Kraken Posted April 17, 2013 Share Posted April 17, 2013 I'm in the process of starting a new band with the remaining members of a previous one (incidentally if you know any vocalists that can get to Liphook on a Tuesday night, send me a message...) and in light of the change in licensing laws last October allowing all pubs to put on live music until 11PM with little difficulty I started thinking about this in a different way, well what is it that they want from covers and originals bands? so who are a Local Bands customers? and what is it that they want? and how do I go about with my band mates giving them that? don't get me wrong I appreciate that there are an awful lot of details behind the very simple answers to those questions, and what I was hoping to inspire in this thread is a discussion about this part of the Business of running a band at 'pub level'. as far as I can see it, at this level there is very little difference between the answers for a covers band or an originals band at this level, your 'customer' is always the venue, the pub you are playing in, whether you are doing a gig with a couple of other local original bands (or on your own if you have enough songs), or if you are in there with your well polished covers band essentially you are after that sought after thing, a re-booking (and I'm sure in a lot of cases a paid re-booking). so what is it that the customer wants for that? and how do you and your bands go about delivering that? just at a pub level mind I'm not wanting to get into the realms of 500+ person venues or function gigs here, just proper grass roots of being in a band. remember to play nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted April 17, 2013 Share Posted April 17, 2013 (edited) I have done originals on the pub scene for a couple of years, its hard work imo. Two 1 hour sets of known songs will get you booked back every few months and the audience will be much more 'up for it' too. Ok the old backroom 3 bands a night gig might have a more open minded audience but in the usual dog and gun playing your own songs with someone shouting for sex on fire between each song will boil your piss Edited April 17, 2013 by stingrayPete1977 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted April 17, 2013 Share Posted April 17, 2013 By far the most valuable thing you can offer your customer (i.e. the landlord/landlady) is punters. If your band can bring a dozen or more people to the pub who would not otherwise have been there, then you're a fair way towards a re-booking. Bring 20 or 30 and you're pretty much guaranteed as many gigs as you like. Turn up unsupported and expect the pub to do all the work, and you make life difficult for yourselves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted April 17, 2013 Share Posted April 17, 2013 Yes and all what Jack just said! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skankdelvar Posted April 17, 2013 Share Posted April 17, 2013 [quote name='Kraken' timestamp='1366222324' post='2049869'] so who are a Local Bands customers? and what is it that they want? [/quote] An excellent, excellent question and one which many bands rarely seem to ask themselves. Most cover bands I've been in seem to construct their setlists based on what the bandmembers like to play. Then they chuck in extra guitar solos and spend most of the evening staring at each other or their feet. But maybe I've been unlucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted April 17, 2013 Share Posted April 17, 2013 Agree, it is ALL about punters as they drink the beer the LL needs to sell. Crap bands pulling in the numbers will get far more gigs than they might deserve but we shouldn't loose sight of the fact that beer sales trumps everything else..no matter good you think you are. It always fascinates me what works in pubs... we try and do the stuff we want to a decent enough standard but we may well suffer for not having a populist set. We aren't going to change that but you have to decide what money you need/want to get and square that with what you want to play. My thing is I am not going to play a load of stuff I don't rate much for pub peanuts....but you live or die on how many punters you can get in on a regular basis. I wouldn't play to empty pubs either, so you need to square that as well. I like bands round here that try something different, material-wise, and any band avoiding the over-done 80's stuff gets off on the right foot as far as I am concerned Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynottfan Posted April 17, 2013 Share Posted April 17, 2013 (edited) I used to go and watch a great punky/rock n roll trio back in the late eighties early nineties and they used to have a fair following, Mark the bass player was also the singer, and I was putting one of my bands together at the time and I asked him about getting gigs etc and he gave me a bit of advice that I have never forgotten, get them dancing, get them sweaty, get them drinking, landlords laughing, we are getting paid! I think all of us that will post to you on this will all reach the same thing, the venue wants people to have a good time, it wants people, no trouble and a healthy till at the nights end. Edited April 17, 2013 by Lynottfan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arthurhenry Posted April 17, 2013 Share Posted April 17, 2013 It makes sense to think it's all about bringing in punters to buy beer and thus create a happy landlord. However, be aware that there are plenty of landlords out there who are somewhat fussy in their personal music tastes and if you don't fit this, you will not be rebooked, no matter how full the venue gets when you play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarebear68 Posted April 17, 2013 Share Posted April 17, 2013 [quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1366231971' post='2050031'] any band avoiding the over-done 80's stuff gets off on the right foot as far as I am concerned [/quote] JTUK - what would you define as over done 80s stuff? I'm asking as we've been asked to do a couple of sets of 80s covers at a gig alongside a DJ for an 80s night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted April 17, 2013 Share Posted April 17, 2013 [quote name='iceonaboy' timestamp='1366239514' post='2050125'] ....I have yet to meet a landlord that would choose his personal taste in music over a band that fills the pub!... [/quote] +1 I've never seen a band getting hassled over a full pub. We get complimented because we play songs everyone knows but hardly any other bands on our circuit play. We're playing Squeeze, Andrew Gold, Joe Cocker, Adele, Roy Orbison, Police, Steve Miller, Queen, Prince, Deacon Blue, Chillie Peppers, Bowie and loads more. Good numbers, no dross and the punters love it. It doesn't seem to be very hard to be a cover band with integrity. You've just got to put a little more thought into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted April 17, 2013 Share Posted April 17, 2013 [quote name='skankdelvar' timestamp='1366231954' post='2050030'] Most cover bands I've been in seem to construct their setlists based on what the bandmembers like to play. Then they chuck in extra guitar solos and