Dressing alike - I feel like a Wiggles

[40Hz]

Just don't look like you belong in the audience, or you just wandered in off the street. Dress up, show off, be somebody!


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

With all due respect, with a singer like the one you've got - and with that voice, smile, and stage strut she has - I'd guess 99.9% of the guys (at least) couldn't care less what the rest of you happened to be wearing.

 

[sketch]

Totally agree with the other professionals above; look like a band, look like the entertainer you are. And this is targeted to every genre - look up Lamb Of God promo pics and tell me that isn't variations on a theme.

I'd also ask, who floated the suggestion initially that you all wear white shirt + black vest? If it was the customer, a producer/stage manager, or similar, that's a pretty big sign that yes, you should wear that. In my journey from dickhead punk kid to """pro""" musician, I came to love having a stage "uniform". My old band actually had 3 sets of clothes of which the client could choose. Like some of the guys above, we also used slight variations. All black with different color ties matching our instruments, for example (red SG + red tie; black Fender w/ gold hardware + gold tie).

Love seeing the photos of other posters in this thread

 

[RicoTheBassMan]

I voted "lame", but I am probably just trying to avoid the theme our lead singer is going for. She dresses like Stevie Nicks in white or beige and wears a headband with a giant sunflower on it. We are a 5 piece (sometimes 7 if the guitarist brings friends) and the 4 of us just can't....I think we would be open to dressing in a theme, but the sunflower power hour thing is just too over the top.

 

[GretschWretch]

Uniform attire makes you look professional, like a real band and not just a bunch of guys who grabbed their guitars and ran to the gig right after cleaning out their gutters. Look at old videos of R&B groups from the fifties or early British invasion bands from the sixties. Classy, uniform attire makes a powerful non-verbal statement.

 

[T_Bone_TL]

You are in the entertainment business. How you, together, as a band, look, is part of the entertainment; so dress up right and and entertain. It won't harm you and it might just lead to more money and better gigs.

Cliff, if that's a uniform, why don't we see your corset? (which is actually an easy out for Rico - ladies can be different from the guys and get away with it - you could all wear tuxes (or any other thing) and be a band with the younger (I'm guessing younger) version of Maude from Harold and Maude out front singing. Which, rather than Stevie Nicks, is what comes to mind when you pull out the giant sunflower ;-)


Print this out and drop it where she can see it, perhaps that will put an end to it unless she's a huge Ruth Gordon fan.

...also, for tax purposes, if it's a work uniform, it's a deductible expense.

 

[LowStringNinja]

Wear the shirt and vest...but also show up wearing whatever insanely over-the-top hat that makes you most comfortable.

 

[QweziRider]

(the gig is for an upscale banquet type thing, does that change the answer?)

Yeah, to a degree, it can. Depends. If it's the gig purchaser requiring it, well, then I'd roll with it. It'll be over in a few hours and nobody dies. I generally find dressing identical to be lame (especially in a bar bad). But I've had gigs that we were requested to wear white shirts and black slacks, so we roll with it and make the customer happy.

(Identical not to be confused with sharp and similar)

 

[onlyclave]

People pay $200 a seat to see Bonamassa's band dressed (mostly) alike by a professional stylist...

And they kick ass. One of the best shows I've seen in the last 10 years.

 

[Groove Doctor]

I'll take two, sometimes three, shirts to a gig. Decide when I get there & chat with the rest of the band, leave the other shirts in the car.

Vests have a 40's Gangster vibe to them if you've got style.... but can have a hotel uniform vibe if you don't. Always ask for advice when trying a new look.

 

[Kmonk]

I have a friend who is the leader of a 60s and 70s band. Everybody wears white 70s style leisure suits. They look like bad ice cream men. Wear whatever is appropriate but there is no reason to dress alike.

 

[Downunderwonder]

If the reqest was for primary colour jackets then you would look wiggly. This sounds like some event planner thought she could use you spruced up and made it dead easy for you to comply. So comply and get rebooked!

 

[GrooverMcTube]

Wiggles reference made me think of this Reckless Kelly song. Singer has a great voice IMO.

 

[sjhs]

Vests have a 40's Gangster vibe to them if you've got style.... but can have a hotel uniform vibe if you don't.

That's what I was thinking... Perhaps everyone can get a name tag with their instrument instead of a name

 

[DavC]

in one of my bar bands ... we'd just pick a color scheme ... like tonight it's ' black / red ' ...

or tonight we'll wear clean underwear .. or something to tie things together just a little bit ...

matching outfits ... a few times in some 80's dance bands .. !

 

[DaDrew2112]

honestly it's pretty lame in my opinion. would't do it unless the pay is good

 

[okcrum]

Well, the gig isn't a bar. It's a private banquet. It's pretty clear about 60% here (from the poll) have never played a commercial gig.

Link Removed plays private events like Jimmy Buffet's birthday party and Michael Douglas' wedding.

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed] plays mainly commercial but some dance events. This is how they'd dress for a bar gig. [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] for the type of gig the OP is describing.

You can judge for yourself.

 

[Bugeyed Earl]

That's what I was thinking... Perhaps everyone can get a name tag with their instrument instead of a name

Agreed, vests can be tough to pull off. I always feel like a complete tool in a vest, the notion of the entire band wearing them makes me cringe. Having said that, plenty of the "matching" outfits pictured on the previous page look pretty sharp.

 

[AndyPanda]

 

[AshInAmsterdam]

I voted lame, but then I read again and saw "upscale banquet type thing". Still lame in general, but for such an event I'd say it adds a kind of class, as long as what you're wearing is suitably classy in itself.

Honestly, most bands I've seen that do such occasions look pretty cheesy in the first case but then I'm a rock n roller through and through. I do have a soft spot for the early days of RnR though, back when people dressed in suits in public.

 

[pedroims]

You dress for the ocassion, seems that your band is taking it to the next level, you are playing now a sort of corporate event, you cannot dress the same as if you are playing in a bar, search the internet for corporate bands and you will get an idea how to dress, this is a good opportunity, it might open doors for high paid gigs.