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Practicing for originals gig is different for me

D

DCGuy

Apr 12, 2016
212
438
Spartanburg, SC
#1
Been in cover bands forever, playing songs with predictable chord changes and rhythms that I've heard all my life.

First gig with an originals band is tomorrow night. Lots of esoteric changes and sections in each song. I have to invent the bass lines to fit the song, the vibe and the crowd. Been drilling on them all week. I must say it's a transition from cover band land. The songwriter is talented, but the structure of these tunes is idiosyncratic and pretty all over the map. Would welcome any advice.
 
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#4
There’s no trick, really. You’ve just gotta know the chords. Short of that, trust your ears and watch the guitarist’s left hand if you can.

About 80% of my playing history has been with songwriters and, yes, it’s a different game than playing covers that you’ve heard forever but it’s really not that different; the basic idea is still the same. You need to know the changes and the song structure and you need to know if there are any specific spots you need to hit together. It’s no different than learning a new cover tune, really.

On rare occasions when I’ve done gigs on short notice I’ve been allowed a music stand for charts. That’s often not so cool with the bandleader so, in lieu of that, sometimes I’ll put an oversized set list on the floor that has some shorthand mini-charts under each song to help me through.

In the end, there’s no substitute for repetition.

EDIT: A couple more things I just thought of…

The audience doesn’t know these originals either so if you get a little lost and you can recover quickly, they won’t know.

Keep your parts simple until you really have the song structures down. You can always make them more interesting later. For tomorrow, just make them work.

Some advice I got from a friend when I was doing a string of pickup gigs for artists I didn’t know who were playing a lot of originals: “Just jump in and hang on!” He was right. Years of playing covers is great ear training. Just listen hard and you’ll be fine.
Have fun!
 
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#6
I hear ya. Some song writers seem to think they have to do weird stuff to be “original” (as if anything’s original anyway) and, in some huge ego trap(?), improve on what has come before. I seemed to be in a constant battle to try and “normalise” our original material, pleading that predictability is a huge part of enjoyability for an audience. It’s a very frustrating situation you describe 😕
 
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#8
Geepers said:
I seemed to be in a constant battle to try and “normalise” our original material, pleading that predictability is a huge part of enjoyability for an audience. It’s a very frustrating situation you describe 😕
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It really depends upon the audience. There are definitely audiences that just want to hear straight-up pop tunes or rock tunes or whatever but not all music needs to be the same.

One of the songwriters I play with has a 30+ year history of writing weird, complicated stuff and an audience that’s come to expect it from him. I love playing his material; it’s super challenging and really exciting when we pull it off. I like playing simple material in other bands, too. Gotta have some variety!
 
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#9
Geepers said:
I hear ya. Some song writers seem to think they have to do weird stuff to be “original” (as if anything’s original anyway) and, in some huge ego trap(?), improve on what has come before. I seemed to be in a constant battle to try and “normalise” our original material, pleading that predictability is a huge part of enjoyability for an audience. It’s a very frustrating situation you describe 😕
Click to expand...

You would probably consider me one of those songwriters than. I do personally go out of my way to try to write music that is different and not already done. Has nothing to do with ego though or improving on whats already been done. I just don't find 90% of new music to be all that interesting so the music that I listen to and write tends to be attempting to do something new.
 
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#10
To the OP, have you talked to the songwriter about this 1 to 1? That would be my first step. Sometimes the song form might sound idiosyncratic or random to you given that you probably haven't heard it many times but maybe theirs something the songwriter is doing that hints at where things are going that you haven't yet picked up on yet. Beyond that, there's really not some secret beyond repeated listening and learning the form. I come from a prog background where a song might have dozens of sections over the course of 30 minutes but usually if you spend enough time with a piece you can start to see how it all comes together. Then again, sometimes there isn't any reason to things.
 
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#12
Our garage band a million years ago had just started writing an original song, based on hard rock/little bit of prog. So, I have no inside revelations to offer in that regard.

What immediately popped into my head was, get with the songwriter and see if you both can find some writing tendencies he may have. Maybe he uses certain keys often, maybe he uses stolen chords from relative keys often, certain time signatures, etc. Even though it sounds like he wants each composition to stand on its own and be a one off, I'm sure he sticks to some rhyme or reason of some sort that can allow you to wrap your head around this original music. Something to fall back on when you're flying by the seat of your pants!
 
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#15
DCGuy said:
Been in cover bands forever, playing songs with predictable chord changes and rhythms that I've heard all my life.

First gig with an originals band is tomorrow night. Lots of esoteric changes and sections in each song. I have to invent the bass lines to fit the song, the vibe and the crowd. Been drilling on them all week. I must say it's a transition from cover band land. The songwriter is talented, but the structure of these tunes is idiosyncratic and pretty all over the map. Would welcome any advice.
Click to expand...
Been there. I like structured songwriting. I quit before I got to deep. I was in another originals project. The songs were pretty good. Just the lead singer's voice was horrible. We recorded an EP. I'm proud of my bass work on it. 3 of the songs I followed the written bassline. 1 song I came up with my own bassline. I'm a covers guy at heart though. I don't mind originals if the songwriting is good and has appeal and potential.

Advice? If you plan to stick around, chart the songs out.
 
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#19
Playing in a cover band, all you have to do is cop the original song. Playing originals, you have to cop five decades of standards and practices. They are two different animals. One, you’re playing the source. Two, you are the source. They each require two different skill sets,
 
#20
I hear ya. I can learn a covers tune very quickly if it’s already something I’ve heard before.
Originals, if I’m learning a pre-existing part then this can be time consuming as there are often idiosyncratic lines (that a commercial producer would probably strike down!!).
Writing my own - depends on the tunes! Putting the songs on a playlist and just having them on several times a day (without a bass in hand) is a good way to internalise them. Also, hum bass line ideas, get the ideas down before you pick up a bass - let your ears and ideas write the lines, not your muscle memory!
Unless you’re in a rush, if so play a root on each change and do 1 note per bar in the verse and 8s in the choruses - instant bass line… 😬
 
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