My band has a great relationship with businesses in the area, bars and taverns and such. We had a gig this past Saturday at a very nice venue on a lake with all glass windows lining it and a beautiful view. Very nice place! When we started at 8pm there were about 80 people in there, now granted (this is not our normal playing area it is about an hour and a half away, so very few of our normal crowd came out to see us, and the guy that booked us knows this, because we bring out over 100 people to his other place regularly, and he loves us). Well these 80 people seemed to all be very old, and very wealthy...not saying anything bad about it...that's just how it was. We have never been asked to turn down our volume anywhere ever...it was a very big space and we got asked 4 times to turn down in the first hour..Our drummer was just doing rim taps, and I switched to a BA112 combo for a 2500 sq foot room. There was little to no applause (which not being vain, but we aren't used to), and we tried to cater to them by playing older, and slower songs..(we aren't a jazz band..more folk and alternative). During the first set when we kept getting asked to turn down, and I basically couldn't hear myself anymore hardly..it was a downer..it made us feel like wow..this crowd here, doesn't want any type of music..they don't want us here and are just waiting to get done with dinner.
Before the second set, the bartender came up to us to try and encourage us and tell us we sounded good, and that we are the first full band they have ever had there..they usually just have solo acoustic or piano acts.
The dinner crowd left and a small bar crowd came in and they enjoyed us a lot..as well as some of our regulars who traveled to hear us...so we had a fun last two sets, because they told us to turn it up, and our drummer was actually able to play, and we could hear ourselves.
Point is..why (even though the guy that owns the place likes us), why would he have us come there..it is so dissapointing and with a gig like that it kind of makes you feel crappy. I mean why didn't he just tell us to do an acoustic set, we would have brought a hand drum, a double bass and one acoustic guitar...just kind of a downer night.
Before the second set, the bartender came up to us to try and encourage us and tell us we sounded good, and that we are the first full band they have ever had there..they usually just have solo acoustic or piano acts.
The dinner crowd left and a small bar crowd came in and they enjoyed us a lot..as well as some of our regulars who traveled to hear us...so we had a fun last two sets, because they told us to turn it up, and our drummer was actually able to play, and we could hear ourselves.
Point is..why (even though the guy that owns the place likes us), why would he have us come there..it is so dissapointing and with a gig like that it kind of makes you feel crappy. I mean why didn't he just tell us to do an acoustic set, we would have brought a hand drum, a double bass and one acoustic guitar...just kind of a downer night.
