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Do You Let Technical Issues Ruin The Gig?

jad

jad

Aug 29, 2002
449
367
Pittsburgh, PA
#1
My gig this past weekend was a lot of fun. This is despite IEM problems for me throughout the first set, lead vocalist unable to get his IEMs working all night, and just a generally sloppy night for me on bass. Technical issues like this can really ruin a gig. However, the crowd was great, we had a lot of fun, and we got paid well. I have to rate this one a winner overall.

Do technical issues ruin a gig for you? What do you consider to be a "good gig"?
 
#3
When I play regardless of any technical or human malfunction I keep playing and never show the audience that something is wrong (game face). The audience has paid good money to see a good show and as musicians we owe that to them, this is a business and money is being paid for a service, if I go to a restaurant I don't want to hear that the chef is having a bad nite I want what I paid for which is a good meal. This mantra has served me and my band well. Some of the biggest shows I've played came after playing some of our worst shows and the club like that we never wavered and gave it 100% despite our musical world crumbling around us. Act like professionals and get treated like pros. The audience will most likely not notice the malfunction, not everyone is a player and most will rock on even if you mess up badly, JUST KEEP PLAYING!

Just my two cents.
 
#4
sometimes we get to play a gig where nothing really goes wrong and the audience would be dead... when that happens, we usually end up over-analyzing and before you know it, some blames or repressed issues would surface.

i guess the gig is really more about the audience reaction than the technical stuff happening. at least for me it is.
 
#5
No, I let technical issues serve as an example to support my stance that we should all have the simplest possible stage rig. Fewer pedals, fewer batteries, fewer cords, fewer things to haul and set up. Fewer things that can possibly go wrong.
 
#6
No, but I have let them ruin my voice. Not being able to hear sucks. Thats why I bought my own PA. At least now I can bring my own monitors if the band/venue doesn't have an adequate stage setup. Being over prepared in the equipment department really helps avoid those technical issues.
 
#7
There are technical issues, and then there are technical issues. We had a night a few weeks back where every thing went wrong. It didn't spoil the gig, but the first set was a loss, and the second set I was a little rattled and put off my game.
 
#8
I used to play guitar and one night my brand new amp quit halfway through the first song. I didn't have a spare and used the keyboard players really crappy amp while he plugged directly into the PA. One of the singer's friends ran home and got an amp for me to use but it was only marginally better (solid state, about 30 watts, crappy 10" speaker). I was bummed but tried to fake a positive attitude and people came up and told me how great I sounded. I played a lot of other nights where everything went perfect, and no one said a word.

I used to have a teacher that said you are never as bad as you think you are, but you are never as good as you think you are.

In my old age I just let the problems take care of themselves. We aren't saving lives here.
 
#9
DeadGoonz said:
When I play regardless of any technical or human malfunction I keep playing and never show the audience that something is wrong (game face). The audience has paid good money to see a good show and as musicians we owe that to them, this is a business and money is being paid for a service, if I go to a restaurant I don't want to hear that the chef is having a bad nite I want what I paid for which is a good meal. This mantra has served me and my band well. Some of the biggest shows I've played came after playing some of our worst shows and the club like that we never wavered and gave it 100% despite our musical world crumbling around us. Act like professionals and get treated like pros. The audience will most likely not notice the malfunction, not everyone is a player and most will rock on even if you mess up badly, JUST KEEP PLAYING!

Just my two cents.
Click to expand...

QFT, We tend to think that the audience has the "musician mindset" alas we think the smallest things will be noticed by the crowd. Maybe if musicians are amongst the crowd they may notice the odd thing but as long as you keep playing average Joe wont notice that your G string is out of tune or that you missed two notes on the bridge.
 
#10
I've not done yet, there again I've never REALLY had anything go badly wrong...once I nearly used a really bad amp with a LOUD hum (i.e. the hum was louder than the actual sound produced from the amp) for a gig so switched it with the keyboardist at soundcheck before we went on...my old bands guitarist screwed up by not bringing a 2nd guitar and a string went on the 3rd song (he was drunk, refused the backup offered to him and got annoyed and stomped all over his pedalboard like a kid coz he dropped all his spare strings all over the floor...10 mins later he calmed down and we carried on playing the song, the drummer and I had started the intro before the string went...)

