What do you need to know going into a band's first GIG ?

[mattsk42]

We have one coming in about 8 weeks. We are a pop/upbeat country group (Rascal Flatts, Big & Rich, etc.), and we have about 6 songs pretty much down.

The gig is the first for the 3 singers ever, and I think the 2 guitars, me and drums have all been at a few. It's just a party at the guitar guy's brother's house, probably 200 people or less. No pressure, there will be one other band and we're just to play however many songs we want.

What are some basic tips for first time gigging? We want lots of crowd interaction and lots of crowd enthusiasm if possible. We also have our own sound system that we'll use.

[DblG]

Don't drink too much, & don't do drugs that make you forget where you are or what you're doing.
And have fun.

( I know, this should be obvious. But it's very important)

[Phalex]

Relish the fear and excitement you feel when you play in front of people for the first few gigs. You'll miss it when it's gone!

And that thing that dblG said X 100!

[HomeBrewTJ]

Don't screw up.

[Deacon_Blues]

Originally Posted by HomeBrewTJ

Don't screw up.

Stupid comment but +1 to DblG's post.



I'll try to give some other advice:

If you want interaction, you must be the active part. Talk a lot to the audience in a relaxed way between the songs and know what to say (but don't learn everything word-for-word anyway. Just have some topics ready). Be charismatic (well, easier said than done if you ask me... )

Don't stay quiet for long periods between the songs because you will lose the audience's attention that way. Another good way to keep the audience's attention is to have someone to play the intro or theme for the next song over and over right after the previous song ends, and during that the frontman speaks to the audience. Then start the song without a delay.

Move some air, but keep a decent volume still. Sound reinforcement is essential, and make sure the bass and the bass drum are strong enough (subs are very important!), as well as the vocals. But don't kill the vocals from the mix by adding too much guitars. (Too much guitars make the band sound much louder, too). Don't boost the bass on the vocals or cut the middle, it will only make it sound muddy and prevent people from hearing the lyrics. If you have to EQ the mic, do it the other way around and if needed, boost the treble a bit.

Know your songs well. Know how to start them and how to end them. Arrange the songs - everyone should know what and when to play and everyone does not have to play in the verses... IOW, be dynamic, it keeps the music interesting to listen to. Less is more, but don't ever cut the groove....

Good luck!

[BigOleBoogie]

(Almost) Every first gig with a new band someone messes up very noticably. Get it over with and get through it. Make no noticable reaction, expect it because once that's over, as long as technical preperation is in place, it's all smooth till the end of the first gig.

[Fat.Mike]

If someone causes the "trainwreck," don't stop playing! Keep truckin like nothing happened.

As for crowd interaction, between songs, tell them to sing a part of the chorus with your band. With pop country that should not be hard. Like when we say this, you say this type of thing. Audiences eat that sort of thing up.

Good Luck!

[mgash]

just remember, all of the "Mistakes" that you make, you will be the only one who notices.

[QORC]

1. Don't be too loud.

2. Don't play too fast because of nerves

3. Don't screw around too much between songs. The faster you can go from one to another, the better off you'll be.

4. Interact with the crowd - don't turn your back on them.

5. Don't get drunk, be doing drugs, etc.

6. You won't be as good as you will be. Don't worry about that. You have to start somewhere.

[IanStephenson]

+1 what everyone else said:
keep going
don't stress the screwups

Additionally, don't expect too much in terms of "performance" that will come with time. It's pretty hard to play and leap around, so don't be too disapointed that you're not "going crazy". It takes practice, and experience for a band to get confortable on stage.

However DO remember that the audience are standing out front - they would like you to look at them occasionally. Try and play at least some of the set without looking at your fingers. If you can play a few bars and look around, use that looking time to connect with the audience, rather than looking out the window, at the ceiling/floor/wall.

It's OK to look at band members but don't over do it - interaction between the band looks cool but I've seen too many bands playing with their backs to the audience, so they can watch each other. Set your practise room up so you're all facing the same way, so you're used to not standing round in a circle.

Ian

[mattsk42]

OK thanks for the good advice. Anything on equipment and/or preparation?

[Phalex]

Make sure you are in tune immediately before hitting the first note. Take a deep breath, count to five, tell the drummer not to rush the song, and GO!!!!!

[Fat.Mike]

Equipment wise? Extra strings, picks if you use them, a couple of 9V batteries if needed, and maybe an extra 1/4" cable (cymbals can cut them in half!). That should cover the basics.

Also, sound check a couple of hours before the show. Nothing says "amatuer" like ear piercing feed-back (learned that the hard way). More on the same note, go a little louder at sound check than you think you should be. A room full of people muffles a good amount of your sound.

Good Luck

[Gubna]

If you have back up guitars/basses, make sure they are tuned and ready to go PRIOR to going on stage.

A popped string shouldn't be replaced by anyone but a guitar tech (meaning - NOT YOU while your set is still going on).

If there is an issue with your main axe, switch it out for the back up (IF NECESSARY).

I had a gig once where the guitarist popped a string, then proceeded to restring the guitar on the stage during our set instead of busting out his back up (which wasn't tuned), and put the wrong gauge string on - then popped that string. He finally got his back up and had to tune it.

myself and the others carried on with an impromtu jam, but unfortunately, the show was pretty much a disaster and we broke up after it (well, that was really the last straw at that point - there had been other issues).

[IanStephenson]

Originally Posted by mattsk42

OK thanks for the good advice. Anything on equipment and/or preparation?

Get a bag. Start taking it to rehersals, with your cables, straps, power leads, spare strings etc in. If you need anything at the rehersal, it goes in the bag. NEVER take anything out of the bag at home - if you need a cable or something at home, then get another one to use at home, so you're not messing with your gig stuff.

That way when I turn up at a gig, with my bag of stuff, I know everything I need is in there - If I had it at the last gig/rehersal, then it's at this gig. Lat thing you want to do is get to a gig, and remember you left your strap on another bass, or borrowed an essential cable to hook up something at a friends house.

Ian

[MAJOR METAL]

Go in confident in you and your bands abilites, know the material inside and out and be sure to rock as hard as possible ! All the best with it

[Crazyeelboy]

Lot of good advice here. All I can add is to arrive early, give yourself plenty of time to set up/sound check, make sure your equipment is ready to work (bass tuned, batteries in place, enough cables, straps, etc.), try to show up with the entire band, etc. Organize the logistics and you will remove a lot of artificial stress.

Above all, remember to have fun. Its a party and you are playing some songs for friends - no pressure.

[derrico1]

Originally Posted by mattsk42

OK thanks for the good advice. Anything on equipment and/or preparation?

If you have six songs "sorta down," just play the 3 or 4 that are tightest. Better to play a few songs well, give the impression that you know what you're doing, and leave people wanting more.

Also, practice moving from one song to the next. Figure out the set-list order ahead of time (even if it's only four songs!) and for a couple rehearsals play the songs in that order, working to reduce/eliminate dead time.

Finally, practice playing through gaffs--not stopping, obviously, but not mugging or scowling at one another either. If you learn to play through the inevitable little errors, the audience usually won't notice them.

[cymbop]

Hydrate.

[CHILDISHGAMBINO]

Chew gum. Helps me with my nerves and helps me concentrate. It also makes for some interesting facial expressions.