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That's a first for me. Anyone else seen this?

#42
DavC said:
i've never ever had any subs in any of the bands i've been in ...

you're a musician ... maybe i'm an old fart ... but it was learned very early on " The show must go on " ...

if you agree to a gig ... you Will be there ... if every one can't be there , cancel or don't book the gig .!
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Funny. I do only fill in gigs. They are usually fun and exciting for everyone involved. Quite often, being in a band sucks. Musicians are flakes. There's always drama. I would rather do "hit and run" gigs. The material is always fresh, and if the band sucks (either personally or musically) I simply don't take their calls any more.

Cancelling a gig for one person being out, unless that person is the frontman/woman, is just silly to me. Perspective, I suppose.

Now two people put? That's different. That could be a train wreck.
 
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#43
Why on earth would two subs be hired for this type of gig is beyond me. I'd question anyone's judgement who's decision it was to put that one through without a thorough vetting of the subs. Usually subs are called on exactly because of their skill set and rep. Seems like this was a poopie in the dark in order to keep a gig. Lame.
 
#44
two fingers said:
Cancelling a gig for one person being out, unless that person is the frontman/woman, is just silly to me. Perspective, I suppose.
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I too am in an original band, and if the drummer can't make it, I insist we cancel. ask me how I know.... and we've had some stellar subs as well, but it's just not the same, and they always screw up the breaks, of which there are many. Plus, I don't have the time to work in a guy just for a single gig. And also, the fans always comment, "It's not as good without [drummer.]" so why bother? Everyone is getting screwed.

But two players out? what did you expect? You got the train wreck you asked for. I'm not sure i can pity that kind of dumbness, it's so obvious.

However, if the band is a cover bar band type thing, no one seems to care, anyway. Fun gigs, rehearsal optional. and probably not recommended.
 
#45
s0c9 said:
Humans are not designed to multi-task.. yes we can be good at doing multiple things like playing bass (guitar) and singing at the same time, but much of that comes from lots of practice time.
Whenever one multi-tasks, which I do all the time in my day-job, it means the "other" tasks get a percentage of attention.. we single-thread everything.. just like a cpu. :)
Whenever someone on a conf call asks that the question be repeated... you know they were multi-tasking... I mean... not paying attention!!
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All men are not created equal. Geddy Lee is only part human, he is more than multitasking when playing bass with his hands, triggers and synth with his feet while singing in high register. All parts are counter melodious. Tell me his brain is processing this linear like a CPU? Quad core at the least!

My driving record proves my multitasking abilities while in motion. Now interacting with more than one human at a time is difficult, but "hold on just a second" is a tool some don't think to use. I was a top salesman at times juggling emails, live.chats, multiple phone calls, and even customers in the showroom. That's called "stacking", and the average human can't do it well. It is all about being quick to prioritize and know when to tell someone you have to call them back.

I won't work a job like that again even though I was good at it. I was known for multi tasking, even if some of those situations can be considered linear.

Then I found out I wasn't entirely Human. Things started to make more sense than that.

I still am very limited as far as singing and playing is.concerned, but that is a practice thing. Geddy Lee has been doing it constantly since he was a kid in the 60s. He is also not completely human, and Neil definitely isn't. Alex, as great as he is, has the highest amount of human percentage of the triumvirate.
 
#47
Dude, you definitely shouldn't have played that gig. When you only have 1/3 of the actual band present, you have no accountability for what ends up happening on stage. Every gig you play is an advertisement for your band, and adds or detracts from your reputation. And this scales up in importance the more people are at your show!

You didn't end up actually telling us how you guys sounded overall, but if was as bad as your story suggests, I'd be hesitant to book you guys again!
 
#48
I had something kinda similar happen...a first (and hopefully last) time for me as well. We were scheduled for a short opening set at one of our town's better music venues - not much pay, but hoping to get our foot in the door to play there more often. Well after soundcheck and about 5 min before we go on, our drummer has to leave because he got a call that his daughter was in an accident (she turned out to be ok). We contemplated doing an acoustic set and decided against it. We talked to the owner and he basically said if we want to ever have a shot at playing any of his venues again that we HAVE to play our set. He also said that he had a friend there that was a more than capable drummer and could fill in. Well we ended up playing our set (about 75% original material) with this guy. Wow. This guy had never played outside of his basement or with a band before. He never looked at any of us for cues and put fills in anywhere he could fit them. Our 3/4 and 6/8 tunes turned into 4/4 tunes. Between every song he would say "this is the best night of my life". Our pedal steel player looked at him and said "you must not get out much". Worst gig ever.
 
