Our Band is doing everything wrong. Should I try to fix it or just quit?

[Bass Viking]

The guitarists sound like a couple of out-of-touch old farts. Good luck getting them to change.

 

[defdog99]

Sounds like a marriage.

They've been a local band for 18 years!
Obviously the BL is the outgoing person of the group working the crowd.
And they've been around long enough and so confident enough, that they take live requests from the crowd?

If you are somehow still in your 30s, jettison. You have enough youth to jump onto something new.

Otherwise try to fix it. Maybe get a traveling 2nd singer like a chick or peter cetera guy etc. and try out new songs, duets, etc.

 

[electracoyote]

The problem here is this: You’re an entertainer, and they are not. You are more reflective on the realities and more sensitive to the needs of the clients and their guests/patrons that you are targeting. You use phrases like “putting on a show” and are concerned about things like pacing and flow. You wonder about song selection and what to do about a flagging fan base. Your definition of success includes a regular healthy circuit of public venues and private clients who contribute to a more active booking schedule, a common indicator of a band’s success in this industry.

Unfortunately, it appears as though your band mates are not as concerned about these things, at least not enough to discuss or address them. If anything, their approach has contributed to what you consider a stagnant, almost pointless band existence.

Only way to know for sure is to diplomatically broach the subject with your band mates and test the waters. Share a couple of those thoughts in the OP and then sit back and listen. Weigh the responses you get against your reasonable and honorable (IMHO) goals for yourself and the kind of band and success you’d like to experience.

Personally, if I got any kind of push back or even mild resistance to the changes you thought would improve the situation and increase your odds of success, that would be a clear indicator it’s time to look into other things and find more like-minded musicians who more closely share your thoughts on being entertainers and what constitutes success in this industry. Nothing wrong with spinning your wheels in the current band while you look for greener pastures.

 

[MrLenny1]

Quit. There is no chance of change from what you say.
#1 problem The Blues. It does not sell well, never did.
#2 Lengthy solos, audience gets bored if they can't sing along.
#3 Improv live is a killer. No one wants to see a band wank off.
Good Luck
One of the busiest bands in my area play everything. Trio, short solos
and they play everything and pack the house.
Blues is for old guys playing for peanuts on Saturday afternoon.

 

[sean_on_bass]

Sounds like a blues band, ie what the band is and proports itself as. If you don't wanna play with a blues band then move on as they can surely find someone else to do it.

 

[Hevy T]

Sounds like you guys should be more of a festival band, and maybe should just go after those kind of bookings.

If you have a Social Media presence where you can interact with the fans maybe ask for song suggestions there. Take the most commonly suggested song, learn them and incorporate them into the set. If someone shouts a request at a gig and you guys don't know it tell them you will learn it for next time if it seems viable.

You will not get away from the 1 4 5 thing. It's a proven song formula that works and people will dance to it. Though both are great songs you will fill the dance floor with Old Time Rock n Roll before say Hotel California

 

[Nebadon2000]

I have been looking to find a Band for awhile now; I am 67 and looking for 'Last Dance'
Last Band I played with [after 7 fun years with original band] had 2 Female Singers [Guitar and Keys also]
We did a lot of 80'S New Wave, 90's Alt, 2000's Pop and more it was Great.

Now Bands that contact me are basically similar to OP's Old Blues, Blues Rock, Southern Rock and 'Dead Horse' Classic Rock Song's but the funny thing is they get low to mid level gig's still;

I am close to NC OBX and Hampton Roads area of Virginia and about 50+% of Bar/Clubs still book them.

Even with Gig's available I had to walk away from a few after a couple rehearsal's

 

[gazzatriumph]

I'd tell them what's up, then if their response is something along the lines of "I agree but didn't know how to bring it up," then give it a go for a short bit to see if there's actual commitment to the follow through.

More likely their response will be neutral to bad and in that instance I'd make plans to walk.

^
This

 

[lermgalieu]

Quit or learn to just enjoy it for what it is, if you can. It ain't changing IMO.

