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Time waster flags

#22
SBassman said:
I never have, but if I had to say something about someone's equipment, it might be - about the intonation. I've met many good players who were clueless about the intonation of their instrument.
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I could understand that, but going back to gnjpowell's definition, I dont think someone with bad intonation is going to be making much money with that gear.
Perhaps intonation could also fall under the heading of "needs repair"?
 
#23
MatticusMania said:
there are flags for time wasting?
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Yep. Time is a finite, valuable and irreplaceable commodity.

How about someone who's priorities are to budget this precious resource by posting greater than one post a day on any specific internet forum, or even on several different hobbyist forums?
To me that would be an indicator of a habitual "timewaster"; more so as the posts per day number increases, and one I would suspect to be prone to foot dragging on future projects.


Not that it's a bad thing always, just a possible indication of behavior to come... ;)
 
#24
RustyAxe said:
Not true ... I'm in a country band that plays an average of 4-5 times a month. We don't have a website, no promo pack, nada. We play in the same places, and have for years. I'm in a duo with a singer songwriter ... again, no website. We get plenty of gigs.

To me, the biggest giveaway is the lack of a set list. If you can't supply a list of the songs you play, then how the hell can you be gigging? Second, tell me where you've played recently, and what gigs are on the books. Third, lack of recorded rehearsals (ie, reference recordings) to be taken home and worked on by band members. I refuse to spend money and gas on traveling to rehearsals only to be met by an unprepared and unpracticed band.
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It may not be true 100% of the time, but I would tell you that your case is a rare exception.
 
#25
SBassman said:
Yeah - the references to gear always surprise me.

Most of the time, gear is not the problem.

Although I admit I have had drummers answer ads, saying they think they are a match for the band, and then ask if the band has a kit they can borrow. Huh?
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Rather than specifying "pro gear", I will say "must have gear sufficient to carry a medium sized venue without PA support." Nothing worse that dealing with a musician that requires a full PA at every gig.

And....believe it or not.....I have auditioned guitarists that only owned one guitar and were not capable of performing basic repairs. If the guitar went down in a gig.......they were done.
 
#26
MatticusMania said:
I could understand that, but going back to gnjpowell's definition, I dont think someone with bad intonation is going to be making much money with that gear.
Perhaps intonation could also fall under the heading of "needs repair"?
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You'd be surprised. Around here I've seen some "pro" guitarists who's instruments had noticeable intonation problems....yet they constantly get gigs.
 
#30
I can actually understand the ads specifying a transportation requirement.

I've never been in a band where one or more members were dependent on other band members to get to rehearsals and gigs but I can imagine that would be maddening as hell. Not to mention, extraordinarily counterproductive and... well... just unprofessional.

Also "transportation" doesn't necessarily mean you have to own a car. I know there are plenty of gigging musicians in urban areas that get by with a bicycle or public transit just fine. When I see a "transportation" condition in a want ad I actually consider it a plus because the band is saying they want people who are responsible enough for their own lives that they won't be a drain on the other members. If someone is mooching rides off other people in the band, what else are they mooching?

I am firmly of the belief that more bands have been underminded by a lack of personal responsibility than by a lack of talent.
 
#31
jaywa said:
Also "transportation" doesn't necessarily mean you have to own a car. I know there are plenty of gigging musicians in urban areas that get by with a bicycle or public transit just fine. When I see a "transportation" condition in a want ad I actually consider it a plus because the band is saying they want people who are responsible enough for their own lives that they won't be a drain on the other members. If someone is mooching rides off other people in the band, what else are they mooching?
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Granted, urban areas are the exception if the band never ventures very far. However, other than that specific instance, transportation is a Big Boy requirement that shouldn't have to be mentioned by a reasonably serious band.
 
#32
ddnidd1 said:
And you're in SoCal Covina - how do you manage?
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Well, I had a car up until a few weeks ago. I got in a wreck, car was totalled. I owed more on it than it was worth (thank you Gap Insurance) but didnt have sufficient savings for a down payment (which I'll have at the end of the month).
Ive been staying at my sisters house during the week, since she works in the same building (because I live 50 miles from work and there isnt a train line that runs early enough to get me to work on time) and have been hitching rides with various band members to gigs. Its been a PITA for my personal life, but Ive been getting by alright. I'll be so happy to have my own transportation again. This is the longest Ive not had my own wheels since I was 18.

jaywa said:
I can actually understand the ads specifying a transportation requirement.

