Time waster flags

[BawanaRik]

This might be a little late but one of the clues the band gonna be wasting time is if while I'm tuning up the other members are sparking up.

I have nothing against drug abuse but.

 

[BawanaRik]

"Originally Posted by ddnidd1
Beyond what's already been mentioned, the ads that say must have OWN gear and TRANSPORTATION.

What kind of adult loser doesn't own an instrument and have a car?

Answer: Ever worked with people off of CL?"

Ever hear of guy name of Jaco?

I say this with complete respect that not every musician is a capable business person.

A guy I used to jam with. Between his wife and he were making a solid six figure income. Lived in a one bedroom 75 K condo, with 4 kids. I knew this indiviual when we were kids. He was the kid brother that tagged along. meet him after decades.

The music gene and the togerherness gene aren't welded together. But he was a better player then I'll ever be.

But thanks for reminding me. I got to post another ad on craigs looking for jammin buds.

 

[craig.p]

That's definitely true. There are guys who have personal matters who don't have time/energy for a band whether they realize it or not.

Ah! That's a crucial point, imo.

But then that begs the question, How do you get other (potential) members to self-assess accurately. I mean, without making them feel like they're sitting on a metal chair in front of a bolted-down metal table in a small room with a two-way mirror, opposite a big guy holding a styrofoam cup. With them the guy in the chair, and me holding the coffee, which would almost be a role reversal, and that alone having a significant chance of offending.

(On the other hand, I do interview potential clients in my business, sometimes to a greater depth than they interview me. If it doesn't go both ways, then it's easy to accumulate clients over time who routinely self-inflict all kinds of damage. Which . . . wastes time. Both theirs and mine.)

I don't know how hiring managers do it -- how they avoid getting snookered by well-meaning people who want the job but have no clue they can't do it because of their personal situations, that is.

 

[phatbass]

Anyone that uses the words "jam", "gigs waiting", "management interest", in ads...

 

[stratovani]

Sure guys who just want to have fun can waste the time of the guy who wants to gig and make money. But, it can also go the other way around. If you have a bunch of guys whose main goal is just to get together and jam, and there's a guy who wants to spend time on promotion, booking, learning dance tunes, etc. the "pro" is wasting the time of the "amateurs" by trying to get involved in stuff that's not in line with their goals, which is just to cut loose and have fun. I quit a band like that because I realized, I was wasting their time as well as mine.

Many times, time wasting is a result of a misalignment of goals and priorities. That's why it's always best to put your cards on the table.

This describes my last band to a tee!

 

[CG Jones]

...If you have a bunch of guys whose main goal is just to get together and jam, and there's a guy who wants to spend time on promotion, booking, learning dance tunes, etc. the "pro" is wasting the time of the "amateurs" by trying to get involved in stuff that's not in line with their goals, which is just to cut loose and have fun. I quit a band like that because I realized, I was wasting their time as well as mine.

Many times, time wasting is a result of a misalignment of goals and priorities. That's why it's always best to put your cards on the table.

This describes my current situation perfectly, except I hesitate to call myself a "pro," even in quotes.

We've been together for a couple of years now, and at first we were all going in the same direction. But as time passed, I found that my original goals weren't enough for me... I wanted more than jamming once a week and playing one or two shows a year. I wanted more, and at first the guys seemed to agree, and we started ramping up, agreeing to more shows, etc... then they changed their minds.

Frustrating to be sure, but it's hard to consider the last two years wasted time. If I keep going like this, though, then I'll be wasting time and it'll be my own damn fault.

 

[duderasta]

Dead giveaway of a time waster is the guy/gal who comes to a band rehearsal and hasn't learned his/her parts beforehand so the whole rehearsal is dragged down while this person attempts to learn / fake their parts on the fly. This includes singers and sometimes they're the worst offenders.

Been in too many of those bands to count... not going there again.

Been doing this for 2 years with singers, out of about a dozen to come out, and the ones we decided to try, none of them ever learned the freaking setlist! I don't get it...

 

[punkjazzben]

A lot of Bands are people who get together and drink beer. Or something similar. As long as everyone's on the same page it works.