 

[brianrost]

Taking a blues band into directions other than blues can be an exercise in futility. I've been in plenty where the deep blues is complimented with soul and funk tunes, even some jazz instrumentals but the players have to want to do that. If the guitarists are into SRV, Allmans, etc. then it's lots of guitar solos by default.

One blues bandleader I worked with on and off for 20 years successfully shifted his band into a core repertoire of Stones covers with a sprinkling of Chuck Berry, Howling Wolf and Dr. John. Some other bandleaders who used to actually tour have established weekly residencies where they rotate featured guests...often the guests have their own residencies I recently played with a drummer I hadn't seen for almost 20 years, he told me he's working about 4 days a week with two residencies, he also plays retro country and rockabiily gigs with guys he's known for decades. Trust me, I've done a few residencies myself and those are the best. Book it once and then just make sure you can keep the draw up.

My brother who plays drums and harmonica had a blues band for a while, then he saw the commerical possibilities of starting a zydeco band which was working solidly for a good 15 years. As those gigs started falling off (but they still play a few times a year, like Mardi Gras gigs) he formed a soul band comprised mainly of guys who were on the CT blue scene since the 1970s and two side projects, an organ trio and an acoustic blues duo where he plays harmonica. He also runs a monthly blues jam. Not surprisingly, he's working steadily all over Connecticut and Massachusetts.

So in the end, it's all about how flexible the other players are both in terms of repertoire and the type of gigs to seek.

 

[HardNHeavy]

18yrs is a long time to deal with that..But your with them long enough to talk to them about the issues...If they dont see it, find another group and hang with your boys for fun. I love the blues, but in moderation....
Change your setlist to a bit more rock/dance with upbeat blues thrown in, shorten the solos to compliment the song not the egos....just my echoing 2 cents...goodluck!

 

[mrjim123]

My gut level reaction is that your band's problems are far greater than can be easily fixed. I would quit and look for a better situation. IMO, strictly I-IV-V bands, except for the elite few, are a dime a dozen; that's one reason why you can't get bookings.

 

[GreyBeard]

Sounds like your band plays for themselves and not the audience. Back when the band was formed, that sort of (art for art sake) thing was popular. Not today, people today go to a bar to have fun and get laid.

 

[mikewalker]

Wow, if yer not playing the hits, what are you playing? Even at blues festivals, people like to hear catchy tunes with hooks!
I'd seriously revamp the setlist with at least 60% of the real vocal driven tunes (with short catchy guitar solos)... there are SO MANY great blues songs that have standout melody and lyrics, it does not have to just sound like a blur of I-V-VI...

 

[buldog5151bass]

Sounds like your band plays for themselves and not the audience. Back when the band was formed, that sort of (art for art sake) thing was popular. Not today, people today go to a bar to have fun and get laid.

Is there any other reason for to go into a bar?

 

[Sid Fang]

If this were the 60s, the answer would be obvious: Move to London.

 

[Killens84]

I may quit anyway but I'm just asking for opinions here.

The band I'm has been together and around and playing this region for a long time. I'm the newest member and I've been in the band almost 18 years. The band was started as a blues band, back when blues was "hot" in the wake of the Stevie Ray Vaughn era, and still has that identity/mentality. All of the members of the band have changed over the years except the drummer. The band now consists of two guitars, bass and drums. One of the guitarists is the band leader.

The over riding problem, as I see it, is this...we're having trouble getting bookings. Even clubs where we were one of their top bands won't book us at all this season. So I started trying to figure out why. This is what I've come up with...we don't have a following and we don't hold the crowd that is there. And why is that? Here are my observations/thoughts:

1. We (still) think and play like a blues band. We have two guitarists who like to solo a lot, and they do. Our bar gigs are more like what you would see at a blues festival instead of at a bar.

2. We do originals (blues) and covers. Many of the covers that we do end up sounding like blues, the way we play them. Again, lots of solos.

3. Lots of I-IV-V songs that sound similiar, if not to the public, identical.

4. We don't do a show. At a recent gig the BL decided to let the audience call the songs, and that included songs that we don't know, play, or at least in one case, haven't heard. There was often a long time between songs as the BL found the song online on his IPad and "learned" it onstage. Then he played it, reading the lyrics, occasionally missing chords, and we had to follow him as best we could.

