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Didnt get the gig...really bummed out...
- Thread starter bassman134
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- Sep 4, 2010
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- Endorsing: Martin Keith Guitars
Good luck with the gig-, but this I believe is really the core message: "The upside is now you are free to look for a band that is a good fit for you."
Both bands you are dealing with only have their own interest at heart, so please return the favor and decide what is best for YOU.
Both bands you are dealing with only have their own interest at heart, so please return the favor and decide what is best for YOU.
The point I made had nothing to do with not rehearsing. It was about the fact that they apparently have no structure. They let other players fill in with little or no preparation and according to the OP just "wing it".
jnuts1 said:
Those 3 bands want candidates to know 90 covers the way they play them.
- You don't get a set list
- No direction on how they want you to sing background vocals
- The audition format is you play an entire live show with no prior rehearsal
That might be true, but I'm not buying that. Sorry
- Oct 7, 2000
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- Endorsing artist: Musicman basses
Most bands can work out you playing their music - if they want to. You for one reason or another did not fit and they dicided to keep looking. I think it had little to do with your abilities and more with fitting in.
Move on.
Move on.
Later i find out they had someone else in mind the whole time. They recorded all the rehearsal/auditions, liked the things i added, and then had this guy come watch all the shows and learn the stuff i played... he got the gig. the singer liked how he didn't move his feet.
Yeah, basically a lot of insider nonsense.
Fact is;
Most busy and popular cover bands always have several insiders waiting in the wings.
I think the OP is giving these guys way to much credit and not enough to himself
Yeah, basically a lot of insider nonsense.
Fact is;
Most busy and popular cover bands always have several insiders waiting in the wings.
I think the OP is giving these guys way to much credit and not enough to himself
It's not them, and I feel like I may have already said to much.. I was trying to keep it generic enough.. you know this being the internet and all.
They have alternate guys who know the whole list or most of it. I didn't get the feeling they just wing it, however the vocal arraignments are not well set.
Probably got lost a few pages back, but basically they have an "A" team and "B" team. Its not a fill-in free for all..
jive1
Commercial User
People come and go, it's a part of the music business.
When you are booking competitively, the first one to confirm usually gets the gig. So, if you have to wait on other members to confirm, you may lose the gig. Lots of guys book the gigs in hopes that their regulars can make it, but have subs on hand if they can't.
The music business is difficult to make a living at, so most working musicians also have full-time jobs. Lots of them have families too, and the combination may make it hard to gig 8 or more times a month. So you need to have fill-ins available.
Although it may seem impossible for someone to learn 90 songs in 6 weeks, it is certainly possible. From a busy working band's perspective, the more time it takes to work someone in, the more gigs I can lose. The longer I'm out of the loop, the longer it will take me to get back in. So, I will always look for someone who already knows alot of songs on the list, or can pick them up quickly. Sometimes, all you get is a key, some chord changes, a basic feel, and a count in. You are expected to pick it up. I have played Gospel gigs with no charts, no key, and nothing but my ear to plod me along. It's what is expected, and there's guys who can do this much better than I.
Like I said earlier, if you tell me that you have 10 or more years experience in cover bands, I would expect you to know over 100 songs. Not all off the top of your head, but I expect you to be able to pull them off with little practice. There's bands with songlists of hundreds of tunes, and some play nice gigs with a minimum of rehearsal. If you're a pro, and talented, you should be able to play a night of bar band standards without rehearsing it to death. If you need to rehearse Mustang Sally, then you're not ready for most pro bands. If you need more than a few minutes to learn a simple 4 chord song and passibly pull it off for a bar of drunks, then you're not ready. And when I mean pro, I mean bands playing more than 6 times a month and making good coin at it.
Some bands will have charts, some have recordings, and some have neither for preparation. It's the way it is, and it's not necessarily a sign of their professionalism. It's more a reflection of the bandleader's management style and expectations for players.
And the way I look at it, the more songs you learn and retain, the more marketable you are for a cover band. That's why I rarely see learning songs as a waste, even if I don't get the gig. It will probably help you for your next gig or audition.
When you are booking competitively, the first one to confirm usually gets the gig. So, if you have to wait on other members to confirm, you may lose the gig. Lots of guys book the gigs in hopes that their regulars can make it, but have subs on hand if they can't.
The music business is difficult to make a living at, so most working musicians also have full-time jobs. Lots of them have families too, and the combination may make it hard to gig 8 or more times a month. So you need to have fill-ins available.
