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Gigs: Do's and Don'ts

#101
Leo Smith, said: "show up early for gigs.

don't bang the lead singer or the guitar player's girl/boy-friend"

Fabian_Aryo said:
I don't believe any bass player has managed to do that, that's just sounds bass-playerly impossible.
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the female lead in My band is my fiance, :)
so improbable, not impossible.
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#102
Lots of good info here but I'll add one that may just be personal preference - during soundcheck, have your drummer play a little louder than they will during the set. Most FOH sound guys in my experience basically put the drums up to eleven and everything else at a reasonable volume. Can't count how many locals I've seen - and I've seen locals all over the country - where ALL I could hear was the snare and a couple of vocal lines.
 
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#104
Obese Chess said:
Lots of good info here but I'll add one that may just be personal preference - during soundcheck, have your drummer play a little louder than they will during the set. Most FOH sound guys in my experience basically put the drums up to eleven and everything else at a reasonable volume. Can't count how many locals I've seen - and I've seen locals all over the country - where ALL I could hear was the snare and a couple of vocal lines.
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The local habit is to make the bass overwhelming, with the same unfortunate effect. Yeah, I'm a bass player, but obnoxiously loud to the point of turning to mush does nobody any favors.
 
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#105
One of the first shows I ever played, back when I was a freshman in high school, I remember that I could hear one of the other bands' snares from the PARKING LOT during their set. I've been bothered by this problem for over a decade. Sigh.
 
#107
Gaolee said:
The local habit is to make the bass overwhelming, with the same unfortunate effect. Yeah, I'm a bass player, but obnoxiously loud to the point of turning to mush does nobody any favors.
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+1

At a blues festival I went to the main stage sound guy had the bass and kick drum way too high in the mix (for my liking, my daughter's, and her husband's - himself a sound guy).

Sound guy went went for a break and a young girl took over, she very soon had the sound perfect. Original guy comes back from his break and whacks the bass and kick up again. Spoilt all the bands he mixed for IMO.
 
#111
Make sure you have dinner before you gig, but nothing too heavy. A salad and some chicken is good, but a double whopper and fries is not a good idea. You want to have energy, not burn it all digesting your dinner.

If possible, always bring extra cables, batteries, strings, gaffer’s tape, extension cord and other little miscellaneous items. Throw in a drum key as well.

Know your alcohol limits. Being drunk on stage is a no-no, and drunk driving after the show is even worse.

Make sure your gear is in excellent working order: inputs on bass and amp are clean, bass set up and intonated, and so on.

If the poopie is hitting the fan on stage, don’t show it, ever. You need to show the audience that all is going according to plan.

Always tune in silence, and no in-between song noodling.

Keep the space between songs short, except for a couple of planned spots for tuning while your vocalist butters up the crowd.

Be courteous to everyone: The crowd, the venue employees, the sound guy, the other bands.

The first time I play a venue, I record my amp settings after the gig for the next time I play a gig there. It makes a good starting point, especially if there’s no sound guy, and makes things nice and quick if you have a small window to set up and get started.

I warm up about 10 minutes before either we start or before we set up gear if we are playing later in the evening and we need to set up and play very quickly.
 
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#112
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#113
1. Don't play a show unless you sound legitimately good.

2. If you want people to come to your shows, you have to go to their shows. My newest band just played its first show a couple of weeks ago and we had about 100 people there, with many (most) of them being other musicians. I attribute this to the huge cumulative amount of shows supported by the members of my band throughout the year. My wife and I juggle serious jobs and two babies and I still make sure I go out to a show at least once a month and make sure to talk to the other musicians while I am there. Show support for the artistic community in general in your area and you will get a good reputation, instead of just being the guy hounding everyone to come see his band on facebook.

3. Try to apprentice in a band with an experienced leader. You will learn how to handle this businesslike.

4. Don't worry about getting screwed on some terrible shows. It's all part of the game, holmes.
 
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#117
I am enjoying this thread. LMAO at a bunch as I have broke so many of these don'ts that I should be run out of town. I think it really comes down to the gig. It seems like most folks are talking cover/party band type stuff. In that case, you are an employee. You are there to fulfill your end of the bargain. I agree with much of what has been said.

For original acts, the rules change a bit. Just make sure whatever persona you create is the one you stick with. As long as you are doing your part by selling tickets, most venues could care less. It's all about the dollars.

Probably the denominator that remains true regardless of the gig, is to be courteous and personable to the staff. Your night will always go better if the staff likes you.
 
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#118
theres a ton of stuff in here, but thats not whats gonna be going through your head. Heres the stuff that really gets at us....fear. "what if they make fun of us, what if no one is there, I suck, we suck, this sucks, I cant hear anything right like it sounds at home, etc etc etc.

So, Dont let the fear get a hold of you....Dont get high or drink to quiet the fear down.... Its natural, its part of gigging. Gilmore says he still gets scared to go on stage...

Yes it will sound different than at home....Drummers never can hear anything in their monitor, its usually blown...The singer will sound like hes singing through an AM radio in a 76 ford pinto.....Your guitarist will sound like a dying cat in a garbage can and your bass will sound like a tuner car at a ghetto car stereo meet with 24" subs.......who cares.
......practice at home before the gig set up in different places and have everyone play at different volumes than normal....it will still sound awkward to the point of you will have to force yourself to play the first few songs....

Its harder to play for 5 of your friends and family than it is for 5000 people you dont know....you get a lump in your throat and you know you have to talk to them after the show....you will be fine. Practice, practice and practice some more so you can play on autopilot.....who cares if you suck, be a well rehearsed band that sucks, you will sound better.

Keep your mouth shut and your ears open, be nice, be real, courteous. Hell, tell the soundman youre nervous and its your first gig, he may well help you out.

All in all, might suck, youll be terrified, the crowd could be horrible, a huge labor effort and crappy pay, but just for a moment, you will be on stage, you will feel great and you will realize that you are a musician for a reason, this is what youre designed to do, and everything is right with the world for that minute.....you will be so stoked that you cant wait for the next gig.

enjoy.

Oh yeah....dont forget your amp at home.....
 
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#119
Fat Steve said:
This is the only thing I've seen where I kind of disagree. If I'm playing a gig to make some scratch, the last thing I'm going to do is spend my money on over priced venue food. Drinks on the other hand are usually comped on the gigs we play, so a beer or two on top of the comped drinks isn't out of the question.
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I don't drink...a club sandwich and fries are less than $7 and sometimes a helluva lot better than what Susan cobbled together for dinner at home. For that fact, I don't believe any venues have comped liquor for us nor would I want this in any way to be folded into the compensation package.

Riis
 
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