15 minutes between bands - no backline provided...?

[Kevan Campbell]

Like everyone else has said, the promoters might be telling you "15 minutes max" for changeovers and really scheduling the event so there's a cushion of time if things get behind…but count on it being a nightmare anyway (and be pleasantly surprised if it works out).

It is doable and all the previous suggestions will help. I will also add if you can talk to the other bands bass players and/or the engineer prior it may help?

I did a charity gig in a "throw" together band a few years back that had 6 bands. We were 4th on the bill (great cause and raised a lot of money as it was an expensive ticket.) Before the show date I was told who had volunteered to be the engineer and knew him (not well, but had worked with him before years ago) and let him know I was able to provide a bass amp to everyone to use as the back line all evening. He agreed knowing what it was and the decision was made and all the bass players were advised. Every bass player was very happy not having the bring and move theirs. If you can get any of the bands to agree to share gear, it will help on change over and as others said, be ready and be prepared that it may go overtime.

This right here is a great way to help minimize your share of chaos in a fast changeover, but I would add two important caveats: if you're providing the backline bass rig then make sure everyone is in agreement in how you want your gear treated, and you reserve the right to make changes to the amp (even mid-song) if you feel your gear is being damaged in any way.

I've routinely offered and let my gear be used as a backline at shows with more than three bands if we're headlining or direct support, as I've taken it upon myself to be a non-official Bergantino ambassador to my circles in Texas. Most of the time other musicians are cool and respectful, but in one instance a bassist decided to send as loud a signal from his 18v active bass and pedalboard into my amp as he could. I was a block away picking up some pizza and when I walked back into the venue I could hear a gnarly distortion that was definitely my amp's preamp clipping and speakers being pushed too hard. Miraculously nothing was permanently damaged but I have no idea how long he'd been pushing my rig that way and that guy is on my list of "never again, go get your amp out of the trailer".

 

[Saetia]

15 minutes has been pretty much a standard change over in my 22 years experience. That being said, I've always played in original bands with 30 min to 1 hour sets. Ymmv with band size and context of shows.

 

[MultiScaleMale]

Only take the gear you need, the sound check for bass will be like 5 seconds.

 

[ToneMonkey]

That's exactly how the Whiskey A-Go-Go does it. Unless you're the first band, that 15 minutes is combined load out from the previous band, and the next band's set up time, including micing amps. It can be done.

 

[perfektspace6]

Not ideal but doable if each band member is prepared and moves quickly. Those with less to deal with should be helping others load up.

Could also be that there will multiple bands set up one in front of the other? That wouldn't really work with more than a couple drum kits depending on the stage size but possible. Then take a deep breath and have fun.

 

[mjmeche]

We are playing on a fairly big stage at the Fete de la Musique in Berlin next month. Just got our time slot and noticed they are only planning for 15 minutes set up time between bands. Cool, I think, so there must be a backline provided, and we can just plug in and go. Just got an email back that no, they cannot provide a backline. The tech guys will be in contact with us.

We are a seven piece band - drums, bass, guitar, key, vox, sax and trumpet. Am I too pessimistic in thinking there is no way in hell we can set up all our gear and be ready to go within 15 minutes, minus the time the previous band takes to tear down? Maybe they expect us to share a backline among the four bands that are playing, but it doesn't strike me as that kind of gig, and no effort has been made to connect the bands with each other. They also just told the bands to be there "15 minutes before your playtime".

Very curious to find out how they want this to work.

Yeah was in the same situation a couple months ago. Failed, the organizer was being a jerk saying hurry up. I looked at him and said well come help we can only go so fast.

 

[logdrum]

Will be a b**ch for the drummer. You could be okay in 15. The way I've seen it done is a drum riser on wheels.

 

[mambo4]

TLDR the thread but:

i was once in a nine piece band that often played street fairs and festivals. One thing The BL always did was provide a printed stage map diagramming where all the payers stood and suggesting mic placement was needed. It helped smooth things.

 

[logdrum]

Or do it Talking Heads style. You guys know that concert. David solo, then Tina while the keys, drums and rest of the band sets up.

 

[mcrawfordmusic]

The key will be getting the drums set up side of stage and getting the other bands drums off stage asap. The other band should be packing drums and guitars into cases offstage as to not cut into your set up time.

 

[factory presets]

Band I was in came up just as plans were being made for the Springbok tour of NZ. And of course the attendant anti-apartheid protests. We played every fundraiser we could get on. Never made a dime. But we played in front of half the country. Got a diverse set list. Got tight as a ducks dumper. And learners to set up and break down in way less than 15 minutes. As bonus, it's not uncommon to hear South Africans of a certain age say that tour marked the point their country realised apartheid was no longer sustainable. I like that my tiny part in that is on my resume.