Although it may seem impossible for someone to learn 90 songs in 6 weeks, it is certainly possible. From a busy working band's perspective, the more time it takes to work someone in, the more gigs I can lose. The longer I'm out of the loop, the longer it will take me to get back in. So, I will always look for someone who already knows alot of songs on the list, or can pick them up quickly. Sometimes, all you get is a key, some chord changes, a basic feel, and a count in. You are expected to pick it up. I have played Gospel gigs with no charts, no key, and nothing but my ear to plod me along. It's what is expected, and there's guys who can do this much better than I.
Like I said earlier, if you tell me that you have 10 or more years experience in cover bands, I would expect you to know over 100 songs. Not all off the top of your head, but I expect you to be able to pull them off with little practice. There's bands with songlists of hundreds of tunes, and some play nice gigs with a minimum of rehearsal. If you're a pro, and talented, you should be able to play a night of bar band standards without rehearsing it to death. If you need to rehearse Mustang Sally, then you're not ready for most pro bands. If you need more than a few minutes to learn a simple 4 chord song and passibly pull it off for a bar of drunks, then you're not ready. And when I mean pro, I mean bands playing more than 6 times a month and making good coin at it.
Some bands will have charts, some have recordings, and some have neither for preparation. It's the way it is, and it's not necessarily a sign of their professionalism. It's more a reflection of the bandleader's management style and expectations for players.
And the way I look at it, the more songs you learn and retain, the more marketable you are for a cover band. That's why I rarely see learning songs as a waste, even if I don't get the gig. It will probably help you for your next gig or audition.
- Jun 3, 2009
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- Bassgearu, Music Industry Consulting and Sales. Tech 21, NBE Corp, Sonosphere.
Good luck with the next "audition", although playing a full night with a band to me is not an audition. You have zero time to understand where the band is musically, the feeling and timing of the leader, the drums and the arrangements they play, yada yada.
I "auditioned" once like this myself and said never again. I remember vividly the lead singer and guitarist pissing at me after the night was over because i didn't get their individual twist on Green Grass and High Tides, you know, the one the lead and drummer have been playing together since before even I was born. Afteword I asked them what did they expect from someone who learned a full three sets of southern rock, played differently then the tracks they sent me to learn, with their own personal touches and fills and no pre-gig rehearsal?
I wound up getting an offer from another cover band based on that gig, with a larger split o' the coin.
If you wind up bandless, don't fret. You can always find or form another band and get gigs easily. I know several clubs in my area who are getting just about anyone to play to make sure their is live music at all times.
I "auditioned" once like this myself and said never again. I remember vividly the lead singer and guitarist pissing at me after the night was over because i didn't get their individual twist on Green Grass and High Tides, you know, the one the lead and drummer have been playing together since before even I was born. Afteword I asked them what did they expect from someone who learned a full three sets of southern rock, played differently then the tracks they sent me to learn, with their own personal touches and fills and no pre-gig rehearsal?
I wound up getting an offer from another cover band based on that gig, with a larger split o' the coin.
If you wind up bandless, don't fret. You can always find or form another band and get gigs easily. I know several clubs in my area who are getting just about anyone to play to make sure their is live music at all times.
Case in point to this... back in March I played my 2nd annual gig with a pick-up band of local "all stars" who get together once a year (literally) to play a St. Pattys Day Gig for huge crowds. Well, we were trying to put a setlist together for this year's show and a couple people in the band wanted to do "Bad Romance" and "Chicken Fried" and I'm thinking, "seriously?" Well we went ahead and learned those songs. Two weeks after that I joined a new band (my current one), and guess what two of the songs on their list are? Yup.
TRichardsbass said:
We are on the same page. Must be because we're from Jersey.
Some of these guys think this protocol for an audition is normal
Well, no matter what they say, it's not.
I hope the OP gets the gig, but there is something wrong with the whole scenario.
Someone with 20 years experience would know something is not right with how this band is handling this.
Don't feel bad, man. They are the stupid ones, not you. That's no way to audition someone. Even if it was an audition, no one can expect anyone to pull that off without a hitch, especially when they don't have their own stuff together. You're lucky you don't have to put up with their stupidity on and on being in their stupid band.
All it means is that another door is about to open for you. Smile.
All it means is that another door is about to open for you. Smile.
The band I currently play with gave me an audition that was EXACTLY like this. I was recommended by a keyboard player. I sat in and they called out tunes and what key it was in and off we went. I watched the rhythm guitarists hand if I didn't know the songs, and I just listened to what vocal parts were missing and filled them in. I am playing my 5th gig with this band Saturday night and we still have not had a single rehearsal, The only setlist I have is one I compiled by writing down the songs we have already played live.
It's not impossible. It's unreasonable for a temp gig, but it's not impossible for a competent bassist.
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