spend most of the evening staring at each other or their feet. [/quote] This is true in some cases yeah! Luckily 3 of the members of Generations are really young guys into modern,mainstream metal, the vocalist is older and into classic, mainstream metal, and I occasionally get away with chucking something in the setlist that has cool bass bits in Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toddy Posted April 17, 2013 Share Posted April 17, 2013 [i]if all you have is lemons....make lemonade [/i] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jus Lukin Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 (edited) - Edited February 16, 2022 by Jus Lukin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr.Dave Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 (edited) Landlords know nothing of music generally. They tend to be a semi criminal sub species of piss head failures only interested in hearing the til ring. Punters want AC/DC in their sorry toilet of a local for free and don't know the difference between a song played well and a goat's bell end - but will insist on judging you and imparting their wisdom liberally. The only way I've found to deal with what experiece has taught me are these absolute facts is to play what the hell you like because it puts a smile on your face. That's the only reason it's worth doing. With a degree of luck that smile will infect the williams in front of you who will fill the till of the monkey running the joint. You asked 'what do they want'. I'm sure you'll hear many well meaning answers to that and you'd be wise to consider them all but I'm a crusty old trooper and I think the question should really be what do YOU want. To try and please everyone else to the detrement of your own satisfaction is the road to hell. Edited April 18, 2013 by Dr.Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conan Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 [quote name='Dr.Dave' timestamp='1366268877' post='2050226'] To try and please everyone else to the detrement of your own satisfaction is the road to hell. [/quote] Quote of the year!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 [quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1366223148' post='2049890'] ....By far the most valuable thing you can offer your customer (i.e. the landlord/landlady) is punters.... [/quote] [color=black]I think that the most important thing a band can bring is a good sound, good songs and provide a great no hassle evening to everyone.[/color] [color=black] [/color] [color=black]The promoter/landlord has to provide a consistent flow of bands and provide a great no hassle atmosphere, so bringing[i] his[/i] punters in on a regular, weekly basis.[/color] [color=black] [/color] [color=black]As a band that plays nearly every Friday and Saturday across an area of about 150 square miles of the South East we are realistic enough to know we're unlikely to bring anyone to a gig. We will, however, send the punters home happy after a great night out at their favourite live music venue.[/color] [color=black] [/color] [color=black]Too many promoters are lazy and look to the band to provide them with an audience and income while doing very little to earn it themselves. Even if we could bring 100 people to a gig we wouldn't play there more than 4 times a year. What's the venue going to do for the rest of the time? And how many cover bands get an audience travelling between Reading and Ramsgate and Watford and Brighton?[/color] [color=black] [/color] [color=black]Realistically we have to be good enough to tempt all our audience comes back to the gig next week. If last week's band were crap we might not have an audience to work with. [/color] [color=black] [/color] [color=black]Who can fix that? The promoter every time.[/color] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 [quote name='Dr.Dave' timestamp='1366268877' post='2050226']...To try and please everyone else to the detrement of your own satisfaction is [s]the road to hell[/s]. 'Highway to Hell' [/quote] Fixed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrenochrome Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 'Bums On Seats' is the be all. Doesn't matter how you get there, I've done it with bands playing 50/50 covers and originals, and it can be done with a different type of covers setlist. We currently do it with a mixed alt/metal/rock setlist, it just takes some thought and effort. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteb Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 Punters want to be entertained, pure and simple! Generally this is easier if you play stuff that they know with a few surprises thrown in. If you play too many of the cliche 'crowd pleaders' you run the risk of boring them as you will just sound like every other band they have ever seen! However one or two will help break the ice of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Vader Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 [quote name='Adrenochrome' timestamp='1366272568' post='2050270'] 'Bums On Seats' is the be all. Doesn't matter how you get there, I've done it with bands playing 50/50 covers and originals, and it can be done with a different type of covers setlist. We currently do it with a mixed alt/metal/rock setlist, it just takes some thought and effort. [/quote] Bums off of seats and dancing about, thus dehydrating themselves and going back to the bar is closer, but I fully agree. No slow songs, keep 'em moving, smile and put on a show and as long as they recognise 10% of your material they tend to be happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 Punters want entertainment. Aside from fans of a band, the regular audience at a pub type venue will want upbeat songs that they can hum/sing along to, invariably ones that they already know. Many will also want to hear songs they can dance to. A venues wants are slightly different. If they get a crowd like the above that don`t spend any money, the band aren`t much use to them. Venues want beer-sales. One of my previous bands used to play a "trendy" bar. The people running the venue didn`t like our band at all - we were a heavy rock/glam-type band, like Motley Crue. So why did they book us - easy, when we played, their takings doubled, due to our followers. The other thing a venue wants - bands who don`t get trouble at their gigs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jus Lukin Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 (edited) - Edited February 16, 2022 by Jus Lukin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 I got the impression that the OP was chiefly concerned with pub gigs, so I ignored promoters in my response. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jus Lukin Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 (edited) - Edited February 16, 2022 by Jus Lukin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted April 18, 2013 Share Posted April 18, 2013 Well, well. The band has just put its first 2014 gigs in the diary. This is for a local pub gig, run by a promoter who also provides all the audience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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