Finding a permanent band. Advice?

[Happy Jack]

2 hours ago, musicbassman said:

I assure you, Happy Jack, a Dad-rock outfit is the very last thing on my mind.

I'm more familiar with doing high end function work.

In truth, then, I'd expect you to have a pretty impressive contacts book already. 

Just call a few friends ...

[Al Krow]

4 hours ago, Bluewine said:

Very few have the time, ability, patience, money or other resources to start their own band 

Blue

What do you think it actually takes in terms of time, ability, patience etc. to start a band?

 

[phil.c60]

6 hours ago, Al Krow said:

What do you think it actually takes in terms of time, ability, patience etc. to start a band?

 

A lot of time and a lot of patience. And some money.  And if you're not into social media the chances of you having any success starting and running a band are minimal if not zero. Running a band that works takes a fair amount of time and effort. It's like having a part time job. We have 20 + gigs for next year already, and that didn't happen by chance or luck but by a lot of hard work from me and the Harmonica player over the last four years. Some (most?) people do not have the appetite for the commitment necessary to make a band successful. That's not a criticism, it's just reality. Some people run bands, some people are band members the same as some people work for themselves, some people have jobs.

[NancyJohnson]

I'd honestly give Facebook a punt and drive things yourself.  Start something new.  There's plenty of musician groups on it. 

As an aside, JMB is a strange site; too many idiots, too many people bigging themselves up or bragging about albums already recorded and gigs waiting.  It has potential to be brilliant, it's beautifully simple but for the idiots who use it.   

Interestingly, I found a very decent drummer through our little village FB page, I'd posted a desperate plea of, 'does anyone know a drummer?' and it went from there.  Everyone knows someone who knows someone.

Good luck finding something.

 

[Woodinblack]

Using JMB is very frustrating, when you do find something you contact people and most of the time they never reply to you making you wonder why the advertised in the first place. However, I joined my last two bands from them - the first one from an advert on there of a starting band, and the second I just advertised that I wanted a band when I left the first. Just lucky on that I guess as still in that after 3 years.

I don't really think that social media has much to do with the success of a band, we use it but only minimally, and I don't recognise the part time job thing. We also have 20+ gigs booked for next year, but that is just a couple of evenings of phoning and messaging. We have some regulars and a lot of the other parties etc come through people contacting us who saw us at previous events.

[mrtcat]

11 hours ago, musicbassman said:

I'm more familiar with doing high end function work.

There are a few Facebook groups that can help you find function work but you'll need to be prepared to look at bands further afield if you don't already have plenty of contacts in your area. 

Hate to say it but age is a factor these days as many of the agencies want young rock / indie bands at the moment because thats the current trend for weddings. It's always been an image based business but it seems that what sells right now is bands that look and smell like they belong on stage at a radio 1 festival. 

There are agencies like DK Management based in the south that put bands together from scratch and supply PA etc and do all the marketing but you'll not earn much more than £150 per man per night in the first year. They run regular auditions for new musicians. 

[musicbassman]

9 hours ago, Happy Jack said:

In truth, then, I'd expect you to have a pretty impressive contacts book already. 

Just call a few friends ...

If only it was that simple, HappyJack.

I gigged continuously for 30 years in numerous different cover bands 1971 - to 2001, then I'd had enough and stopped playing for 16 years. I retired 18 months ago and decided to take up playing again. But the world I left in 2001 was mostly pre digital and many of the bands, musicians, agents and venues I knew have closed, retired...or, ahem, are no longer with us.

It's a different world out there now. I'm confident my playing is back up to scratch and I'm sure there's a bass gig out there somewhere, but I feel I'm not sourcing it.

Which is why I'm on here asking for advice.

[Al Krow]

High end function band work is about as competitive as it gets, for any of the band members. If you have been out of the scene for nearly 18 years then it's going to be pretty tough to bag yourself a role doing that as your re-entry point. 

But it would be useful to hear from you what you are particularly looking to get out of playing bass in a band? 

For me, I just love playing live with great band mates to an appreciative crowd. But playing in a couple of covers bands, as I do, we certainly wouldn't do that for free in the way many originals bands are prepared to. 

[musicbassman]

5 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

But it would be useful to hear from you what you are particularly looking to get out of playing bass in a band? 

Because I had gigged constantly for 30 years I must admit it's something I really missed when I stopped.

For decent function work, it's not really an income stream I'm looking for, it's more about the satisfaction of playing live in nice venues and being appreciated, and equally it's the delight of working with quality musicians who really know their chops and are absolute professionals in their attitude.

