play by locking our selfs in our bed rooms for years.Its been 7-8 months working on our demo and meshing with eachother.Are we taking to long our songs are not hard to play just sum have more changes than others.Howlong should a demo cd take with a new band from scratch, in my curcumstances.

heres the web page for some songs. not the best recordings but its there, tell me what you think about the band and all around my ?s

www.myspace.com/hein4twenty

might be a good idea to work up one set of your most solid stuff to open for someone to get your feet wet....

[phatphillss]

So should i be looking for another band to do this. What do I do find a open minded band play the demo and ask if we can open for them.
We dont mind playing open mics, free playing is fine. Its more or less the drummer dont remember parts and cant just keep going with it. Its hard when you mess up lose focus and you dont know where you were in the song for a drummer. I can see that because i cant do what he does, but there comes a point right HOW long. I think its on the ends of a new drummer, sucks to were all best friends from high school 10 ten years later. So should we just go for it and see what happens if he fumbles he fumbles?

Drugs are ok, what are you on zoloft.

[Quadcam]

if you have to ask....you probably have the answer

[modulusman]

Keep smokin all that pot and getting drunk while practicing and you will be ready to gig in another couple of years, or not.

[Past 11]

Originally Posted by Jim Campbell

might be a good idea to work up one set of your most solid stuff to open for someone to get your feet wet....

+1. Get out there and do it. Best practice you'll ever have. Once you show your a$$ on stage (it will eventually happen), you'll be the better for it. Maybe work with you drummer for a while on the side to iron out the wrinkles.

Oh yeah...lay off the joints.

[phatphillss]

Im the only one that smokes. If you do what I do every day you would want a joint or 2.The drummer dont smoke hes got a bit of ADD.We all have issues but no one has any critisizim for anyone but him.
I try hard and practice every day, write songs, never show up late, help with changes, listen, always look for a goal on each song to fill my part, never really tread on toes,Im the bassist if I could lead the band more I would I fell were all doing our part but him.
We still dont have good recordings because he wont buy mics for his kit I think he wants me to buy them (it aint happening) or is just waiting I dont know.
Sorry frustrated.
I just want him to try harder.
Maybe your right Past11 more practice sessions me and him.

One of our songs is called PAST writen by me

[bassbully]

Ummm.... ya the reefer stuff on your site and post is a bummer but hey ...your life. The drummer drags ,bad timing. I would'nt hold out allot of hope if this is all you have done in the time you said you have put in.

Retool the band with a good drummer a must in any good band. You could also start playing covers if originals are to trying...my 2 cents.

[bluewine]

At my age I am at the point where I don't remember what it's like to be young.

I'm a "geezer".for me, hearing about booze and pot and trying to get music together is dead in the middle of "Not Happening Land"

[TOOL460002]

eh... well, ive seen drugs destroy bands ive been in, and others where it wasnt an issue (moderation, or just dont practice or play shows intoxicated). that said, pretty much every stand up comedian will tell you bombing a show is inevitable and ultimately helpful for ones confidence. if youve already played your worst, then you really shouldnt be nervous, if that is in fact the case. are you having fun? cool. gig. either that, or find a new drummer. the only band that immediately disbanded was one where we had a terrible drummer. thats huge.

[NickInMesa]

Solid set list that everyone feels confident about, then rehearse.

A rehearse is a practice in which you indeed to play perfectly, as if you were playing the gig.

Good thing is to record yourself and/or ask some friends to come over and listen and criticize as if they were part of the audience.

Anyway: gigging is like sex.

The first time is always bad, you don't know what you're doing and you over think it, but in the end you are happy to have had that first time and all you want to do is do it again

[atheos]

The drugs or alcohol are not a bad thing (just remember what Bill Hicks said since he's got a point). It's how you use them. Too much causes you not to learn anything so control it. Tightly. You can smoke a little pot and have a beer or two but 5-6 is too much for rehearsing.

Back in the 60's/70's bands did use a lot of everything but they also had learned to play by themselves beforehand and probably pretty sober too so being totally stoned wasn't a problem when all physical playing came from muscle memory and only the content from a drug-enhanced mind. In the 80's things got out of control with synthetic drugs and the whole drug culture reached the point where drugs started limiting the creativity so they went kind of "out of fashion". Sure, many died of drugs (or their "side effects") in 60's and 70's but many of them also have pretty amazing music catalog. The price of the extended creativity. In the 80's the drugs started to kill more and more those not-so-popular-or-great musicians who couldn't take real advantage of them anymore and only concentrated in being messed up.