Otherwise - a couple of spare leads and my POD does me fine...I HAVE taken a spare bass every now and then but I've never needed one
 
#12
It can be tough. There's a certain venue in Denver where any band wants to play, but not because of the logistics.

The room has a weird shape that affects acoustics in really interesting and not good ways - it's one of those rooms where you always sound out of tune, and it's impossible to hear the other guys.

They have a house PA, but they require the band to set it up, run it, and break it down at the end of each night. So there's always a challenge getting the thing set up and working in time.

The place has a good foot crowd though, and it's reputation for high quality bands is good. Playing at this joint, you just have to have a drink, relax, turn off your ears just a little, and use the Force.
 
#14
The show must go on. I once had my IEMs go out right before a 1.5 hour opening slot for a major artist. First show of the tour, and I'd recently let the FOH guy talk me into going without an amp on stage since I was going direct from my pedalboard anyway. Guitars were also ampless. No wedges onstage. All I could hear was the drums and a little bounceback from the mains. I also sang a lot of harmonies in that show.

Tough night, but the audience doesn't care what kind of tech problems you're having, nor do they want to hear any excuses. All they know is they either enjoyed the show or it sucked. Remember hearing about Axl Rose throwing fits over sound issues and walking off stage after 2 or 3 songs? You probably thought "what a whiny *****." I know I did.
 
#15
We did a street dance this last summer. It had been heavily advertised (including TV) and was in our lead singer / BL's hometown. Almost as soon as we got there things started going wrong. There was a wiring issue with the venue-provided power that blew up one of our power amps, half our light show and most of our rhythm guitarist's gear as soon as we plugged in. We had to re-wire our IEM system because some of that gear had fried, so the whole band basically had to share one mix. We were troubleshooting and jerry-rigging up until about 20 minutes before the show, in very hot outdoor conditions. Suffice to say that stress was high.

It turned out to be one of our best shows ever.

So to me the bottom line is, the show is what you decide to make it. As long as there's enough functioning gear to do the show, you're being paid to do the show.

Also, in my mind anyway, there is a huge difference between avoidable and unavoidable tech issues. If the guitarist's amp craps out mid-show because he was too lazy or cheap to do preventive maintenance, or the drummer breaks a head and doesn't have a spare at hand, or the singer's wireless mic dies with no replacement battery to be found... those things are what really piss me off because that's just just a lack of personal responsibility and basic professionalism. OTOH if the venue power-spikes and fries gear that otherwise was in perfect condition, well, what can you do?

My band is kind of control freaks as far as "the show" goes and because of that we only relinquish production to a third party when it's a requirement of the gig. At least 9 out of 10 shows we roll with our own P.A. and our own light show and we run everything from the stage. We have wireless IEMs with a separate submix for each member so monitoring issues are pretty much non-existent. We bring backups for everything and sometimes backups for backups if the venue is especially remote. End result, except for rare occasions like the above, technical problems happen vary rarely and when they do they are usually addressed on the fly.
 
#17
I never try to let it ruin it for me. I'm doing what I love, having fun, and making money on the side. I will say though it can be very trying if the mic is zapping your lip anytime you get close enough to sing.
Bottom line is, the audience won't know or even care (unless it's high-pitched feedback squeal blasting them).
 
#18
I try not to let anything bother me. Sometimes things happen that I don't like or have no control over, but getting all crappy about it isn't going to help the situation.

I'm sure that large acts have technical issues all the time, granted they have people to take care of it for them, but I think it's just part of the territory.
 
#19
THE SHOW MUST GO ON!!!

5 words that should be ingrained in your DNA as a bass player and musician..

Broken String, change it on the fly or have another bass at the ready.. don't have either, then suck it up and play around the missing notes jerky..

Amp Blew Up: borrow one or go buy another one or plug directly into another sound source.. PA, Keys amp, pignose, whatever.. mic it if you have to.. play on..

Busted PA: everybody turn down and get the whole crowd singing lead

No power.. go acoustic..

No lights.. get a candle..

did I miss any..?
 
#20
I've usually been able to plow through any technical issues that present themselves. I always carry extra cables, fuses, picks, strings and batteries.
What takes the wind out of my sails is when I am running the PA system in addition to playing on the show. Setting up a PA is usually a cinch. But every venue is different, and you would be surprised at how many clubs I have played that have no three prong outlets and no convenient place for the mixer to sit. Then the right channel goes out.
 

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