Part 2: I'm still Frustrated with the Band!

Not if you don’t want to.

Three choices: stay and suck it up as-is, leave on your own terms or try to change the behaviours.

I’d personally be leaving that situation.

 

There's always one guy or two that's an issue in the band.
Fighting 2 guitar players sounds worthless to me.
Good luck.

 

Do like I did and leave that kind of band situation. It took all of one day to find a new project and I am much happier.

 

If band has potential to gig, and audience that will listen to it - go with the flow.
While you are playing with them, nothing's stopping you from starting your own project - choose folks that think like you and go from there.

 

Yes, because even if you’re right you’ll be viewed as “the troublemaker”. I can just hear their excuses:

“That’s the way we’ve always done it. Nobody’s ever complained.”
“The audience doesn’t care.”
“Look, just play the damn song!”

 

You can’t make them become better guitar players if they don’t want to get better. If this is just a hobby band, are you willing to look the other way because they are a good hang? If this is a working band, they’re not working, they’re coasting.

I once quit a band after two rehearsals. The two GPS were not very good, and they were loud. I asked them to turn down and they didn’t. So I quit. They weren’t happy with me because they had a gig booked, but my happiness was more important to me than theirs.

 

Can’t and won’t present a huge obstacle. Not being able to hear the difference between major and minor would drive me nuts. I think I would have to leave the group unless the money was really good.

Your posts illustrates why so many cover bands are forgettable. Lazy, mediocre musicians who don’t care about quality.

 

I agree with @RattleSnack, but if it is to the point where you can't stand it anymore... just leave and look for other musicians to start a new project.

 

This is another common problem: band members who aren’t team players (the guitarists that is). It’s bad enough with only one loud guitarist!

 

There are more gee-tar players than bass players, that's why y'all have more than one.

 

you have to let them learn the songs,...their learning style is to make mistakes
so you have a good challenge as a bassist trying to make it sound harmonized
so you got to get the guitar players to learn as many songs as they can
try playing real simple behind them...then after 3000 times you can break out

if the other players are bad at least you can play more...

as long as everyone plays it the wrong the same you can claim your so good you can rewite famous songs,...

 

When I was starting out, I would have stayed. After a few thankfully short lived band disasters like yours, I luckily got into a band with some pro members that was constantly adding material (about 400 songs over 7 years) and never looked back.

How badly do you need to play with these guys? A situation like that is like having some sand in your shoes, the small things will be all you can think about.

 

during rehearsal, play the Gm as a B or some other clam and see what they say...then you can say "see it makes a difference if you play the wrong notes!"

 

My answer...

 

context is everything . I’ve played plenty of songs “ wrong” where the chart we play off of didn’t match exactly a certain recording. Some tweaking of the harmony may be forgivable. Also in a blues context a Gm bass line under a G7 is entirely acceptable

so how right or wrong the guitarists are really depends on the song and what it might allow in terms of interpretation

 

Similar situation. Rhythm player that typically runs the band says he's been playing something "that way for years" and it's too hard to relearn.

My response is "well, I don't want to learn it wrong and end out years later telling people it's too tough to relearn" Then I'll recommend we just drop the song. That usually forces their hand to either learn it, or drop a song that they wanted in the setlist that would have grated on my nerves every time we played it.

 

These two statements - I've heard them more times than I can count - cause me to lose respect for the speaker. If we aren't our own most-stringent critics, we don't improve.

 

Yep, there are only three options.

1. Get better
2. Stay the same
3. Get worse

I always shoot for the first one

 

Perpetual lack of practice is a deal breaker for me. I can tolerate a lot, but I won't put up with someone who is never ready. If it's the BL or someone otherwise entrenched in the band, I'm gone. If not, I tell the BL: "him or me - you decide how to fix this, but I'm out of patience."