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#49
Freight Train said:
Should've known this was coming, and maybe it's common and I've just been lucky enough to not have experienced it, but it spun my head and caused me to lose life-force.
For a year now I've been playing in my dream band - an original blues band with players who are not only top notch but are reliable and responsible too (!). I had commented to my wife that the gigs were so easy, I can just cruise - everyone knows their parts, no one needs cueing, the drummer doesn't rush etc. Bass player heaven.
Well, last Saturday night came my nightmare. Not only was it going to be a sub drummer, but also a sub guitarist - for a three piece band with lead vocalist, playing 70% originals for 3 sets. (!!) So even though it's not my band, it's the chick singer's music I'm just the bass player, I get both of our albums and a live recording of some of our covers to the drummer and guitarist, as it turns out we're not going to be able to have a rehearsal (!!!). Luckily the guitarist was somewhat familiar with the material, and had actually co-written and played on one song on the newer album, but I was still straightening him out on riffs 5 minutes before we're on.
The problem, and the crux of the story, was with the drummer. He could not have been less interested. He had obviously listened to nothing before hand, thinking he was so good he could just jam though it. Problem is, our stuff isn't straight ahead 12 bar blues - lots of blues styles, rhythms, changes, stops etc. It's time for downbeat and even though his kit's set up he's nowhere to be seen, so we start. He meanders up on stage about 3/4 through the first song and joins in. Same thing second set, he decides to order food just before time to go on, so we have to start the second set without him too while he finishes eating - and this is a popular downtown club full of people!
Now finally after all this rambling is the punch line. He's not paying attention as I'm trying to direct, misses almost every stop I try to cue, he totally gets a beat backwards and plays it that way all the way through a song, and then I look back during a song trying to cue him and he's TEXTING WHILE PLAYING!
Funniest thing was, after the gig, my wife asks me, "Was that guy supposed to be up there?".
Anyway, I guess God gave me my comeuppance after being so smug about how easy I've got it now. That was the hardest gig I've done in a couple of decades. Afterwards I felt like I had pushed a boulder up a mountain.
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Ugh, that's a bad one. It sounds like he was protesting being there, like someone dragged him to the thing and he wanted to blow it on purpose.
 
#52
ubernator said:
All men are not created equal. Geddy Lee is only part human, he is more than multitasking when playing bass with his hands, triggers and synth with his feet while singing in high register. All parts are counter melodious. Tell me his brain is processing this linear like a CPU? Quad core at the least!
Click to expand...
yes.. it IS linear.. that's a proven fact.. that one can time-slice quickly is very much part of natural ability and practice :)

ubernator said:
My driving record proves my multitasking abilities while in motion. Now interacting with more than one human at a time is difficult, but "hold on just a second" is a tool some don't think to use. I was a top salesman at times juggling emails, live.chats, multiple phone calls, and even customers in the showroom. That's called "stacking", and the average human can't do it well. It is all about being quick to prioritize and know when to tell someone you have to call them back.
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I disagree.. it may be labeled as "stacking" or "multi-tasking", but as mentioned earlier.. it's really "time slicing". You may "think" you are multi-tasking, but those events you mentioned are not really multi-tasking. Each process has a linear focus - which is why texting while driving can be so dangerous.. the focus of that specific time-slice is the texting, NOT the driving. Same thing with interacting with more than one human at a time.. most cannot do if for more than a few seconds.. we are not designed for that type of interaction.
Yes, the sub-conscious mind DOES multi-task (think body functions) but the conscious does not.. you CAN do multiple things at a time, but each is given linear focus (time sliced) at various points.
 
#53
bmax said:
Dude, you definitely shouldn't have played that gig. When you only have 1/3 of the actual band present, you have no accountability for what ends up happening on stage. Every gig you play is an advertisement for your band, and adds or detracts from your reputation. And this scales up in importance the more people are at your show!

You didn't end up actually telling us how you guys sounded overall, but if was as bad as your story suggests, I'd be hesitant to book you guys again!
Click to expand...
It was out of my hands. I'm just the bass player, I agreed to do the gig months ago, and I did my part and then some, way above and beyond. I tried to convince the vocalist to cancel, but this is a prime house gig for us that a lot of bands clamor for, and she was afraid we'd lose the spot. Overall it wasn't so bad as the crowd rocked and danced and stayed 'til close. It just totally wore my ass out.
 
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#54
Bizarre drummer is bizarre.

This is the weirdest (not the craziest) gig story I've heard in awhile! Texting during a gig? LOL!

As much as I'm laughing at the drummer, I'm sorry about the OP's (assumed) embarrassing experience, all the same. Whether the crowd was digging it or not. Gotta be in the pocket, or it's just no fun.
 
#57
Yeah funny thing about being a musician every time I think I'm "good" and can play anything it seems like in a relatively short period of time Karma pays me a visit and I play like a complete train wreck! Just life I guess! It's what brings you back to earth so it forces you to keep at it and practice!
 
#59
All I can say about playing off the cuff is this. My playing had stagnated before I got involved with a BL who booked shows then got on the horn and assembled a band. The usual phone con went like this. "Hey man, I got a job next week down there, can you make it? Call me either way." He had a list of local guys and he'd call them and churn something together. A lot of nights I was playing with people I'd never met. The first really good drummer I'd ever played with got me involved. He called me one mid week night and asked if I wanted to play in an hour. I mentioned I had no idea what they might be playing. He said I don't either, that all depends on Willie. Just get your butt down here if you want to play, it pays fifty bucks. Willie told us it was the guitar and harp that got folks in the door, but when everyone in the room was swaying like snakes, it was the drums and bass making them bob and weave. I played for him full time for a while and he rarely played a song the same way twice, often changing keys from one time to the next. Communication was key. Right away the drummer told me to fix on Willie and when he turned his head to the left, chord change was eminent. Not exactly right then, but be ready cause it's coming. He had a very distinct style and once you got it you could almost anticipate what he was gonna do or at least cover your mistakes. It turned out to be one of the major advances in my ability to play with others. I don't read even a little, I can muddle through tab a few times and mostly get it, and I once played with a keyboard player who schooled me on Nashville numbers and would call them out in rehearsal until I got it. There all kinds of ways to skin a cat y'all.
 

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