So, no Dad rock down the Dog and Duck for me, thanks, and also I don't really want to be in a band where I have to tell the keyboard player he's clearly playing the wrong chord. 

[NancyJohnson]

1 hour ago, musicbassman said:

Because I had gigged constantly for 30 years I must admit it's something I really missed when I stopped.

I stopped all that malarky November last year and don't miss it in the slightest.  I just think of the £££s I was haemorrhaging in weekly (and frankly unnecessary) rehearsals and petrol running around southern England. 

This, combined with the fact that I was losing precious weekends trawling around with three unpleasant asshats, playing to crowds of less 25 people, with promoters not paying out, when I could be spending quality time with my wife and friends was a bit of a no-brainer.

I'm enjoying just being part of a studio project.  Might try and find a band at some stage, but now? Nah, not worried.

[NJE]

I think you have covered all of the main websites and really Facebook seems the last option you haven't explored. There are lots of musicians groups out there, so I would suggest signing up and seeing if there are any posts looking for dep or full time bass players, find some open mic nights and go along to see if there are any good players around?

I have been lucky to find people to play with through one lucky advert about 8 years ago. I just kept meeting musicians who needed a bass player or needed a dep or wanted to form different bands on the side. There are a lot of bands and musicians out there who will play for nothing, or very little so its hard to find well paid work with a covers band.

High end function work is hard to come by unless you all well marketed with great videos, demos, website, agent, great photos etc. When I was looking to push my band to the next level I looked at a lot of bands and agency websites and they were all younger, thinner, better presented and better looking than me and my band mates, and that is a factor IMO.

At 35 I have become very disillusioned with being in bands and gigging. local clubs and bars don't really hire bands and when they do, they seem to think that everyone still wants the same old classic rock/pop covers, basically the same old cr*p that was old when I played it in cover bands 20 years ago. Either that or its blues music and festivals around where I live, and that's not for me in the slightest.

Like others have said, maybe start something yourself?  A friend of mine who was always in rock bands now plays acoustic guitar in an Americana/folky acoustic band with violin and mandolin etc and they get a great reception when they play. I think this is mostly down to the fact that they are a bit different, aren't loud and don't play cheesy rock or blues covers like every other band. They started out at open mic nights to get gig ready and they were normally one acoustic act in line-ups of 4-5 blues/rock bands and got great feedback form punters.

[HengistPod]

18 years off the radar is a long time, and means you're pretty much starting from scratch. I gave up playing live for around 10 years, until my old drummer came round and tapped me up for starting a new band. Granted, it's "dad-rock down the Dog & Duck", but it's a lot more fun than it was before. I get out and play, and I make a few quid from it. We had contacts from years ago that sprouted again, and now we're merrily rolling along at 2-6 gigs a month, with bookings through next year.

Our one problem was finding a decent singer - absolutely none available in our age group (40s-early 50s). We ended up with a young karaoke hero who has a great voice but no concept of fronting a band. He's slowly getting there, though.

There are few pub bands left around here now - they've all grown or given up - but it has to be said that there are also a lot fewer gigs. The youth of today generally couldn't care less about live music, and they just don't turn up to pubs where there's a band on. Pretty soon, a proper, all-live band playing down the pub will be history. Acoustic blokes and chintzy duos already rule the roost in these parts.

Anyhow, if you're looking to accelerate back up the league again, you may have to track down old associates and look for a leg-up. Otherwise, if you really want to get out and play, you're going to have to relive your youth by playing with less experienced musicians and all that entails. But, if you're honest with yourself, you knew that already.

[Bluewine]

9 hours ago, NancyJohnson said:

I stopped all that malarky November last year and don't miss it in the slightest.  I just think of the £££s I was haemorrhaging in weekly (and frankly unnecessary) rehearsals and petrol running around southern England. 

This, combined with the fact that I was losing precious weekends trawling around with three unpleasant asshats, playing to crowds of less 25 people, with promoters not paying out, when I could be spending quality time with my wife and friends was a bit of a no-brainer.

I'm enjoying just being part of a studio project.  Might try and find a band at some stage, but now? Nah, not worried.

That's too bad, gigging has always been fantastic for me and my band members are great people, not the greatest musicians but great people to work with.

The gigging experience is different for all of us.

Blue

[musicbassman]

Thanks to everyone for their sympathetic and thoughtful replies.

Well - I've bitten the bullet and joined Facebook.

I have to wait to get access to 4 FB groups I've joined, I will report back when I've had a chance to see what's about.