THIS is the most important thing. Any defintion of timewasting has to be relative to the band's situation and goals. And it evolves: sometimes we need to be on the ball, and sometimes it really doesn't matter if someone is late, drunk, fiddling with things, talking footy, etc. If the band pulls it off on the night, who cares how they choose to get there?

 

[SBassman]

Been doing this for 2 years with singers, out of about a dozen to come out, and the ones we decided to try, none of them ever learned the freaking setlist! I don't get it...

I have found the key to those that don't learn is - don't give them too much time.

If a person wants to play, they should be able to learn material pretty quickly. A few weeks tops. If the excitement of a new situation doesn't keep someone on a good work ethic, then they will Never be on a good work ethic. After a month, if someone didn't know All the material - they need be dumped Right Then.

 

[SBassman]

THIS is the most important thing. Any defintion of timewasting has to be relative to the band's situation and goals. And it evolves: sometimes we need to be on the ball, and sometimes it really doesn't matter if someone is late, drunk, fiddling with things, talking footy, etc. If the band pulls it off on the night, who cares how they choose to get there?

I can't agree with that. Part of being a productive, fun band, and not a time wasting band, is How it is all done. It's stressful having a band member who arrives 30 seconds before a gig every gig.
I can go on, but anyway, I can't agree. Drunk and late don't work in any professional situation, even if the person later on can function.

 

[pmchenry]

I can go on, but anyway, I can't agree. Drunk and late don't work in any professional situation, even if the person later on can function.

I think that's what he meant by the situation and goals of a particular band... not all bands want to be a professional situation. Is that what you're considering a time waster? Someone who is doing it for fun and not for the money?

Because if that is the case then I am a time waster. I'm never late for rehearsals or gigs, I practice my bass parts every night, and I know all my vocal parts the day after they're written, but I could care less if our band makes it big. We're in it just for the fun of playing live and putting out some recordings. If a member is late every once in a while, I'm not going to make a huge deal about it. Then again, when I organized the band, I made it clear to everyone that it was just about fun and it STILL took me a month to find people reliable enough to make even THAT work...

 

[punkjazzben]

I think that's what he meant by the situation and goals of a particular band... not all bands want to be a professional situation. Is that what you're considering a time waster? Someone who is doing it for fun and not for the money?

Exactly right. What does and doesn't count as wasting time only makes sense in the overall band context.

Acting like a 'professional' in a fun, rarely-gigging band is just pretentious. I'd probably fire a guy who was insistent on wasting my time with rigid rules, regulations, AGMs, and minute books.

By the same token, an unprepared drunk who can't learn the parts and doesn't play team probably shouldn't last long in a regularly gigging band.

 

[SBassman]

I think that's what he meant by the situation and goals of a particular band... not all bands want to be a professional situation. Is that what you're considering a time waster? Someone who is doing it for fun and not for the money?

No, that's not a time waster in my book.

I'm not saying all band goals are equal. It is super critical for band members to synchronize on goals before getting started. If a band's goal is to just jam in the garage, then that is their business and that's fine. That's not time wasting for them.

Beyond that, though, many weekend warriors like me Are doing it for fun and not the money. But the fun for me is defined as playing out, not only in the garage.

 

[intheory]

I am in a regularly gigging band (10 to 12 gigs per month), and after having been in many other bands over the past few years in SW FL, this is the most serious and regular working band that I've been in. We have our issues and minor squabbles every now and then, but we are united in our goals (which is an oft-repeated phrase in this thread and very crucial). We rehearse at least 2 times per month, and generally have 3-5 new songs on our list. We come prepared with our parts and hammer out the songs in about a 2 hour rehearsal.
We have a sort of "house band" gig ever Thursday night at a local venue, and we try the new songs there. We keep what works and throw out the rest.
When we started, we were a collection of 4 musicians from various working bands in the area. We took about 4 weeks to hammer down about 55 songs and started booking. We have over 100 songs now (and we need them, as we generally perform close to 50 songs per gig-fast moving dance band, mostly R&B).
Bottom line-early expectation setting and commitment to goals, gig dates, and rehearsals (aka keeping calendars clear for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights for gigs and Wednesdays for rehearsals).
Great thoughts on this thread!!

-Dan