Is my lead singer that bad?

[Richland123]

Way more than a little pitchy dog!

This song was worse


It sounded like he was trying to hit all the notes in hopes that some of them were right.

 

[darius8]

Way more than a little pitchy dog!

This song was worse


It sounded like he was trying to hit all the notes in hopes that some of them were right.

Yup, he sounds like he's singing out of his key range. This can be fixed by changing the key of the songs to accommodate the singer. Van Halen did this for David Lee Roth by a half step down IIRC.

 

[LiquidMidnight]

Everyone says "fire them" no matter what the question is

Haha...well, yeah...that and everyone thinks you need an airtight contract to play any gig, even if it's just providing bumper music between the balloon animal clown's set at the local church's hoagie fundraiser for kids with Type 2 diabetes.

 

[bassbully]

Way more than a little pitchy dog!

This song was worse


It sounded like he was trying to hit all the notes in hopes that some of them were right.

Oooofa..... that's real bad. He is trying way to hard and singing out of his range. I played a show with a gal like that once...like I said once

 

[DwaynieAD]

He sounds fine on the recordings. He sounds terrible on the live video.

So what's different?

My guess is:

1) He's over excited/nervous for live shows

2) He can't hear himself

3) He's straining because he can't hear himself.

All correctable IMO.

can we vote this to the top of the thread?

 

[Session1969]

can we vote this to the top of the thread?

My vote is no. Can you say pitch correction ? As in it's all over the recording.

 

[obimark]

This gives credence to the fact that as a whole I think we bassist are too forgiving of others. As I said when I realized from my last band that the "lead" singer had zero stage presence, couldn't get the females up, and while mostly in pitch, had no "character" to his voice, I walked.

All of these things led to low turnout at ALL our gigs. For the most part our playing was good and tight, but without the frontman forgetaboutit.

 

[Corevalay]

That's what I'm saying. People don't give a rat's ass if you have an unpleasant voice. Some will but plenty won't. All they care about is you moving them when you sing. And David Lee Roth, for as bad as he can sound live and as tired of hearing the old Van Halen stuff I might be, moves me when I hear him sing in a way that Sammy doesn't, even though Sammy's clearly the better singer. But Sammy has his fans and that's cool, too.

With that in mind, there are plenty of bands I love that other people hate, because of the singers. It's tough to just throw it out there generally because the folks who are commenting on it might have no taste in the style or music.

I said it earlier and I'll say it again... the most important thing about a band is that you believe in yourselves and are all confident in what you're doing. If bands like Nirvana or Korn decided that people didn't like what they were doing and gave up... then what? Hell, my favorite band is the Deftones and they have a huge following. They opened for KISS and got booed off the stage. It all depends on who you're trying to reach with what you're doing.

 

[alaskaleftybass]

I forgot to mention earlier, I'm flattered that you, as a bass player, sought out our opinion on this delicate issue. I don't feel you were shamelessly promoting, or badmouthing the singer. You were asking a genuine question from people you obviously respect and value their opinion. This is a pretty specific forum and although public, the chances of people coming here about your band are pretty slim.

Thank you for your question, and as you can tell, this is an issue more common in the industry than we talk about. Good luck.

 

[Manuel101]

I forgot to mention earlier, I'm flattered that you, as a bass player, sought out our opinion on this delicate issue. I don't feel you were shamelessly promoting, or badmouthing the singer. You were asking a genuine question from people you obviously respect and value their opinion. This is a pretty specific forum and although public, the chances of people coming here about your band are pretty slim.

Thank you for your question, and as you can tell, this is an issue more common in the industry than we talk about. Good luck.

You know the problem is that I didn't mind his singing that much but then people kept telling how he is not a good fit for the band. I can't believe I never noticed how bad it was until people started asking me about it. I was thinking of showing the drummer this thread so he could see what people are saying about us but now I think it might be a problem. like some one pointed out the band might see it as a betrayal from my part.

 

[skwee]

Keep this thread to yourself. I agree that it is fine for you to have asked for opinions, though. Being a singer myself, if I heard myself that out of tune live, I would probably quit performing in public until I studied and got better. Autotune is just not an option.

