I don't get your "drift," why don't you just come out and say it?
EDIT: Code words aside, I've found my last three bands on Craigslist. All good with part-time, but professional players.
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Anybody have luck with Craigslist?
- Thread starter GuiTuber
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EDIT: Code words aside, I've found my last three bands on Craigslist. All good with part-time, but professional players.
Yes and no. I have posted before and received offers to tour and record and I've met some strange characters from some of those ads. I recently posted looking for a fill in singer for my cover band and got about 5 or 6 replies. I don't mind talking to, calling or texting, or even emailing candidates, but when I get one line responses asking two things, it makes my nun punching reflex act up.
I put specifics in my posts for a reason!
I put specifics in my posts for a reason!
I'm looking for people that don't play through a homemade amp. Someone who knows how to arrange a jam without being on the other side of town when you get to their house. People who don't stay in a town just long enough to earn enough money so they can move to the next town. People whose house doesn't smell like dog.
Is that succinct enough?
The guys I currently play with include an SAT tutor, a district manager for a major department store and an assistant US Attorney.
Maybe my bar is set a little too high, but I was curious if others have had the same experience with CL. Is it really populated by the bottom feeders or is there real talent out there and I've just been unlucky so far?
I've contacted and met two bands off Craigslist.
The first one lasted eight months, The BL and drummer split the band without actually telling the Lead Guitarist and me why the band split ( I know why though).
Despite that it was still a positive experience. I got to play a hand full of shows, meet people, know what to look for in bands, blah blah blah.
The second one didn't last a week. I was invited and considered a member, but I didn't want to drive the distance for what it would be.
All in all, you really just have to read in between the lines and know what you want. CL isn't any better or worse than any medium of networking.
The first one lasted eight months, The BL and drummer split the band without actually telling the Lead Guitarist and me why the band split ( I know why though).
Despite that it was still a positive experience. I got to play a hand full of shows, meet people, know what to look for in bands, blah blah blah.
The second one didn't last a week. I was invited and considered a member, but I didn't want to drive the distance for what it would be.
All in all, you really just have to read in between the lines and know what you want. CL isn't any better or worse than any medium of networking.
Usually my local CL turns up just a bunch of idiots to say the least. But then again I live in an area where stupidity is the norm and the average IQ could be compared to that of a used bar rag. But recently(almost a year ago now) I met who is now my guitar player and best friend in the musician section. Luckiest hit I ever got. He shreds like a mothershager but is the most relaxed dude ever. Even on days we don't practice we chill and jam. That's the way I think band mates should be.
I wouldn't say that you've been unlucky, but the odds are against you the higher you set the bar, so finding the right fit will take longer. I usually figure that it's going to take a year, perhaps more, to find what I want.
I would love to say that I found a better quality of musicians before Craigslist, but that isn't really the case. Some of the worst experiences I had while looking for a band happened before the internet became ubiquitous in everyday life.
I guess I have been fortunate. I've had good success through Bandmix, which led me to our current lead guitarist, and more recently we picked up a very talented vocalist and then keys through CL. Talented and a good hang. I feel lucky 
Now, was that so hard?
No, but I was trying to be a little more civil in my original post.
Yup, same here. I've posted ads, specifically saying that I'm not into playing metal. Who responds? Metal bands. People don't read. I think they see "bassist" and just reply.
I've always been unlucky with craigslist here. No matter what the situation it. Maybe it's because I live near fr Bragg and low life's are trying to scam soldiers who have money to spend and are constantly moving. But yeah tried to sell a few things and all I got was western union money scams, you know the ones where they send you fake PayPal emails from a gmail account. And want you to western union them money after sending you an email posing as paylpal to buy your stuff claiming they are out of the town. It's pretty obvious because if you actually look at your PayPal account instead of looking at their fake PayPal emails they don't actually send you the money in PayPal, but try to make it look like they did with a fake email
I found my current band through an ad they placed on CL for a bassist. I had given up on playing bass for over ten years and began to really get the itch to play again, but with being unemployed and having a 3-year old I really couldn't justify going out into the local scene (driving to Hollywood or somewhere and spending cash on gas and admission) until things got rolling for me again and then attempting to convince my love to watch our kiddo while I go out to clubs... not a viable option for me.
