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Walked out on gig

#182
Walking out on gigs is never a good idea unless it's something MAJOR. Seriously, that's a good way to not get hired by groups. I fired a guitarist for that once. Just don't do it. I know the situation sucked, trust me, I've been there, but don't walk out on gigs. The only one who loses is you.

Second, get your own monitor , an ear monitor or a wedge, it never hurts to have your own personal gear. I ALWAYS bring: A mic for my cab, some form of monitor, and some form of tuner. ALWAYS even if I'm using my amp as a DI, I still bring a mic for my cab. Why? Because you never know. Plan ahead. NEVER reply on other people for gear. When I played drums I brought my own set of drum mics whether I needed them or not. JUST IN CASE. Hell I bring my own guitar stands and even extra cables, as well as a tool kit. I've got the gear to do a basic set-up on a bass or guitar if need be. Remember the Boy scout motto: Be prepared!
 
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#183
After the first set when everyone leaves the stage you sneak back and take ALL the drum sticks. Then you move over to where the guitars are... ;)
I say don't turn down, turn up! When you've got an SVT dimed you're right and everyone else is wrong ;).
There must be brighter horizons out there for you.

I almost cancelled a gig when my singer/guitarist was sick and flipped out on me very disrespectfully when we were packing up to get ready to load the equipment. I won't take being talked to in such a manner and pushed back. He screamed and yelled inside his house while I waited outside, smashing things including his mic stand against the floor bending it. If not for the gig I'd have left there in a heartbeat but stuck it out and we played great once we were there.
 
#186
Great post! Very vivid. At first I was thinking, if this cat bailed because of bad monitors, that's pretty lame. I mean, if I walked out on a gig every time I had a lousy mix or crappy monitors I wouldn't be gigging much longer. Then when you described the other issues, I started thinking, yeah, I don't think I blame him for walking out on this one. And the last three paragraphs are pretty priceless. Definitely made me smile! Sounds like all's well that ends well! Although you're probably not interested in taking that gig full-time... or part-time...
 
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#187
DWBass said:
Join the band and for x's sake........invest in a frikkin' PA.
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Oh, I have a PA! And I would have been happy to have brought it.

I think it's interesting that respondents are divided on their opinion of my course of action: about 80% think I was wrong with about half of those thinking I really suck, and about 20% don't blame me one bit. Man, YUGE missed poll opportunity!
 
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#188
Chris 'Wighat' Jordan said:
Oh, I have a PA! And I would have been happy to have brought it.

I think it's interesting that respondents are divided on their opinion of my course of action: about 80% think I was wrong with about half of those thinking I really suck, and about 20% don't blame me one bit. Man, YUGE missed poll opportunity!
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My comment was more directed at the band and not you in particular. I just don't get bands that expect to gig without proper gear to do the job.
 
#189
DWBass said:
My comment was more directed at the band and not you in particular. I just don't get bands that expect to gig without proper gear to do the job.
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It's funny. They have a good PA with the exception of this back-up powered wedge that didn't work at all. I think the drummer and bass player took their IEM's with them. I believe they are set-up for six monitor mixes. This band has sounded good - albeit usually too loud- every time I've seen them. If anything, they just have too much PA for the smaller venues they play.
 
#190
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#191
From the way you described it, I don't blame you. As I said, I wouldn't have left, but I don't understand the ones who think you should join the band! "Hey, join a band that can't supply decent equipment and can't even play the same song at the same time." Tight bands don't do any of this. And bands like this get crap payment for gigs.
 
#192
I don't get the part where you couldn't hear anything but the drums. Were you playing in a field? According to your post this was a tiny club, so there should have been all sorts of reflections. Not to mention that tiny club usually means small stage area where it shouldn't be too hard to move away from the drummer and closer the the mains, or at the least the guitarists amp. Then you forgot your gear even though you weren't drunk, but still took a cab and forgot to pay your tab.

Seems like a ton of stuff is either being omitted or embellished here.
 
#193
pwhalen said:
I don't get the part where you couldn't hear anything but the drums. Were you playing in a field? According to your post this was a tiny club, so there should have been all sorts of reflections. Not to mention that tiny club usually means small stage area where it shouldn't be too hard to move away from the drummer and closer the the mains, or at the least the guitarists amp. Then you forgot your gear even though you weren't drunk, but still took a cab and forgot to pay your tab.

Seems like a ton of stuff is either being omitted or embellished here.
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You're skipping over the "rest of the band on IEM's" part. If they are on IEM's, there may not be any amps onstage - they could be playing POD's direct into the PA. A guitarist friend of mine does this all the time. So, no amps on stage plus loud, animal-style drummer means all you hear are drums.
 
#194
busmandan said:
You're skipping over the "rest of the band on IEM's" part. If they are on IEM's, there may not be any amps onstage - they could be playing POD's direct into the PA. A guitarist friend of mine does this all the time. So, no amps on stage plus loud, animal-style drummer means all you hear are drums.
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Yes but we didn't miss the part about the oversized PA towers which would be pushing the signals from the amp-less players in a small club since sound would be bouncing around all over the place. The FOH should have been audible on a small stage in a small club. IMHO YMMV and all that jazz.
 
#198
I've played gigs where I could only hear the drummer. Thankfully I have about thirty feet of cable between me and my amp. Several times I've been able to walk out far enough to hear from the FOH. I felt like a dork until the crowd got into it like I was some sort of rock star. It turned out ok.
 

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