Questions to ask before auditioning or joining a new band.

[Dkerwood]

Ask politely,"Does anyone in the band have any outstanding warrants"?

It's funny that you mention that. In the band that I just auditioned for, the singer was joking that he had an outstanding warrant in another county for failing to appear in court on a "no proof of insurance" ticket (he was driving a company car and got pulled over for a broken tail light... and then couldn't figure out where the insurance was). The drummer also just got released from a couple days of jail for unknown reasons.

Oy... :scowl:

 

[OtterOnBass]

Questions I should have asked in addition to how much money how often:
1. How often do you practice? Look for regularity, otherwise the band is likely on its way to falling apart.
2. How do you choose new songs? See who is in charge.
3. How do you decide which songs go where in the set-list? Find out how organized this leader is.

I guess I'm generalizing from my experience working up a whole band's repertoire (instead of a show's worth of songs) because the set-list is decided live, and then after I get it down they decide they don't want to play out more than twice a month, so the singer can still cover bass and they don't need me. I won't say it was a waste of time, but still a big let-down.

 

[Dkerwood]

Also, regarding preparation... heh...

I once auditioned for a touring band (on drums) with a recording contract and all that jazz, so I took their CD and an entire week and learned the 3 or 4 tunes literally lick for lick. I figured that they had probably listened to that CD a million times and would want to hear what was there. Went in to audition- nailed the tunes. They mentioned how obvious it was that I was prepared... Still didn't get the gig. Found out later that they gave the gig to a guy who had been drumming with them off and on for years.

So for my last audition (on bass), I came in totally cold. Didn't do ANY preparation; intentionally didn't learn any songs past what I already knew. I was very upfront with the band- I told them that this was me at my worst and most ill-prepared... if they liked me now, they'll love me after I learned the tunes. Pure talent won the day, and they were comfortable knowing that I had the ability to pick up new material quickly... or at least fake it.

I've auditioned my share of musicians. If I have a week to prep them before the audition, I like to have them learn 2-3 songs solid (shows me they can do some homework) and then I like to give them 1-2 tunes that they've never heard before. After all, I generally only do original music, which means that they will be the ones writing their particular part. Even our covers were major twists on the original, meaning they needed to have some improvisation chops.

 

[ctrotier]

Ask why the old bass player is leaving - this can prove to be very insightful to the workings and expectations of the band. Also, ask them what questions they have of you.

On the flip side, at one audition, the first question I was asked was "do you smoke pot, cuz we do all the time." I politely said "Sorry - guess I'm not your guy".

 

[rokkitt]

Ask why the old bass player is leaving - this can prove to be very insightful to the workings and expectations of the band. Also, ask them what questions they have of you.

On the flip side, at one audition, the first question I was asked was "do you smoke pot, cuz we do all the time." I politely said "Sorry - guess I'm not your guy".

ha both good points

first--the old bass player was asked to leave because he was too loud.
I got feedback after my audition, which I nailed except for one part of one song..(bass under the solo of Yankee Rose, fell out of time, but got back in quickly)....

guess what? I was too loud!


second point...

I answered a craigslist ad. It said, no drugs, everyone in the band is a police officer~!...(I dont smoke pot)




oh, question, do you guys charge more for drive time over one hour, for singing backups, and other "add ons" like the post a few comments back?

not disagreeing with that, just wanted to know how much that happens

al

 

[jaywa]

1) I would want to know how long the band has been together, and how long the CURRENT lineup has been together. If it is 3 or 4 guys that have been together 10 years and you're the newbie, you're probably going to be the odd man out for awhile, if not forever. Make sure you're OK with that. OTOH if the band is a core of one or two guys and they have had a lot of "churn" at other positions including bass, that would indicate its own set of issues you'd want to address.

2) Ask what they're currently doing to promote themselves (Website? MySpace? Media Kit/Promo Pack? All or none of the above?), what kind of following they have and how far out they're booked. These questions will give you insight as to how intentional/skilled they are at the whole marketing thing. Check out their Website in advance (ideally before you even talk to anyone in the band)... that will usually give you a good look into the kind of image they're putting out and who they're targeting and you can use that to help decide if it's an outfit you would want to be associated with.

3) Ask how "flexible" their lineup is, i.e. do they ever play gigs with sub players, and/or are their members in other bands besides this one. If you're playing in 2 other bands going already and they're expecting you to only play with them, it's not a fit.