Some Tips for planning a healthy , resilient band dynamic

[TexasThunder]

Great thread. Something I did in my last band where I played drums when it came to mistakes...if I made a mistake at practice or in a gig, I immediately called myself on it. I noticed over time, everyone else started doing it too. It seemed to establish a reality that everyone was human, everyone makes mistakes, and egos do nothing good for band dynamics.

Egos kill bands and lead to break ups over the absolute dumbest things.

 

[lokikallas]

Show up on time. Show up prepared. Don’t be too wasted to be in a band. Have the same basic goals.

 

[BAG]

Some Tips for planning a healthy , resilient band dynamic

Learn to sing and play guitar and gig as a soloist. That's the ONLY way to ensure there is minimal band drama.

 

[mike o]

All agree on what is acceptable as far as alcohol/other substance use at rehearsal and shows. This one had be bail on a three year gigging band this month. Grrrrrr

 

[mambo4]

HAHAHAHAHA!!! Good luck with that one! Even bands where everyone becomes multi-millionaires don't always have a good band dynamic.

True but such success happens in spite of many failings, and rarely because of them.
(Also, it's easier for everyone to say FU when everyone has FU money.)

The value proposition of these ideas is not intended to be "succe$$", but reduced drama.

 

[Shalto]

Inspired by this thread I'd like to discuss positive ways to prevent poor band dynamics.

I believe It takes planning.

I think most band "drama" results from a neglected communication and agreement on general direction. It's funny how much obvious no-brainer stuff is neglected because we want to be "all about the music". If everybody needs to row the boat in the same direction, you must take time to find out what that direction is (and how you'll steer.)

Note: "plan to" and "agree to " are effectively the same thing, but many resist a push to "agree" to something. "let's plan to..." is simply the jiu jitsu version of "lets agree to ..."

Musical

• try to align musical expectations (but expect disagreement)
• plan to handle disagreements by in person, respectful communication
• plan to share musical examples and discuss what you can apply
• plan to be gentle when giving critique, thick skinned when receiving.
• plan to give every suggestion an honest try and an honest listen, as if it were your own
• respect the difference between "I made it" and "it's good" both with your self and others
• assume hurt feelings are the result of other's ignorance, not malice or attitude
• respect other's time ( practice your parts on your own )
• assume your band mates have valuable input you can benefit from.

Roles

• try to align role and responsibility expectations( but expect disagreement)
• plan to handle disagreements by in person , respectful communication
• plan who has the final say (if it's a vote, have a tie breaker)
• plan your load out and load in roles
• plan who pursues gigs (and how)
• plan non-musical roles : who handles social media? photography? graphic design? T-shirts? recording?

Bizness

• try to align business expectations( but expect disagreement)
• plan to handle disagreements by in person , respectful communication
• plan on the kinds of gigs you want, if any
• plan on the plan to get those gigs
• plan on the immediate next step toward that, and always aim efforts towards it
• plan on money: who spends what, who owns what, who keeps what.

These are ideas to bring up with your bandmates. none of this should be controversial. If an individual is resistant to any, that's an opportunity to explore why that is.

Other ideas are welcome

This sounds very sensible is probably a good idea.

I confess that for my most recent gig I cheated and took a short cut.

I applied to join a band of folks in their 30s from a nice neighbourhood. Unsurprisingly they turned about to be polite people who have learned cooperation norms from their day jobs. The result is they are quite easy to get along with and express their disagreements respectfully.

 

[Pet Sounds]

As a corollary to talking about money I'd say bands should discuss up front how they're going to handle taxes on income, who is going to sign for payment, etc.

 

[Obese Chess]

I think most band "drama" results from a neglected communication and agreement on general direction

Correct. My last band finally crashed and burned due to absolutely terrible communication from the guitarists, who also wrote all the songs, with the rest of the band.

 

[Shalto]

Further to expectations management and specific to bands, here some areas to set realistic expectations for a performing band:

1. Musicianship - I.e., come prepared (know the tunes, be able to communicate in musical terms); be proficient on your instrument

2. Bandsmanship: I.e., be able to perform collectively -volume, dynamics, etc; show up prepared and on time with working equipment; share the load when setting up and tearing down. Limit dead air, use silent tuners,

3. Showmanship - I.e., be prepared to dress, perform and entertain for the style of music you’re playing and the venues in which you perform. Don’t hog the mic, don’t futz around on stage, keep the show moving (see above, no dead air).

There’s a lot more to it, but this is a start....

In my experience, if someone is not at least “average” in all of the above, I’m not going to be working with them for long. I’ve been in bands with amazing musicians who just could not function in a band setting nor could cope with putting on a show. They were sent on their way quickly.

I reckon on showmanship you can get away with just one (in a three or four piece) with poor showmanship. Probably you could get away with up to three in a ska band with a horn section.

 

[Killing Floor]

The Splits got along pretty well. I've heard they were mostly afraid of Drooper. Drooper was on acid most of the time. Typical tripping lion. Fleegle played most of the guitar and bass tracks in studio.

 

[MultiScaleMale]

Keep in mind, a list like this is probably going to scare away most musicians. If I went for an audition and someone pulled out the power point slides, I'd have an "emergency" call from home.

 

[Bunk McNulty]

I read the OP's post and yes of course it all sounds correct, but if I came into a band with a meeting like that, I'd probably last less than a week. I don't want to play with people who think their band needs a Human Resources Department. Besides, the secret of my success (I'm speaking figuratively here, please) is that I never joined a band that was starting up. I passed the audition, was given a setlist and the calendar, and told I was expected have three sets under my belt within about three weeks. In 20 years, I was part of exactly two bands where the BL was on a serious ego trip, and I stuck with each of them for a while because they worked a lot and the money was decent. And--for real--because, strange as it may seem, I didn't care whether or not somebody thought the sun shone out their backside.

 

[4andnomore]

From my experience (mistakes, mostly) I've learned the most important thing is to work with people who have the same career goal and commitment level. Some guys or gals want to be rock stars and are willing to sacrifice everything including family, kids, income. Others want to keep day jobs and play weekend gigs. These two cannot coexist in any sustainable manner. Beyond this, any other synergies are pretty much a nice-to-have, if one is to be realistic.

 

[brianrost]

Easy way to skip the drama: only work with musicians you already know and trust

 

[Pings Bass]

That's a lot of planning. Maybe a mission statement too?

Welcome to our first rehearsal. As the self-appointed HR manager, I'd like to start things off with a brief powerpoint presentation. On my first slide

 

[singlemalt]

Everything was going fine, then we hired some musicians.

 

[smo]

Whoever initially wrote the song gets final say on that song. Easy way to avoid drama.

 

[sonojono]

Maybe you need to take a deeper look into Risk Management

 

[Bassic_desires]

I'd suggest learning about the stages of group development, something like Tuckman's Model (Forming-Storming-Norming-Performing) or the Jewell and Reitz model (that, on reflection, I think might have some relevance to musical groups). It is particularly helpful to understand the Storming stage and what needs to be done to move the group from that stage.

 

[Bassic_desires]

Everything was going fine, then we hired some musicians.

Sounds a bit like the "Yes, Minister" episode of the hospital with no patients.