 

[bassbully]

You know the problem is that I didn't mind his singing that much but then people kept telling how he is not a good fit for the band. I can't believe I never noticed how bad it was until people started asking me about it. I was thinking of showing the drummer this thread so he could see what people are saying about us but now I think it might be a problem. like some one pointed out the band might see it as a betrayal from my part.

Are you getting shows? Rebookings? Are people coming out to see you and enjoying the shows? If so leave it alone. If not well.....

 

[fenderhutz]

He can hear himself fine here. From the video posted earlier.

 

[electracoyote]

You know the problem is that I didn't mind his singing that much but then people kept telling how he is not a good fit for the band. I can't believe I never noticed how bad it was until people started asking me about it. I was thinking of showing the drummer this thread so he could see what people are saying about us but now I think it might be a problem. like some one pointed out the band might see it as a betrayal from my part.

If you see this as a problem (and the TB consensus seems to support that notion), you will need to get other band mates to agree before you can do anything about it. Even suggesting a voice coach can not come solely from you. I know this sounds very back-stabbing and divisive, but there really is no other way. You're trying to improve your product and increase your chances for success, so I wouldn't look at it as being a trouble maker. Talk to your drummer about it. Tell him you have been receiving and soliciting opinions from others about the lead singer, and they are largely unfavorable. You don't need to be specific about your sources right away. Ask drummer where he sits on the issue. Proceed from there.

 

[tbsodsmuck]

Q:Is my lead singer that bad?
A:Yes

 

[gastric]

Wow, this is a pretty tough to stomach thread. I feel bad reading this and thinking of teh poor guy's state of mind when he stumbles upon this and reads it for himself.

Singing is probably THE hardest thing to nail. A truly great singer is extremely hard to find. Or even a pretty-good one, for that matter.

The fact he's listenable on your EP is evidence of how much perceived talent can be manufactured by the studio engineers.

 

[obimark]

I really don't THINK Anyone other than hardcore bassist read any of this stuff, Noone in any of my bands ever did.

Because they usually don't really view bass as very important. Sorry to tell it like it is.

 

[dbd1963]

Even if the singer did stumble on this thread, he would only read things that he should already know. People have a knack for lying to themselves, and though we know that it's painful when we are the ones doing it and then we have the truth put in front of us, we should remember that when we are working in a group of other people, we have a responsibility to see things as clearly as possible and to clean up whatever messes we are making. To do otherwise is extremely selfish, and really, only people with an artistic temperament ever get away with it*. But even we shouldn't.

The singer needs to know what the problem is and to actively take steps to correct it. He's already shown that he can be very good when he's on top of things.

(*or kings and queens, people born into money, or people with an undeniable talent for something that gives them money or power)

 

[RustyAxe]

I would never ask anyone on Talkbass about their opinions on band management matters, and this thread is exactly why. Everyone says "fire them" no matter what the question is, like they're some big-time geniuses themselves. Hate to break it to you guys, but I have heard singers who sound awesome on their multi-million selling recordings sound out of tune and shaky in front of thousands live. Perry Farrell, Anthony Kiedis, Axl Rose, Brian Johnson, Steven Tyler (though he got better once he got off drugs)...and that's just off the top of my head.

And if the OP's band were making that kind of money, I don't believe he'd have posted what he did. Hell, I'd play with "Froggy" from the Little Rascals if I could pull down six-figures doing it. I play because I enjoy playing. I enjoy making GOOD music. That's what I want to do, and those who want to join me (or have me join them) have the same end in mind. I'm not into pedagogy, a social worker, nor am I substance abuse counselor, I'm not a taxi driver, and not a bank. Learn your instrument like I learned mine, and get yer **** together ... or go play somewhere else. Harsh? Maybe. But that's how I roll.

 

[klokker]

This is why we don't have a vocalist in our 4 piece band. Our drummer sings the most, but we all have a couple of songs per set at least. We can sing as well as the vast majority of "vocalists" out there who would be interested in our band.

If you're just standing there with a mic in your hand, you have to be really good.