I began to place and respond to CL ads to get ANYTHING going. All of the responses to my ads were flakes, never responding to more than one email. I auditioned for a couple of bands, from a solo guitarist looking to form from the ground up to a metal band (which my tobacco sunburst Epi looked so out of place no matter what chops I demonstrated) to a young singer/songwriter and her creepy "manager" that I just didn't click with.
I eventually found the band I'm in through CL, and I couldn't be happier. I ended up getting hired just before my audition and had an unstable schedule for nearly a month. They were kind enough to delay my audition until our schedules meshed. They are both (guitarist/vocalist and drummer) exceptionally cool and never would have met 'em if it wasn't for answering that ad.
People are unique, just like everyone else. Meaning that experiences and results are going to be the same. It's a lot like weeding out the chaff from the wheat, or trying out so many different head/cab/preamp/string/pickup/bass combos until you find that sound you've been searching for.
I began to place and respond to CL ads to get ANYTHING going. All of the responses to my ads were flakes, never responding to more than one email. I auditioned for a couple of bands, from a solo guitarist looking to form from the ground up to a metal band (which my tobacco sunburst Epi looked so out of place no matter what chops I demonstrated) to a young singer/songwriter and her creepy "manager" that I just didn't click with.
I eventually found the band I'm in through CL, and I couldn't be happier. I ended up getting hired just before my audition and had an unstable schedule for nearly a month. They were kind enough to delay my audition until our schedules meshed. They are both (guitarist/vocalist and drummer) exceptionally cool and never would have met 'em if it wasn't for answering that ad.
People are unique, just like everyone else. Meaning that experiences and results are going to be the same. It's a lot like weeding out the chaff from the wheat, or trying out so many different head/cab/preamp/string/pickup/bass combos until you find that sound you've been searching for.
My house smells like a dog, but only because my dog smells like a dog. On the other hand, I can play a variety of styles while the dog can only play a lick or two.
I've had luck on CL.. I never meet up with anyone without having them first send me samples of their music. If their playing sounds good, I'll call them next and chat for 5 - 10 minutes on the phone. If they're not a psycho and it sounds like we'll get along, we set up a time to jam. If you follow this process and have decent samples yourself to send back, CL should work fine.
I've had a lot of success replying to ads on CL. My location might help with it, but if you figure out how to find posts made by smart people you can find some great music and people.
I haven't had to post my own ads for things yet, so can't comment on that.
I haven't had to post my own ads for things yet, so can't comment on that.
Yikes, that described my area to a T. I'm down to just going to a once-a-month open mic myself.
I thought that might be a good place to meet other like-minded musicians interested in starting a project, until I realized by the second open mic that I was the only musician there that wasn't already in a local band.
I still find myself checking out both CL and Bandmix. Gotta keep looking. Who knows?
Location, location, location. It's just so true, especially with CL. There's really not much that can be done about that, but the working bands are located in areas where there's plenty of work. I imagine that would be Dallas primarily for TX.
And like has been said already, you really do have to sift through a lot of mediocrity. I've likened it to pan handling. Every once in a blue moon you'll get that gold nugget. Ultimately, a face to face jam and a handshake is the best method for networking.
Jazz cats probably have it the easiest as the music is all about the jam session. You could be on a gig and not ever have played with the musicians before, and it's encouraged. You're also not allowed to play any tune the same way twice, that would be wrong and not jazz. Rehearsals are for cover bands.
Ya ya, jazz is mostly covers, but you're not supposed to sound like the album, so rehearsals aren't even important.
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"Is it really populated by the bottom feeders or is there real talent out there and I've just been unlucky so far?"
Judging people based on their non-musical career path when looking for musicians? Really?
I had a guitarist last year that was a corporate sales mgr., lost one, then another guitarist and eventually a solid drummer over him not showing up for practice.
It's Deja Vu now with a consultant for a major corporation, making it impossible to schedule an audition for a second guitar and the drummer that was previously very reliable is suddenly too busy as well.
Both drummers I've mentioned are career professionals and have been perfectly reliable well within reason.
Some of those musicians where found on CL, which is just another advertising medium that has pretty much taken the place of newspaper classifieds. Who's making sure "bottom feeders" don't get through the door at your gigs? You can and will find flakes in every walk of life.
