How do you critique your band mates?

[bryanjnkns]

I'm sure that to everyone that has played in a band has come across this situation. How did you go about critiquing your fellow band mates when you feel they (or one of them) are ruining perfectly good songs by doing any number of things to achieve the status of "that sucked" for you?

Let's hear your stories.

[ducatiman]

really don't have any war stories from my current band....during rehearsal we will discuss what we *need to do or accomplish or improve* to an area that may be lacking RATHER than kick the crap outa someones singing or playing. we avoid micromanagement or HYPERCRITICISM.
we're all mature, accomplished and experienced (good buds as well) we each know what needs to be done. so its rare that something/someone actually SUCKS.
mistakes do happen on occasion, and the perpetrator will often say "heck, i screwed THAT up!"
shouting matches, loud disagreements are non-existent, as we're ALL on the same page and on the SAME TEAM!


FWIW.................duc

oh, its a working 3 piece hard rock, classic rock cover band BTW. together just over a year now

[Petary791]

Well I'll tell ya what you shouldn't do. My old drummer was pissin me off for a while so I finally just came out and told him to stop playing 6/8 beats while riding the crash cymbal (I like ride cymbals), and 2 minutes later, I quit the band.

It was building up...

[g00eY]

Usually my only critique is to stop playing so loud. But yea, for youthgroup we're training a new worship leader so the more experienced guys just give him tips and he takes them.

[Chunk-O-Funk]

HEY YOU!
Turn down the suck knob!

For some reason that approach doesn't always work.

[Jonny B]

If I think someone is screwing something up, I tell them.

I expect the same.

[cutthroatmolloy]

Originally Posted by Jonny B

If I think someone is screwing something up, I tell them.

I expect the same.

yeah same here.

[theshadow2001]

I've never really been told no that doesn't work or that sucks or what ever. I've been asked to play something different on occasion and have done so no problem. I would like to be told if something I did made a song suck though, I don't want to be the one ruining it. Its a hard thing to do though.

Our lead guitarist has a habit of doing stuff that kills a song. Any time I've made a suggestion it seems to fall on deaf ears or just a kind of yeah whatever, so I just let him on and hope for the best. One song I thought what he did was really really bad. When we recorded it, it the engineer sat it so far back in the mix you could barely here the part.

More recently again he was playing lead parts over a song we were home recording. I knew from just hearing what he was playing without the rest of the track that it just flat out sucked. I was not liking what he was doing and I was fearing an awkward situation ahead telling him so. Fortunately when he listened back he got about half way and just said no I want to do something else then out right refused to let anyone else listen to whatever he'd done.

Sometimes these things have a way of working themselves out.

[Jazzdogg]

In our band, we made an agreement to focus on serving the songs and the audience, and to "do unto others" as much as possible.

We try to be direct, yet diplomatic, without beating 'round the bush or allowing bad feelings to pile up. One of the things that helps is to focus on specific aspects of the song instead of making comments about individuals.

Before I open my mouth, I try to imagine that a video tape is recording what I say (and how I say it), and try to comport myself in a way that is respectful and considerate. If I'm too subtle, I can always restate my case, but if I go overboard, it can be difficult to un-hurt someone's feelings or regain their respect.

Civility isn't always easy but it's always worthwhile

[Gearhead17]

Since I am in a cover band - it's easy to tell who is messing the song up. My singer always welcomes criticism - I have told him a few times that he wasn't singing low or high enough. After I tell him - he actually works on it and the band sounds much better. The drummer will let me know if I am doing something wrong and he is usually right. He even takes time to show me how to play it and the guitarists help me out with what notes to play. The singer also lets me know if I am doing the song correctly. I let the drummer know if he is off tempo and so on.

I try to tell these items during band practice in a nice way. I always mention what does not sound right and I usually end it with - you guys sounded great on everything else so let's work on "this".

If I screw up, I let everyone know. A band has to be a team effort to sound good and that means admitting if you screw up the song.

[Dave Muscato]

My band has been together for four years, and we all live together... we know that we wouldn't say something just to hurt the other person. We have no problem saying, "That sucked," if it did. We're all in this together.

BTW, we aren't a cover-band.

[69nites]

GO SIT AT THE KIDDY TABLE!!!

just kidding. While I'm not in a band when I'm jamming with friends I will suggest things and try to help anyone with problems I see. I take criticism well too.

so long as you say something specific and not "that=teh suck" I don't see any musician taking it in a bad way.

[Lorenzini]

Usually I don't have to say anything. My band is full of professionals that really should know if they are doing something wrong or not.

HOWEVER, when our drummer gets really sweaty he wipes his face down with his towel every 30 seconds, plays the hi-hat and snare with his left hand and totally ****s up the groove.

When he does that I don't hesitate to yell at him on stage. Especially when there are 75 people on the dance floor having fun!

[mattq]

good ole fashioned berating. just kidding. we're just honest with each other and try to be constructive at the same time. if we say something doesn't work, we try to give an alternative that might work

[morf]

I tried telling my drummer nicely that some of what she does sucks. I didnt put it that way of course, rather implied that if she played something else it would sound better. I got angry looks which pretty much said "mind your own business, drums are my instrument" so I gave up giving advice to my drummer. I'll eventually quit when she screws up a gig or when I'm sick of having to keep time for the whole band myself because she can't.

//rant over

[QORC]

it's always touchy with musicians. I've never seen a band that constructively criticized individual members. If someone isn't professional enough or good enough to realize they're not doing a song right, you shouldn't have them in the band.

how do I critique? If I can't stand the musicians, I walk.

[troy mcclure]

I am in a cover band, and at our weekend gigs I actually keep track of all our screw ups. At our weekly rehearsal, we all know we are going to address our screw ups befroe working on any new material. I screw up too and admit it..so it works.

[Phalex]

We are open and honest with each other. None of the boys have giant egos (Except the drummer) and if something needs to be addressed, it gets addressed. If they want me to take a different approach to a part, they say so, and I will attempt to comply. Same goes for everybody else.

[ElectrAcoustic]

It all depends on attitude. If you've got something valid to point out, do so clearly but without berating the person. It also helps immensely if you are open to criticism yourself or if the conversation is part of a whole band self-improvement session. There are also other tacts to take. I play with an immensely talented drummer from Ireland who can tear up a million different styles from funk/jazz to salsa, swing or rock but he was struggling a bit with a reggae groove (a common issue among even the most seasoned players). My solution was to just provide him with a live BMW recording so he can hear how the masters do it in a live setting..