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Do or Die Audition (Update)

#21
bluewine said:
I took it very seriously and was up to the we hours of the night getting ready for this.

I think I did nail 2-3 of the songs, but they didn't see it that way and it's their call.

If I don't make it this Saturday, then it wasn't meant to be.
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If you've already nailed a few of their tunes, they know you can play. Now all you have to do is improve the lock with the drummer. Be open to the groove.

Lead vocalist is a critical ally. Most singers key on the bass, and they will rely on you.

Just go in and convince the band with your attitude and your playing that you will be an asset. Don't be cocky OR mousy. Just do it.

Godspeed, John Glenn.
 
#22
jive1 said:
If you're having trouble remembering the arrangements and causing your timing to suffer, listen to the recordings and pay attention to the fills the drummer is playing. Any drummer worth his/her salt is gonna cue you on the changes with some type of fill. Listen to the fills for timing and tendencies to hear how it transitions to the next part of a song, and it will help you to lock in and jar your memory.

If it's a matter of feel, I suggest listening to the songs and dancing to them. It doesn't have to be some fancy moves, just simply grooving to them will do. It will help internalize the feel for you at a physical level, and give you some biofeedback to know if you're on or not.

Lots of bands will play a song differently from the recording, so go in there with big ears ready to listen. Listen to the drummer, his cues, and groove to him. The drummer on the recording could be different from the drummer you are auditioning with. So don't rely on the recording too much. Use it to get the feel and the arrangement, but remember to pay attention to the guys who are there and lock in with them.
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You said it better than me Jive. I learned a while back from one of my old drummers that fills were often cues to changes in the songs. He really taught me to listen to him and the cues were right there. Until I played in a band as a bassist I never even thought about that.

I used to sit with earbuds on and listen to the songs over and over before I touched the bass and these were covers and songs I "Thought" I knew. I found out allot of times I was missing parts, rushing parts and found ways to work around parts by listening...not playing at all.

You are right about bands and that they change parts in songs. I do however prefer to know this before we play them. I practiced whole songs before to get to practice and the guitarist say we are going to skip this or that and go back to the chorus here, cut a lead there :rolleyes:
 
#23
Edward G. said:
If you've already nailed a few of their tunes, they know you can play. Now all you have to do is improve the lock with the drummer. Be open to the groove.

Lead vocalist is a critical ally. Most singers key on the bass, and they will rely on you.

Just go in and convince the band with your attitude and your playing that you will be an asset. Don't be cocky OR mousy. Just do it.

Godspeed, John Glenn.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I have to relax and just groove with these guys, I love their material it's right up my alley. But they are picky, they really want me to play it straight and not use any fancy or busy bass lines.

I think it will work out this weekend.

Auditioning has never been my strong point. And it takes me a while before I can say I own any tune.
 
#24
As the outsider in an established group of players and writers, it is important that you not overstep your bounds, even if your ideas are great. Demonstrate that you are coachable. The music isn't yours --yet. That day will come surely enough. Groove their music in their spirit without taking liberties. They'll like that.

Job One is to infiltrate the group.
 
#25
bluewine said:
Yeah, I have to relax and just groove with these guys, I love their material it's right up my alley. But they are picky, they really want me to play it straight and not use any fancy or busy bass lines.

I think it will work out this weekend.

Auditioning has never been my strong point. And it takes me a while before I can say I own any tune.
Click to expand...

Blue,
Did you say this is original music? If so and I think you did I understand where they are coming from. Since I am in my second year in an originals band the songwriter lets me do my thing with basslines but also doesnt like it if I go outside the box and overplay or add allot of fills. Think of it this way, you wont have to do more than your asked on a song and they might loosen up once you if you become a member. I belive in serving the song and doing my job to support the band. The songwriter in my band wants his music to speak and the other players to have a part..I understand this and know role in the band. He is very understanding and we work out all the arrangements in this band and agree before the song is performed.
If they were replacing me in the band I am in now I would understand them wanting someone to basicly fill my shoes ..not to make them the biggest pair.
 