And, yeah, teamwork is the only way to do it. Set up what you can be you start and move it onstage so the far side from the access sets up first. And everybody moves poopie until it's all on stage.

 

[matt_s]

My advice is to roll with it and be prepared to jump in and help out to make the transitions as seamless as possible. Teamwork makes the dream work.

 

[5StringBlues]

Subbed to see if this ends up being a clusterduck.

 

[Kerem Koseoglu]

I have seen worse - ZERO minutes between bands.

I didn't play at that festival. Not because we weren't invited to - but due to the huge shift in the schedule, some bands were simply skipped.

We got invited to the same festival once again this year, and we politely declined. Because they had the same organizer.

 

[james condino]

You can always tell the promoter, "No thanks. We can't hack 15 minutes. Maybe you should hire someone else more professional...."

 

[Fernando Costa]

15 minutes between the bands, no backline, the best way to have a bad sound for all bands, and for the public too. The worst part is that over time it will get worse.

 

[logdrum]

I just spoke to a friend whom I toured with and she did remember we did these quick changes and when we had tech issues she sang with guitar first and sometimes the only instrument that made it was bass or the keys before our set was done. She also reminded me how we would do level sound check on the first song and the various things we did but usually it was a bass and drum groove first. Also helped that our sound guy worked with the FOH closely. It wasn't a loud band. Guitar, 2 - 3 vox. a woodwind player/percussionist, keys, bass and drums. This was in the 90's.

Our drummer can do it with just BD, snare and high hat as well. When he goes big it's a floor tom, maximum 2 cymbals and one rack tom out of the Bass drum and a cowbell. Two people for that move, Floor tom and Ride cymbal + stand for another trip, high hat and crash cymbal/stand and the come back for BD pedal and snare + stand. 3 trips with 2 people. Guitars/bass and keys moved in last and moved out first, bass. keyboard and guitar amps first and last with pedal board prewired. Also you would set in front or back of the departing band It was possible to do quick changes. But we also expected not to sound our best. The fall through plan of her and just the guitar saved our asses many times and I became her stage guitar tech in some situations.

Our sound guy really pulled magic with our monitor mix. This was before IEMs and x32 files.

But we probably cannot move that fast now. Also if you are going to be on local TV or part of an event, you also have to know how to setup fast

 

[A Bass And Its Boy]

CBGB used to do 5-minute changes between bands on showcase nights, with no backline. If you took longer to be ready it came out of your set. Thankfully there was a staging area behind the stage.

 

[Deleted member 271037]

Some definitely run that way, but in my experience it has been rare. One big event I played wound up running a over an hour late, and I believe we were the second band. This was because they did not hire an experienced stage crew. I believe they got all of the mic cable tangled and did not want to unplug. Eventually they gave in and realized they had to unplug and untangle the mess.

Ironically every band was required to do a sound check early in the day, and the sound checks ran relatively smoothly. Now that I think of it, a backline was force on us for that gig.

Yeah but this is Fete de la Musique where I believe everyone play for free, admission is free and the bands can be a very mixed bag. Maybe a few pros, mostly semi-pros and amateurs plus a couple of "never been on a stage before". If anyone gets a soundcheck it's most likely only the first band. 15 minutes changeover with no backline, no soundcheck, a large part of the crew will most likely be volunteers with very little experience and therefore more likely to get in your way then to provide any useful help... although this will probably differ somewhat between venues. With stuff happening all over the city there probably won't be a 100% professional crew at every stage. It will almost certainly be a bit chaotic at best or severely behind schedule at worst.

At least this is MY experience after playing Fete de la Musique in several European countries over the years, although never in Germany or in a city the size of Berlin... so it COULD be different there I guess, although I think the concept is more or less the same everywhere.

Don't get me wrong, it's fun, charming and a great day for music. Just don't expect the professionalism or the crew you get on bigger, commercial festivals.

My advice to the OP: Have fun and don't waste energy worrying about things that are out of your control. 15 minutes is pretty tight under the circumstances but no-one is gonna blame you if you need a couple of minutes extra as long as you do your best, treat everone with respect and play a great gig.

 

[Taustin Powers]

Thanks for the input, everyone.

Sounds like with some professionalism by all involved parties, this *could* work. Not sure if this is a reasonable expectation for this event though. Hopefully I will know more by the end of the week.

We discussed this at rehearsal last night, and the band is not very euphoric about this gig. All this stress for 30 minutes playtime...oh well, I think it will be a fun experience!