I've been looking for guitarists. After putting up a poster for a guitar player needed, I've gotten two calls from two guitarists. I'm planning on sticking to a 4 piece lineup (1 bass, 1 guitar, 1 drummer, 1 vocalist for now, maybe a backup). One guy lives 10-15 minutes away from my town. the other lives 40 + minutes away. What should I do if they're both equal in skill? pick by location, skill, attitude, and being able to think like the rest of the group? It's really challenging thinking of factors that will effect picking JUST ONE, considering that all my musical career I have had friends play. anyways, your thoughts? suggestions? give me a lsit of things I may want to take into account.
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trying out Guitarists
- Thread starter scorpionldr
- Start date
Being a fit with the rest of the band's personality is more important than anything IMO. I'd rather have a person who is fun to hang out with and has a good attitude who could use some practice (and who will practice) than a jerk who could outplay Metheny.
There are caveats to this of course. You can't just put a guitar in your mom's hands (well, my mom's hands anyway) and expect Alex Lifeson inside of six months. But in general, chops can be easily fixed. Taste can be taught, to a degree. Compatibility, however, is the one thing you can't instill in anyone once they're past a certain age. This is why a lot of bands melt down after the first album/show/girlfriend sleeping with the drummer.
There are caveats to this of course. You can't just put a guitar in your mom's hands (well, my mom's hands anyway) and expect Alex Lifeson inside of six months. But in general, chops can be easily fixed. Taste can be taught, to a degree. Compatibility, however, is the one thing you can't instill in anyone once they're past a certain age. This is why a lot of bands melt down after the first album/show/girlfriend sleeping with the drummer.
good points
the one caveat with the player who is 40 minutes away is to find about transportation reliability, willingness to travel for rehearsals after the novelty of the new band has worn off, etc. But honestly, I've usually had a half hour commute to most of my bands so its not a huge deal. All other things being equal, attitude, professionalism, personality, etc are big factors. That said, you don't want to choose the nicest guy if he can't play, doesnt have gas money, has equipment held together by duct tape, and so on. Another consideration is how well they pick up on songs. There is nothing quite as frustrating as a player who takes a month to learn 2 or 3 new songs. It's very cool to be at a gig where 10 people are shouting for skynrd, the singer knows the words to "sweet home alabama" and the rest of you are good enough to fake it reasonably well (at least for a bunch of intoxicated folks).
the one caveat with the player who is 40 minutes away is to find about transportation reliability, willingness to travel for rehearsals after the novelty of the new band has worn off, etc. But honestly, I've usually had a half hour commute to most of my bands so its not a huge deal. All other things being equal, attitude, professionalism, personality, etc are big factors. That said, you don't want to choose the nicest guy if he can't play, doesnt have gas money, has equipment held together by duct tape, and so on. Another consideration is how well they pick up on songs. There is nothing quite as frustrating as a player who takes a month to learn 2 or 3 new songs. It's very cool to be at a gig where 10 people are shouting for skynrd, the singer knows the words to "sweet home alabama" and the rest of you are good enough to fake it reasonably well (at least for a bunch of intoxicated folks).
Actually, when taking chops, personality, professionalism, goals, ect. into consideration, it's doubtful that both of the players are going to be on the same level. Chances are, one is going to be the clear choice.
well, UPDATE on events, the guy that lived a farther distance away didn't appear serious, and seemed to busy, so we've dropped him. the guy that lived a shorter distance away seemed to young, and didn't have any skills. Seven years self taught time, massive problems with tuning, massive problems with rhythm, only two bands he appears to take liking to is Metallica and Godsmack, crap gear that he should learn he's better off ditching, doesn't even know what model gear he has, just manufacturer, seems to want everything hardcore based, and too young and underdeveloped for us (18), and could barely play simple material that we had, making him look slightly worse than my drummer (skills VERY LACKING). I'll edit this post eventually to add in the flier that we posted
i remember auditioning guitarists in the past, i like to see how well they adapt and sight read. So i used to throw a buddy holly tune in front of em, have em play it through and through solo and all. Then throw a megadeth tune at em- mainly marty friedman stuff- im a big fan of that guy. Fun to watch nu metal kids struggle with holly , and jazz boys try to alter the tempo with megadeth stuff.
If you are an original band, I'd want someone who can write. I'd give him/her a bassline and some drums and see what they do with it. See if it's close to what you wanted to hear, or even better, he/she might surprise you with something better than you could have imagined!
The main things I'd want in a guitarist
-Creative
-Cool
-Tasteful
-Open Minded
The main things I'd want in a guitarist
-Creative
-Cool
-Tasteful
-Open Minded