#27
Edward G. said:
If you've already nailed a few of their tunes, they know you can play. Now all you have to do is improve the lock with the drummer. Be open to the groove.

Lead vocalist is a critical ally. Most singers key on the bass, and they will rely on you.

Just go in and convince the band with your attitude and your playing that you will be an asset. Don't be cocky OR mousy. Just do it.

Godspeed, John Glenn.
Click to expand...


All I have to say to that is;

I will!
 
#28
It's 7:30 and I am out of here, I have all 7 songs with the arangements written out.I will be going at it till midnight.

BTW I will rehearse standing up. I have a Korg Pandora, so I plug in to my iPod and rehearse with head phones. The Pandora is a really cool practice tool


Late
blue
 
#29
bluewine said:
It's 7:30 and I am out of here, I have all 7 songs with the arangements written out.I will be going at it till midnight.

BTW I will rehearse standing up. I have a Korg Pandora, so I plug in to my iPod and rehearse with head phones. The Pandora is a really cool practice tool


Late
blue
Click to expand...

Thats the way I roll keep up the good work!
 
#30
bluewine said:
Yeah, I have to relax and just groove with these guys, I love their material it's right up my alley. But they are picky, they really want me to play it straight and not use any fancy or busy bass lines.

I think it will work out this weekend.

Auditioning has never been my strong point. And it takes me a while before I can say I own any tune.
Click to expand...
If they're complaining about your time, I think the most likely issue was thinking of a fill at the last moment, trying to put it in, and not nailing it. I do that sometimes, great line pops into my head at the last minute, then don't quite execute it.

I would play it straight, almost no fills, and really groove the hell out of the tunes, lock with the drummer. If you have any sense of time you can get the groove to work fine. Nerves, excess energy, no time to warm up making your fingers slow and stiff, all can keep your fills from getting executed well. Probably transitions (verse to chorus, or bridge) that caught you by surprise a little, or fills that either sped up a little as you got excited, or a hesitation as you tried to throw a fill in that drifted a little.

So less is more for the audition.

Nothing you will do will fix any actual time issues in a couple of days. Know the songs, so you can play them in your sleep, when there are no surprises, there are no hesitations, and it grooves, it flows... I don't think your time was bad per se, I think you just flubbed some things, hesitations instead of smooth, that sort of thing.

Randy
 
#31
steveksux said:
If they're complaining about your time, I think the most likely issue was thinking of a fill at the last moment, trying to put it in, and not nailing it. I do that sometimes, great line pops into my head at the last minute, then don't quite execute it.

I would play it straight, almost no fills, and really groove the hell out of the tunes, lock with the drummer. If you have any sense of time you can get the groove to work fine. Nerves, excess energy, no time to warm up making your fingers slow and stiff, all can keep your fills from getting executed well. Probably transitions (verse to chorus, or bridge) that caught you by surprise a little, or fills that either sped up a little as you got excited, or a hesitation as you tried to throw a fill in that drifted a little.

So less is more for the audition.

Nothing you will do will fix any actual time issues in a couple of days. Know the songs, so you can play them in your sleep, when there are no surprises, there are no hesitations, and it grooves, it flows... I don't think your time was bad per se, I think you just flubbed some things, hesitations instead of smooth, that sort of thing.

Randy
Click to expand...

I agree, Play the song..serve the song. I would add nothing and play only what the band wants and expects. This is one thing when you are playing originals that sometimes can be frustrating to some.
 
#32
All good suggestions. If i have to synopsis all the comments it would be practice, practice , practice and in this case playing less and keeping it basic wil be key. No fancy connecting riffs that might throw me out of time.

Playing to much increase your potential to mess up.

Just a side note.

This is a good example of the difference between auditiioning for a band that has something on the table, something to offer than the band that has nothing now but might develop into something at a later date.

These guys were professional, they sent MP3s of the material imediately and made it clear how they wanted the parts played and why.

For those of you that might find yourself looking for established working bands, watch out for comments like, just come over and jam with us. Another red flag is you express interest from an ad, and you don't get a response or a late response. That might be ok for younger bass players looking for band experience but not so much with older guys like me.
 

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