They each appear as if they could be useful, but will the reality live up to the expectations ? Watch this space.   🤞

 

[richh]

Out of interest, what are the typical age ranges for pro level function type bands?  Genuine question, as I'm more 'mature' and have not gigged for many years due to work & family pressures.  It would be great to think of being able to play with good musicians eventually, but if the guys are mostly in their 20's to early 30's that could be an issue.  I'd guess that for some styles of music (jazz perhaps) that age may not be a barrier?

[Stylon Pilson]

4 minutes ago, richh said:

Out of interest, what are the typical age ranges for pro level function type bands?  Genuine question, as I'm more 'mature' and have not gigged for many years due to work & family pressures.  It would be great to think of being able to play with good musicians eventually, but if the guys are mostly in their 20's to early 30's that could be an issue.  I'd guess that for some styles of music (jazz perhaps) that age may not be a barrier?

You've basically got guys in their 20s playing indie rock at weddings for people in their 20s, and you've got guys in their 50s playing Brown Eyed Girl at birthday parties for people in their 50s.

S.P.

[Woodinblack]

27 minutes ago, Stylon Pilson said:

You've basically got guys in their 20s playing indie rock at weddings for people in their 20s, and you've got guys in their 50s playing Brown Eyed Girl at birthday parties for people in their 50s.

I would say that in the last 2 weeks, i have played brown eyed girl at two birthday parties, one a 50th and one a 30th. In am in my 50s. The rest of the band are in their 30s. I guess it works out

 

[mrtcat]

3 hours ago, Stylon Pilson said:

You've basically got guys in their 20s playing indie rock at weddings for people in their 20s, and you've got guys in their 50s playing Brown Eyed Girl at birthday parties for people in their 50s.

S.P.

Haha, I'm a guy in my 40s playing indie rock at weddings to people in their 20s one night and brown eyed girl at birthday parties for people in their 50s the next night. 

[Bluewine]

6 hours ago, richh said:

Out of interest, what are the typical age ranges for pro level function type bands?  Genuine question, as I'm more 'mature' and have not gigged for many years due to work & family pressures.  It would be great to think of being able to play with good musicians eventually, but if the guys are mostly in their 20's to early 30's that could be an issue.  I'd guess that for some styles of music (jazz perhaps) that age may not be a barrier?

Remember , unlike my generation, I'm 65, no longer is every kid in the neighborhood  buying a guitar and starting a band.

There aren't that many guys in their 20s & 30s interested in bands or gigging.

But there's a ton of us older guys not willing to give up our rock & roll spot light quite yet 

I'm not 

Blue

[Bluewine]

4 hours ago, mrtcat said:

Haha, I'm a guy in my 40s playing indie rock at weddings to people in their 20s one night and brown eyed girl at birthday parties for people in their 50s the next night. 

As bass players when do we have to evaluate our age and where our place is in the gigging world.

I'd say it depends on who we are, location, abilities.

Obviously we're not going to audition for a local band in their 20s.

What do we do when we start to " age out"?

Is this issue worth a thread?

Blue

 

 

[gjones]

I think we will all need to start playing care homes for the elderly.

There's a willing and captive audience, who were in their prime in the 60s and 70s, and who are sick of daytime TV, and bingo.

My band play a mix of rock n roll and blues. We were playing in a venue during the Edinburgh Festival, and after the show a guy came up to us and said he wanted to book us for gig at the Nottingham Theatre Royal.

A few months later, when we arrived at the venue, we found out that it was for an over 65s group that meets once a month in a room at the Theatre, to listen to various genres of music. Tonight's genre was Blues and Rock n Roll.

The good news was that it was a full house of 150. The bad news was, that when the audience arrived, there wasn't one that was under 75. 

Well we played our usual set and our female singer flirted with an eager looking 85 year old, who was sat near the front.

The old codgers loved us, and we got a standing ovation (well from the ones who could stand without help) at the end of the gig.

I'm telling you, the over 75s are desperate for a good rockin night. Whoever taps this vintage seam of oldies but goldies who are growing old disgracefully, will make a packet.

 

 

 

Edited December 7, 2018 by gjones

[peteb]

2 hours ago, Bluewine said:

As bass players when do we have to evaluate our age and where our place is in the gigging world.

I'd say it depends on who we are, location, abilities.

Obviously we're not going to audition for a local band in their 20s.

What do we do when we start to " age out"?

Is this issue worth a thread?