I've never been in a band where one or more members were dependent on other band members to get to rehearsals and gigs but I can imagine that would be maddening as hell. Not to mention, extraordinarily counterproductive and... well... just unprofessional.

Also "transportation" doesn't necessarily mean you have to own a car. I know there are plenty of gigging musicians in urban areas that get by with a bicycle or public transit just fine. When I see a "transportation" condition in a want ad I actually consider it a plus because the band is saying they want people who are responsible enough for their own lives that they won't be a drain on the other members. If someone is mooching rides off other people in the band, what else are they mooching?

I am firmly of the belief that more bands have been underminded by a lack of personal responsibility than by a lack of talent.
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I cant disagree at all. Unfortunately Ive worked in bands that I really dug for the last 4 years or so where at least one person had transportation issues (never been me, til now).
I was never a fan of having to pick people up or haul their gear to gigs, especially when I was with my wife cuz that was often one less available space in the car.
However, Im glad I put up with it, as now that the wheel as turned, no one in the band can give me grief about.
 
#34
ddnidd1 said:
Yeah, but losing a car in a wreck is quite a bit different from - never owned one - who knows I might own one some day.
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Well sure. Though, Ive had friends (like our current band leader) who've had plans to get a car (first one) for a long time. He still doesnt. So as much as I might say "I dont have now but I will by the end of the month" someone could interpret that as "this guy will say what he needs to say to get by". Even though getting a car by the end of the month is currently priority one for me. (as much as I love my sister and her family, I cannot stand staying there 5 nights a week, with no privacy, and cut off from all my friends)
 
#35
RustyAxe said:
To me, the biggest giveaway is the lack of a set list. If you can't supply a list of the songs you play, then how the hell can you be gigging? Second, tell me where you've played recently, and what gigs are on the books. Third, lack of recorded rehearsals (ie, reference recordings) to be taken home and worked on by band members. I refuse to spend money and gas on traveling to rehearsals only to be met by an unprepared and unpracticed band.
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The number one time waster flag for me when joining a band is the song list. 99% of the time, if a band didn't have a song list, they weren't ready to gig, let alone have a direction. If they are an original band, then it's recordings. If they are established, they should have at least some body of work.

The online presence is important, but you can have a band without a website, but it's very easy to have a website without a band. I had a website for a band that was defunct for over a year, and then all of a sudden I got a call from a local agent who needed an act, so I put one together and revived it.
 
#36
If you're looking for players, the number one thing I have found for time wasters are whether they can put in the effort to create promo materials. That's why for any band I start up, I always create promo materials first. It eliminates the time-wasters right up front and I can see who's really serious about getting out there and gigging. If the band is established, the 2 flags are availability and pulling off the material. If the guy/gal can't do those two things, they are going to be wasting your time.

As far as the transportation and pro gear thing, it would seem like it should be a given, but for some reason there's inordinate number of folks without transportation in this biz. As far as pro gear, it's a matter of taste, but until you've put in an add in CL for a drummer and get a bunch of responses from dudes without drums, or look for a bassist and get responses from guys without amps, you begin to point that out in your search. It still doesn't keep them away though.
 
#37
RustyAxe said:
Not true ... I'm in a country band that plays an average of 4-5 times a month. We don't have a website, no promo pack, nada. We play in the same places, and have for years. I'm in a duo with a singer songwriter ... again, no website. We get plenty of gigs.
.
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+2

Id like to chime in also. The jazz band I work with has no web presence whatsoever. Never did. Never will. But we gig regularly. So this isnt really a hallmark of a "timewaster".
 
#38
jive1 said:
The online presence is important, but you can have a band without a website, but it's very easy to have a website without a band. I had a website for a band that was defunct for over a year, and then all of a sudden I got a call from a local agent who needed an act, so I put one together and revived it.
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When I was in High School, after coming out of my shell, people knew who I was, always asking "Arent you in that band ____". Yes, I was, but that band consisted of myself on vocals and my friend on guitar. We never completed our lineup before moving on. Shortly after I took up the bass.

Ive also had this idea to form a fake band, make a facebook page, get some other people on board, and post actively on the fb as if we just played the most awesome show the night before (of course, we'd never advertise the gigs beforehand). A form of social experiment, if you will.
 
#39
Joined a CL band a couple months ago. Drummer was really good. However, he played in 5 bands, none of which were gigging. Should've been a flag for me. Now a few months later the band is defunct. Drummer has decided to go get a full time job and quit playing altogether.
 

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