So for the past few days I have been having issues with a newly formed college band of mine. More specifically, this "band" is part of my college's "Band Club", and as a requirement to help promote and advertise the club, some select members were chosen to form a band, and perform a song or two to the student body. Prior to this, I have never been in a proper band before, so I myself am not too sure about how one should react in this situation.
So far the main issues I have been having is with the drummer of the band. He is also the "president" of the Band Club, though I won't be the first to say his time management skills, planning and organization skills are bollocks. So,the drummer is a self proclaimed metal head/rocker. His taste in music therefore reside in that region mostly. He's a huge fan of all the double bass pedal super fast drumming style of guys like Mike Portnoy. Here's the problem, what the drummer WANTS to play ONLY resides in that region, in his specific taste in music. Anything else, he deems "too simple and boring as ****" or "pop mainstream trash". He also seemingly never takes suggestions or follow advice from others when it comes to drums, such as when the guy whose studio we were renting out suggested incorporating a hi hat fill at the end of a bar, to which later on he deemed "sounds weird, **** it*
Another problem is this guy is bossy and stubborn. Despite the fact that he is the self proclaimed "band leader" because he's had "experience" forming a band(which I've heard died and failed spectacularly), this guy behaves and acts like he knows everything there is to know about music. He constantly tells the guitarist what to do with his instrument, "dude turn up the treble" "dude play <disco song> with overdrive, it'll be fine" "dude those knobs on your guitar are pointless just use your amp". He bosses the vocalist around on what to do, and he's constantly asking me to "turn down the ****king volume on your bass" to the point where I can't even hear my own bass amp that is 1 feet away from me once we he starts bashing his drums. To add to that, he constantly asks both me and the guitarist to "shut up and don't play" because he's "resting" and wants "quiet", even when we are both unplugged, and playing nothing more than scales.
Song choices are also another nightmare. We can never agree to a song, namely because all the song he suggests are impossible to do, and any others doesn't suit us because "it'll sound like sh*t".
I haven't said much to this guy yet; so far I've just been showing up to gigs, playing my parts and keeping mum. I'm in a good mind to tell him off, but have yet to, instead I plan to just wait it out and see how it rolls. Am I just wasting my time here, or should I just go back to woodshedding and wait for some other opportunities in the next few years? Or do I stick around for the experience?
So far the main issues I have been having is with the drummer of the band. He is also the "president" of the Band Club, though I won't be the first to say his time management skills, planning and organization skills are bollocks. So,the drummer is a self proclaimed metal head/rocker. His taste in music therefore reside in that region mostly. He's a huge fan of all the double bass pedal super fast drumming style of guys like Mike Portnoy. Here's the problem, what the drummer WANTS to play ONLY resides in that region, in his specific taste in music. Anything else, he deems "too simple and boring as ****" or "pop mainstream trash". He also seemingly never takes suggestions or follow advice from others when it comes to drums, such as when the guy whose studio we were renting out suggested incorporating a hi hat fill at the end of a bar, to which later on he deemed "sounds weird, **** it*
Another problem is this guy is bossy and stubborn. Despite the fact that he is the self proclaimed "band leader" because he's had "experience" forming a band(which I've heard died and failed spectacularly), this guy behaves and acts like he knows everything there is to know about music. He constantly tells the guitarist what to do with his instrument, "dude turn up the treble" "dude play <disco song> with overdrive, it'll be fine" "dude those knobs on your guitar are pointless just use your amp". He bosses the vocalist around on what to do, and he's constantly asking me to "turn down the ****king volume on your bass" to the point where I can't even hear my own bass amp that is 1 feet away from me once we he starts bashing his drums. To add to that, he constantly asks both me and the guitarist to "shut up and don't play" because he's "resting" and wants "quiet", even when we are both unplugged, and playing nothing more than scales.
Song choices are also another nightmare. We can never agree to a song, namely because all the song he suggests are impossible to do, and any others doesn't suit us because "it'll sound like sh*t".
I haven't said much to this guy yet; so far I've just been showing up to gigs, playing my parts and keeping mum. I'm in a good mind to tell him off, but have yet to, instead I plan to just wait it out and see how it rolls. Am I just wasting my time here, or should I just go back to woodshedding and wait for some other opportunities in the next few years? Or do I stick around for the experience?