Blue

 

 

I think that we do need to consider that we have an ageing population in the UK (and the rest of the western world) and the rock and roll generations of the 60s, 70s, 80s and early 90s have now reached various stages of middle age and are not interested in the same things their parents were at that age. Younger people may enjoy live music if they are exposed to it, but it is not the same thing as it used to be and they can't be expected to turn up en mass for a night out to see a band playing a type of music that their parents grew up with. 

There is still an audience for rock music (or dad rock as some people prefer) and a few years ago there was a pretty vibrant scene in pubs. You could always get a decent audience if the band was good enough. Now you can't help but notice that austerity has taken its toll and it is more difficult to get people away from their TVs and supermarket booze, but I have still been managing to gig pretty regularly for the past few years in decent bands with guys ranging from their late 30s to early 60s playing to audiences of a similar age group. 

You need to know your audience. These days yoof culture is no longer necessarily king and its the older punters who are more likely to be interested in watching live music, not to mention to have the disposable income to do so... 

[Bluewine]

4 hours ago, peteb said:

L

You need to know your audience. These days yoof culture is no longer necessarily king and its the older punters who are more likely to be interested in watching live music, not to mention to have the disposable income to do so... 

Nice commentary  Pete.

Out BL and front person is a 34 year old female lead guitarist. No heels or short dresses. Blue jeans , t-shirts and barefoot is her thing. The rest of us, I'm 65 our other guitarist, harp and vocalist also 65 and our drummer is 50.

Knowing your audience is key. We do great and have so much fun with a 60 plus crowd. Thing is we can't pick and choose our gigs, we have to take what's out there and who will pay our fee in order to keep working.

But as you can imagine when were playing Robin Trower, early Fleetwood Mac, Savoy Brown, Jeff Beck Group at loud volume the 20 somethings in my part of the Midwest are lost and have no reference point to what we're doing. To be honest they seem to struggle with the concept of people playing electric guitars. I always tell them to tell their grandparents about us. I'm not kidding.

Blue

Edited December 8, 2018 by Bluewine

[Shaggy]

On 7 December 2018 at 21:23, Bluewine said:

As bass players when do we have to evaluate our age and where our place is in the gigging world.

I'd say it depends on who we are, location, abilities.

Obviously we're not going to audition for a local band in their 20s.

What do we do when we start to " age out"?

Is this issue worth a thread?

Blue

 

 

Interesting one.   Having gigged from the age of 16, at 55 I'd found myself inadvertently sucked into a Dad-rock band a couple of years back, - the really strange thing to me is that for the first time the weekly practice was the main focus of the band rather than the gigging (though there was the occasional gig) - it was a social thing, .  Pleasant enough and lovely guys and gals, but playing live has always been the motivation to me and I've never looked down on playing covers in the Dog & Duck - an audience is an audience, and the crowds in the valleys pubs here are the best I've played to anywhere. 

Looking though this thread, I think there must be a fair bit of regional variation in finding bands and how busy bands are - on JMB or whatever it's not hard to find a band here n S Wales if you're a bass player, although it's almost all the inevitable classic rock / blues or well known covers - I've done both, and in many venues that what the punters like and fully expect to hear.

At 57 I'm now in a gigging disco and funk band which is something I've wanted to do from the very start - drummer is 50-ish and guitarist and female singer are late '20's / early '30's - I realise this is probably my "swan-song" of being in a young gigging band, so making the most of every minute.   

[Bluewine]

5 hours ago, Shaggy said:

Interesting one.   Having gigged from the age of 16, at 55 I'd found myself inadvertently sucked into a Dad-rock band a couple of years back, - the really strange thing to me is that for the first time the weekly practice was the main focus of the band rather than the gigging (though there was the occasional gig) - it was a social thing, .  Pleasant enough and lovely guys and gals, but playing live has always been the motivation to me and I've never looked down on playing covers in the Dog & Duck - an audience is an audience, and the crowds in the valleys pubs here are the best I've played to anywhere. 

Looking though this thread, I think there must be a fair bit of regional variation in finding bands and how busy bands are - on JMB or whatever it's not hard to find a band here n S Wales if you're a bass player, although it's almost all the inevitable classic rock / blues or well known covers - I've done both, and in many venues that what the punters like and fully expect to hear.

At 57 I'm now in a gigging disco and funk band which is something I've wanted to do from the very start - drummer is 50-ish and guitarist and female singer are late '20's / early '30's - I realise this is probably my "swan-song" of being in a young gigging band, so making the most of every minute.   

Great story, unfortunately at 65, my band is probably my swan song to any type of gigging.

My plan is to take up fishing when I finally "age out" of the gigging scene.

Blue