Last night I tried out for a guy putting together a cover band. I started playing bass at 20, but there was a multi-decade hiatus in there, so really I've been playing for about six years, to CDs and backing tracks. Here in Austin, TX, 99% of the craigslist "musicians wanted" posts are looking to be the next big thing. I responded to this one because it expressly said it was for fun and not fame or money, with the hope to play out once or twice a month.
The setup was the organizer singing and playing guitar, a drummer trying out for the drummer slot, and me on bass, in a rental rehearsal room. Both were really nice guys, and the drummer's timing was rock solid -- no complaints at all there.
Getting to the point, I had some questions.
I was playing through my Fender Rumble 500 (10" x 2) combo amp, and because it was a small room and I didn't really think about it, I was standing pretty much right to the side of it. I could more feel the bass than hear it. Is that how it goes? Should I have been standing opposite of my amp? Turned up the bass? Or is that what happens when there are live drums? There was a PA system that the guitarist was running through but I hadn't noticed. Would that project my sound better?
The audition consisted of three songs: Tom Petty "Honeybee", Black Crowes "Hard to Handle", and Aerosmith "Sweet Emotion". The first two were a snap to learn, and the third was just memorizing four or five riffs up to speed then learning to transition between them. I did OK but certainly could have done better. It was hard to emotionally connect to my playing since I couldn't hear myself well. Also, I should have practiced playing standing up; normally I only ever play sitting down. Lesson learned there.
There was a time or two where the singer came in early or late -- should I have kept going with the drummer and let the guitarist/singer figure it out, or should I have tried to adjust my timing to meet the singer? I imagine in a live situation one would want to always make the singer sound good, but what about a rehearsal?
Thanks for any feedback.
The setup was the organizer singing and playing guitar, a drummer trying out for the drummer slot, and me on bass, in a rental rehearsal room. Both were really nice guys, and the drummer's timing was rock solid -- no complaints at all there.
Getting to the point, I had some questions.
I was playing through my Fender Rumble 500 (10" x 2) combo amp, and because it was a small room and I didn't really think about it, I was standing pretty much right to the side of it. I could more feel the bass than hear it. Is that how it goes? Should I have been standing opposite of my amp? Turned up the bass? Or is that what happens when there are live drums? There was a PA system that the guitarist was running through but I hadn't noticed. Would that project my sound better?
The audition consisted of three songs: Tom Petty "Honeybee", Black Crowes "Hard to Handle", and Aerosmith "Sweet Emotion". The first two were a snap to learn, and the third was just memorizing four or five riffs up to speed then learning to transition between them. I did OK but certainly could have done better. It was hard to emotionally connect to my playing since I couldn't hear myself well. Also, I should have practiced playing standing up; normally I only ever play sitting down. Lesson learned there.
There was a time or two where the singer came in early or late -- should I have kept going with the drummer and let the guitarist/singer figure it out, or should I have tried to adjust my timing to meet the singer? I imagine in a live situation one would want to always make the singer sound good, but what about a rehearsal?
Thanks for any feedback.
