I've had somewhat of a band since March and I'm very eager to finish writing enough tunes for a full set so we can rehearse them and start looking for gigs. Problem is, it's so difficult to get everyone together on the same day and the scheduling becomes extremely sloppy and conflicting. Half of the band is still in high school, while me and another are working. On top of that, we practice at our drummer's house whose parents sometimes make things even harder. What advice can y'all offer as far as consistent practices? I don't wanna ditch this band just yet as I have tons of fun when we get together, and I've yet to have a band go past this stage (I still haven't played a real gig).
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Scheduling practices
- Thread starter Waspinators
- Start date
I feel your pain, it's even harder when you are an adult and have full time jobs , kids ,etc...imagine trying to get 4 people together consistently. Extremely difficult...probably best bet is to keep the band to 3 members or less and shoot for 1 practice a week and make the practices very efficient.
I always try to remind everyone of this simple concept (especially the drummer!!!!!):
Practice = the woodshedding you do on your own time (learning the overall song, as well as your specific part within it)
Rehearsal = the little bit of time the band gets to spend together to run through the material (that everyone has practiced on their own time!)
If everyone practices like they should, then rehearsals will be successful, even if available time is limited.
(This is from a cover band perspective..... we have recordings of all the songs, the song structures are predetermined, and there are charts / chord sheets / tabs / tutorials galore to be found online.)
Practice = the woodshedding you do on your own time (learning the overall song, as well as your specific part within it)
Rehearsal = the little bit of time the band gets to spend together to run through the material (that everyone has practiced on their own time!)
If everyone practices like they should, then rehearsals will be successful, even if available time is limited.
(This is from a cover band perspective..... we have recordings of all the songs, the song structures are predetermined, and there are charts / chord sheets / tabs / tutorials galore to be found online.)
^^ perfect example of what my cover band does. we only rehearse on fridays. but its damn fun cause everyone practices there parts and comes in prepaired, thus we sound good. contact throughout the week might be nessisary if you guys are doing originals. (just tweak what we outlined and make sure to pass around recordings and it should work out good. not only that...school is almost out, so go for it this summer!)
Just understand that what your trying to do is hard.
A lot (not all) of TBers sugar coat many band management issues based on only their personal experience.
If you really want to do decent gigs at the local club/bar level, you will need a strategic plan. Number 1 you will need experienced musicians that are committed and on the same page as you.
Here's the knock out punch, I don't throw jabs.
This is not about about having fun with your buddies, that will come later.Your at the hard work stage.
I suggest you put a 6 month or 12 month plan together, decide what you want to do and how your going to get there.
You are probably going to have to lose the high school kids.
If your not really serious about gigging don't even start this. Just have fun jamming with your buddies in the basement.
Leave the gigging to the big boys.
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