Is there something wrong with this setlist?

[Vic Winters]

My band has been looking for a singer for a while, we've posted ads online via myspace and craigslist and around town at music stores. Whenever we get a bite and send them the list the either say no thanks, say they have other commitments or just stop responding.

Metallica - Enter Sandman
Metallica - For Whom the Bell Tolls
Alice in Chains - Man in the Box
Lit - My Own Worst Enemy
Rage - Know Your Enemy
Rage - Killing in the Name Of
Foo Fighters - Learn To Fly
Motorhead - Ace of Spades
Audioslave - Like a Stone
Audioslave - Cochise
Buckcherry - Crazy Bitch
Offspring - Gone Away
Offspring - Come Out and Play
Weezer - Beverly Hills
Green Day - When I Come Around
Green Day - Brain Stew
Green Day - American Idiot
Lustra - Scotty Doesn't Know
Blink 182 - Dammit
Bush - Machinehead
Bush - Glycerine
Fallout Boy - Dance, Dance
Guns and Roses - My Michelle
Jane's Addiction - Just Because
NIN - The Hand That Feeds
Velvet Revolver - Slither
Tool - Sober
Filter - Hey Man Nice Shot
Nickleback - Animals
3 Doors Down - Kryptonite
Three Days Grace - Animal I Have Become
Three Days Grace - Pain
Three Days Grace - Never Too Late
Killswitch Engage - The End of Heartache
Godsmack - Whatever
Papa Roach - To Be Loved
Bowling for Soup - London Bridge


Too heavy? Too big a range (musically/vocally)? Just plain sucks? Any insight would be great.

[sevenyearsdown]

Well, I would never tell anyone what to not play.....maybe it's just the mix of poppy stuff to hard stuff. Green Day, Fallout Boy, and Blink 182 might not be sitting well with the Metallica, AIC, Motorhead crowd.

[Elemeninki]

You can never get too heavy

Too big a range both musically and vocally. Expect to get mobbed by the Metallica fans when you play the first note of the Bowling for Soup or Blink 182 songs. And you'll have a hard time getting a singer who can do a nice James Hetfield like voice followed by some rapping, then into the nasally pop punk kind of voice.

[Lucas G]

sounds like standard 'modern rock' cover band fare to me. there must be thousands of bands with very similar set lists.

maybe that's the problem?

[5andFretless]

Could it be that most singers would be very hard pressed to memorize the lyrics to these songs their life time? Animal all by itself would take me days, nothing is repeated.

[Thunderthumbs73]

Seems like the standard modern rock band fare to me. I can't seem to find people who DON'T want to do this kind of stuff... Maybe if you can't find the right people for that kind of music, it might be my kind of town! Where are you located?



I'm kidding...

[Siegy]

Nickelback

There's your problem

[anderbass]

Quality vocalists are really difficult to land unless you guys are are already a well known band, I think your prospective lead vocalist needs to first hear that you guys are open to learning serveral of the tunes he/she already does.

You should plan on your band (with a new singer) being different than before. Even though your band already knows the tunes on your list, you may have better luck getting a vocalist to the first rehearsal by first emphasizing that the band would be open to learning their tunes, and then just casually ask him/her what songs of your band's previous song list they would also be open to at least trying.
(I'd have have a mix-CD of all the old tunes and printed lyrics ready to give them)

Assuming you guys are on the same page stylistically, and after you've played a couple times, you may find they'll be more open to doing more/all of your old tunes. But trying to cram an old setlist down their throat over the phone (or emails) is a good way to scare many off before the first tryout.

[LumpyGravy]

If there is a crowd that will enjoy the music, then the setlist is good. To find a singer to cover the styles and ranges might be a trick. Does anyone else in the band sing?

[tomvelsor]

Originally Posted by Siegy

Nickelback

There's your problem

its true.

[funkydanbass]

I did about 2 solid years of corporate and pub cover band work. In my experience, (in the Australian cover band scene), many venues do not want any amount of 'heavy' music at all (unless this is your niche). We played a mix of Top 40 and current radio hits (including dnace and R&B hits) mixed with classic rock and pop. Constantly changing repetoire. Venues want you to make women happy.

Unfortunately, what you want to play doesn't have much to do with what you should be playing if you want alot of regular work. Large venues cater to the generic alcohol consuming radio listening public. Keep in mind that alot of venues popular with after sportnig event crowds want NO heavy music at all, (that might incite an already fired up / drunk crowds).

I would say that the seasoned cover band singer would be aware of this, and the amateur might actually be intimidated by the diversity in your setlist.

Cover bands are a strange beast...

[funkydanbass]

Going on from other posts... the singer really should be the focus for your repetoire selection. I would make it known that you want to integrate the singers repetoire and are able to make key changes to your current repetoire if necessary.

[GianGian]

Way too broad. I think you should go more clearly to one direction or other.

[funkydanbass]

I don't think it's too broad at all. Infact It's all mostly just what I would call rock.
I would look to include more danceable music in there. I don't know exactly what would fly in your area but think Michael Jackson, Black Eyed Peas, etc etc...

It's all about the women!!

[GianGian]

Originally Posted by funkydanbass

I don't think it's too broad at all. Infact It's all mostly just what I would call rock.
I would look to include more danceable music in there. I don't know exactly what would fly in your area but think Michael Jackson, Black Eyed Peas, etc etc...

It's all about the women!!

To me saying it's all rock is being too broad. You are right, it mostly depends on the audience he wants to reach.

[Vic Winters]

My favorite bar/place to see bands has had bands play almost every single song on that list with the exception of 6 or 7. While there I've seen bands that play mainly REO, Bon Jovi and Journey type music (50/50) also play 'Enter Sandman', 'Crazy Bitch' and 'Dirty Little Secret'. One band that plays mainly Blink and Good Charlotte (Puddle) also plays System of a Down and Rage. In fact the bar's favorite band (The Taint) will play 6 Rage songs in one night then play 'My Sharona', 'Dani California', 'Vindicated' and 'Animals'. Another band (Download) will do blocks of ACDC and Black Sabbath and and then play Limp Bizkit and Red Jumpsuit Apparatus acoustically. Another (Mike Z. and The Circus) will play 'Jane Says', 'Take the Money and Run', 'Gin and Juice' and 'Closer' (NIN). Yet another (Something Else) did Billy Joel, Incubus, Sublime, Journey, The Darkness and Salt N' Peppa.


These are all bands that draw very well. So from what I've seen from some of Rochester's finest, variety is the the spice of life. I definitely understand that it's next to impossible to do all of the songs, but when I do send them the list, I ask what they feel most comfortable. Should I only send them a select few as to keep from scaring them off? As for the rest of the band, we sing when we can, it varies from song to song.

[Ric5]

I really like a lot of those songs ... it is a little on the heavy side though ...

[svtb15]

where's FREEBIRD?

[Kgoodrich]

yeah. there is something wrong with it.

no original songs.

[invader3k]

Set list looks fine. You would probably be able to get a lot of gigs in my area, honestly. The only problem I could see is that some of those tunes are fairly demanding on a singer's voice..."My Michelle" and the Metallica stuff, for example.

In my experience, a lot of singers are really picky. I think part of it is that they see themselves as the front person for the band, and if they personally think a song is "lame", that it will somehow portray themselves as being lame to the audience.

Do you ever put a disclaimer when you send it, like "This is the list we're working with right now...we're of course open to adding other songs and getting your input"?