Nerves before gig

[Nicko]

The band is playing its first gig tomorrow, ony confirmed this week. It's in the garden of a pub, mid afternoon.  Not only am I worried about the weather being too hot, we are second on the set following another band.  The Lemonrock page for the pub shows the other band playing 3 til 5, but we've been told we are doing 4 til 6.  We're borrowing their PA so not quite sure what we're going to get either.

The band hasn't had a proper practice session for about a month.  We met a couple of weeks ago and did some (probably less than half) of the set. 

I'm not normally nervous before a gig but this looks like its heading in the wrong direction.  Squeaky bum time!

We have another gig next Friday. 

[Newfoundfreedom]

We're playing at 4 o'clock tomorrow too. 35 degrees forecast here. So it ain't gonna be pleasant. I always get nervous before a gig anyway, but I'm absolutely dreading this one. 

Your situation doesn't sound ideal given the lack of recent practices, but if you all know your parts I'm sure you'll be fine. 

Fingers crossed for you mate. Good luck. 

 

Edited August 24, 2019 by Newfoundfreedom

[markdavid]

Always get nerves before a gig, always have, probably always will, the key is too prepare as much as possible, if you get a moment where you forget what the next note is it's better to drop a note or two than to play a bum note

[T-Bay]

And if you play a bum note shoot the guitarist a dirty look, always works for me.

[Bleat]

You could always give a pre-gig Eric Morecombe style announcement... " We will be playing all the right notes... just not necessarily in the right order"

Good luck with the gig, I have done plenty in the past where I was super nervous and my confidence in the whole thing was really low... They always turned out to be the best gigs!

🎸

[SteveH]

We're gigging on bank holiday, main stage, in Bury town centre. Last year there was around 700 / 800 people in the audience. We've not rehearsed for a month, cos the singer has got problems with tinnitus. And we've also got a dep lead guitarist ( but is a top knotch player). I don't usually suffer with nerves, but I think this gig might make my bottom twich slightly. 

I tend to believe that if the bass and drums are tight ,then everything else just drops into place. But I will probably run through the set at home over the weekend. " Fail to prepare"..... etc.

[Dan Dare]

Just drink 18 pints before you play. You'll be fine 🤮

[Nicko]

6 hours ago, Bleat said:

You could always give a pre-gig Eric Morecombe style announcement... " We will be playing all the right notes... just not necessarily in the right order"

🎸

It's not  a jazz gig😂

[rogerstodge]

Where is the gig?

[dave_bass5]

It’s odd but I do get nervous before a gig, but not because of messing up on stage, I’m fine once on there, but I just get nervous around strangers. 

[Bleat]

45 minutes ago, dave_bass5 said:

It’s odd but I do get nervous before a gig, but not because of messing up on stage, I’m fine once on there, but I just get nervous around strangers. 

Which is understandable to a point, though nowhere nearly as bad as being nervous around so called *band mates*... I've been there, and there is nothing worse than constantly having to deal with fragile egos, flakey musicianship,... other misc. defects etc.

[dave_bass5]

11 minutes ago, Bleat said:

Which is understandable to a point, though nowhere nearly as bad as being nervous around so called *band mates*... I've been there, and there is nothing worse than constantly having to deal with fragile egos, flakey musicianship,... other misc. defects etc.

In my case being around my band mates gives me a superiority complex 😊

[Bleat]

I get that my comment possibly made me sound like I'm perfect which I most certainly am not...… but having to tread on eggshells constantly with band members is very unnerving though...With strangers, we can choose how much we want to engage with them at least!

[dave_bass5]

5 minutes ago, Bleat said:

I get that my comment possibly made me sound like I'm perfect which I most certainly am not...… but having to tread on eggshells constantly with band members is very unnerving though...With strangers, we can choose how much we want to engage with them at least!

No, not at all. I totally understood what you meant. 

We are bass players after all........

[Nicko]

11 hours ago, rogerstodge said:

Where is the gig?

Black Horse, Greenford,, West London.

[rogerstodge]

2 hours ago, Nicko said:

Black Horse, Greenford,, West London.

Too far for me, have a good un Nicko

[Pea Turgh]

I used to get nervous, but then I did a run of gigs one summer with a singist who would just add to the set list willy nilly.  “Oh, let’s play (insert random song title here), it’s really easy” mid-set!  The guitarist was a song encyclopaedia, so we’d count in and I’d try my best not to look like a completely useless tw@t.  Hell of a learning curve, but my nerves are no more!

[Nicko]

Well, it all went off quite well.  The band before us finished around 5 so we were late on, but there was a reasonable crowd.  A few mistakes but most didn't notice.  It was a freebie, and the LL actually bunged us some cash and wants us back.

[Newfoundfreedom]

21 minutes ago, Nicko said:

Well, it all went off quite well.  The band before us finished around 5 so we were late on, but there was a reasonable crowd.  A few mistakes but most didn't notice.  It was a freebie, and the LL actually bunged us some cash and wants us back.

Superb!

Well done mate. 

[rogerstodge]

Fantastic..

[dave_bass5]

1 hour ago, Nicko said:

Well, it all went off quite well.  The band before us finished around 5 so we were late on, but there was a reasonable crowd.  A few mistakes but most didn't notice.  It was a freebie, and the LL actually bunged us some cash and wants us back.

Good result.  Always nice to feel appreciated at the end of the night.