5. At one recent gig the BL called a new original song that none of us had heard and we had to follow him to play it. It was a train wreck.

6. We play too loud. Both guitarists love to play solos and love to hear themselves above everything.

OTOH, the BL books the gigs and does a lot of online publicity, and he pays everyone equally. He has some regional notoriety and probably gets gigs because of that.

Some of this is redundant from another thread of mine. Sorry about that. Just wanted to vent and get some thoughts.

So my questions are:
1. Is this fixable? Should I even try?
2. Should I just accept a "it is what it is" attitude and hang on till the end?
3. Should I even talk to the band about it?

BTW despite the problems we had a good time playing. I had fun. However, we did not hold the crowd playing this way and the chance for more bookings is, in my opinion, greatly diminished by "performing" this way. If we had held the crowd and had people having a good time I would be holdiing my tongue now.

Sorry for the long post. Thanks for listening.

To me, points #1, 2, & 3 that you made aren’t hard deal-breakers. #4, 5, & 6, however, are definite deal-breakers.

 

[Tim Lombardi]

As a former band leader I would from time to time express my awareness that the band is there for the patrons. Make them feel that they are part of the performance and they will follow you. As an example, when we did the Rose Royce song working at the carwash, we would walk through the audience clapping the song's introductory clap and encouraging the audience to join in which they did. The patrons were part of the show!

 

[Ric5]

I may quit anyway but I'm just asking for opinions here.

The band I'm has been together and around and playing this region for a long time. I'm the newest member and I've been in the band almost 18 years. The band was started as a blues band, back when blues was "hot" in the wake of the Stevie Ray Vaughn era, and still has that identity/mentality. All of the members of the band have changed over the years except the drummer. The band now consists of two guitars, bass and drums. One of the guitarists is the band leader.

The over riding problem, as I see it, is this...we're having trouble getting bookings. Even clubs where we were one of their top bands won't book us at all this season. So I started trying to figure out why. This is what I've come up with...we don't have a following and we don't hold the crowd that is there. And why is that? Here are my observations/thoughts:

1. We (still) think and play like a blues band. We have two guitarists who like to solo a lot, and they do. Our bar gigs are more like what you would see at a blues festival instead of at a bar.

2. We do originals (blues) and covers. Many of the covers that we do end up sounding like blues, the way we play them. Again, lots of solos.

3. Lots of I-IV-V songs that sound similiar, if not to the public, identical.

4. We don't do a show. At a recent gig the BL decided to let the audience call the songs, and that included songs that we don't know, play, or at least in one case, haven't heard. There was often a long time between songs as the BL found the song online on his IPad and "learned" it onstage. Then he played it, reading the lyrics, occasionally missing chords, and we had to follow him as best we could.

5. At one recent gig the BL called a new original song that none of us had heard and we had to follow him to play it. It was a train wreck.

6. We play too loud. Both guitarists love to play solos and love to hear themselves above everything.

OTOH, the BL books the gigs and does a lot of online publicity, and he pays everyone equally. He has some regional notoriety and probably gets gigs because of that.

Some of this is redundant from another thread of mine. Sorry about that. Just wanted to vent and get some thoughts.

So my questions are:
1. Is this fixable? Should I even try?
2. Should I just accept a "it is what it is" attitude and hang on till the end?
3. Should I even talk to the band about it?

BTW despite the problems we had a good time playing. I had fun. However, we did not hold the crowd playing this way and the chance for more bookings is, in my opinion, greatly diminished by "performing" this way. If we had held the crowd and had people having a good time I would be holdiing my tongue now.

Sorry for the long post. Thanks for listening.

if it is fun then stay ... if you hate it then leave

 

[bdplaid]

I was in a band that was booked only a little, and didn't rehearse. I wanted to quit, until I realized there was nothing to quit FROM. I just did the occasional gig with them until it eventually fizzled out. In the meantime, I had other projects to amuse me.