I don't do drugs and I don't encourage anyone to use them. They actually work for a tiny percentage only, the rest lose the control and either quit early enough or become addicts and junkies and in the worst case, die. Which sadly isn't all that uncommon. But those who do any drugs (including alcohol, it's a lot worse than cannabis after all) should pay a lot respect to them. Be the master, not the slave. Know what you use and especially WHY you use. If you have no other need than addiction, quit. Before it's too late.

And if the drummer can't do his job, well, fire the drummer. If he doesn't care enough to practice and improve he needs to go. It's totally not worth your time and energy trying to make such people change their ways. It's just not going to happen. OR you can just stick with your current situation and probably never become a band that is ready for gigs.

[ashtray]

When is your band ready to gig? Here's some things:

-Get a couple hours of material together. Most gigs will require at least 2 sets.
-Learn the songs as tight as you can. Feel free to talk out trouble spots, or just work on transitions between the bridge and chorus if that's where the song always derails.
-Learn how to recover from the eventual screw up. It's going to happen - it's what you do when it happens that will set you apart (ie ready to gig or not ready).

Make sure you are listening to each other during practices- not just concentrating on your own parts. Use visual and audio cues to help ensure everyone is on the same page. Keep performance notes during your practice to help remember things you need to (6x on the 2nd chorus, no solo after bridge, etc). And know where and how the songs end.

Also, another key indicator to say if you're ready is to be able to roll from one song right into another without 90 seconds of delay. If people are listening (or dancing, etc), they want to hear a string of music, not song / break / song / break, etc.

[electracoyote]

I joined an established and very successful band in my hometown once. They took a full month off to rehearse with me and make sure I was just as competant and comfortable with the material as they were. When we knew the set lists like the backs of our hands, and we could smile and relax while playing, had some scripted banter and choreography down pat, we booked our first gig with the new kid (me). We actually got a room full of lighters at the end of the night. Well worth the wait. I'm a big believer in being over-prepared.

I read that the Pretenders, at Chrissie's insistance, will take a month or more to rehearse their tour material, especially if there are any new members. If it works for the pros...wait, maybe that's why they're pros.

[wetzelman1]

just gotta get out there and play man. Book a gig at a realy crappy place, where it won't matter if you suck or not. Being on stage puts you in a different place and you all need to learn the feeling. It took my band about 6 months of me being in the band and working on new material before we started playing. That was in May and now we play 6-7 shows/month and are growing. The great thing about playing all the time, is that when you actually have a "practice" you can work on all new material since you play your set enough already.

and btw....a little bit of pot never hurt anyone.......

[Downunderwonder]

My first band was with some pot smokers. They were half decent musicians but after a few tokes they were convinced they were musical geniuses whereas in actual fact everything had turned to ****.

Get a new drummer or get him to quit the sugar ( and alcohol ) and eat vegetables. He might get better.

[Beej]

After listening to your myspace, the drummer's a bit weak. Not that I'm so great or anything, but without a solid backbone, the body can't stand.

I know that in my own experience, I've only felt solid enough to play live after we've gelled enough to play all of our songs inside and out flawlessly, even after not playing one for a few weeks. When you're ready, you'll know it. That said, its pretty obvious from your posts that you've had enough of his instability and just can't let him know because of friendship/loyalty.

I think its time you guys sat down as a group and collectively decided what direction you want to take the band. If its something you all want to progress with, then you might want to take stock of everything that's helping you move forward and everything that's holding you back. If that means ditching the drummer and finding another one, then so be it.

On a related note, if you all agree you want to take this seriously and try to do something with it, maybe the drummer will work harder. On the other hand, its hard to teach time and feel. If he's been playing for years and still doesn't have it, I need to ask, will he have it in the next few months?

Just a few cents...

[Stumbo]

Originally Posted by Downunderwonder

Get a new drummer or get him to quit the sugar ( and alcohol ) and eat vegetables. He might get better.

+1

He should quit drugs and drink water instead of alcohol.

[erikbojerik]

You are not ready to gig - anywhere - unless you want to get a rep as a crappy band.

How many times total have you guys practiced these songs? Are you tweeking the song structure at practice, or do you play the same number of measures on each song, every time? It might be a good idea to write out some charts that the drummer can follow along with, but don't let him use it as a crutch - a drummer with a music stand is a drummer with one extra (really bad) cymbal.

5-6 beers? You know (right?) that a beer gut doesn't help much with stage presence.

If you guys know these songs and still can't get from the beginning of the song to the end without stopping, the drummer should give away his kit and go home.