Wost gig ever...

[karlthebassist]

Well I played at a local hotel bar last night, the Cellar Bar, with my covers band Special Guests and it was by far the WORST gigging experience I have ever had.

To start off, the venue is tiny, hard walls, low ceilings. But it's quite nice in there. Just small.
So we set up in the corner as instructed by the owner. Fair do's, there' isn't a lot of room. Just ran vocals through the PA and everything else through our amps. We have no foldback.

We started playing at 9... to about 10 people! Absoloutly soul destroying. I'm not a confident singer but sing a bit of backing vocals anyway. I was SO self concious that I just couldn't do it. Kept thinking "am I pulling a face?", "am I hitting the right note?", "is my mic really loud?" We have noone to do our sound so we sort of jsut set it up, have a play and I walk out front while playing to see what the sound is like, so that sucks becasue there is no on-going alterations being made.

I could hear guitar, drums and lead vocals really well, but only the boomy low end of my bass - guess it was something to do with being in a corner. I'm not even going to talk about the acoustic set we did! Crazy bass feedback! :'( Afterwards, people said that the sound was fine, but on stage for me it was REALLY off putting. Towards the end of the second set I took my earplugs out to play and could actually hear the tone of my bass much better, and we played the last few songs really well - so I feel that my sucky playing was to blame for the rest of the night.

the night went like this....

Set 1 - Electric

Stuck in the Middle with You – Steelers Wheel was ok
Sit Down - James ok
The One I Love - REM ok - this is where i lost my bottle for the backing vox
Easily - RHCP nailed it
Mothers’ Little Helper – Rolling Stones sloppy
And She Was – Talking Heads was ok
Ziggy Stardust – David Bowie rocked it
Dakota - Stereophonics sucked ass. never playing it again
Laid – James not too bad
Sunny Afternoon – Kinks first time we'd played it. was ok though


Set 2 - Acoustic

Polly - Nirvana good
Man On The Moon - REM crap end
Man Who Sold The World – David Bowie few bum chords
That’s Entertainment – The Jam fine
With a Little Help From My Friends – The Beatles rocked it
Layla – Clapton first time we'd done it. nailed it
Fans – Kings of Leon first time. was fine.


Set 2 - Electric

Come On Feel The Noise – Slade was ok. i sucked a bit
London Calling – The Clash was good
Eton Rifles – The Jam was good
Ever Fallen in Love? - The Buzzcocks good
Should I Stay or Should I Go? - The Clash i started in the wrong key! what an anit climax!
Riverboat Song – Ocean Colour Scene was ok
Down In The Tube Station At Midnight – The Jam strange polly rythm thing going on at the start lol. but we did the rest well.


Sorry I'm having a rant, but this has really bummed me out. We've got another gig somewhere next Sat with a band who have a propper sound engineer etc so that'll be better hopefully.

we started the band with the only goal to be to play songs that people like and can play in pubs, have a laugh and make a few quid. some nights are really good, but last night was just such a downer. we're a 3 piece, adn do all the sound and setting up etc by ourselves. anyone got any advice for trying to do the covers band thing?

:'(

[garethox]

Hi. We are a three piece and like yourself have GREAT gigs and bad ones where about 10 people turn up. There is nothing you can do about this, it is just the way it works.... even with lots of advertising it happens.
Thing to do is to treat it as a paid rehearsal, that's what we do. We just have a laugh and play our favourite tunes.
Nowt to get self concious about - just play the same whatever the gig because at least the owner will see you have still tried and put on the best performance possible (and you never know who is watching) and think 'good band-just a bad night' as opposed to 'bad band-bad night all round'!

[Moos3h]

You'll always be your own worst critic (and rightly so, or you end up like Prince or Robbie Williams) so don't sweat it too much.

One thing, if you don't look like you're enjoying it, then the audience won't - keep smiling even if you think it's going badly and try to interact with the crowd, almost EASIER when there's only a few there.

Another thing? Go out, as a band and watch other bands - you'll pick up LOTS of things to do and lots of things to avoid.

To be honest? It sounds like a bad gig, but you got through it and I count more songs on that list with positive feedback than negative, so you're on your way.

Write it off, learn what you can from it and move on.

A good three piece is always an exciting act to watch - give 'em a show!

[Rich]

[quote name='garethox' post='681302' date='Dec 11 2009, 01:33 PM']Thing to do is to treat it as a paid rehearsal, that's what we do.[/quote]
Likewise.

[hillbilly deluxe]

There will be worse gigs and there will be better ones too.
Like was said before,treat it as a paid rehearsal,and you never know who is in the audience.
Allways try to have a better time on stage than the audience is having.
We once travelled up from a festival in Yorkshire,where we played to an audience of about 3,500,to a hotel gig in Fort William the next night,and played to less than 20.

If it's any consolation,i went to see Hawkwind at Newcastle City Hall in about 1980,and there were less than 20,12 IIRC,in the audience,and half of those were band hanger ons.

[Commando Jack]

[quote name='Moos3h' post='681314' date='Dec 11 2009, 01:40 PM']To be honest? It sounds like a bad gig, but you got through it and I count more songs on that list with positive feedback than negative, so you're on your way.[/quote]

More positive than negative is NOT a bad gig! A bad gig is when your guitarist/lead singer (we were a 3 piece at the time) gets drunk and has had a valium. Then you have a delayed start, and out of 5 songs:

3 stopped in the middle to tune (2 for the guitarist, 1 for the bass player),
1 stopped because the guitarist was playing the wrong riff,
1 that didn't matter because most people had left by that point.

It's the only gig I've ever played where we had to actually stop a song and restart it. 4 times. Out of 5.

It was also our last gig!

[Jacqueslemac]

You're certainly not alone. My first gig went something like this:

I'd been asked to join a band working towards a support slot at a beer festival. A few weeks before the gig, the band imploded when the lead guitarist and drummer had a row and the guitarist walked out. None of us did any practice after the guitarist walked out and hadn’t even been in touch.

The gig should have been on Friday evening as one of the warm-up bands at the beginning of the beer festival.

On Saturday morning I got a pleading phone call from the singer. A band that had been due to play on Saturday afternoon hadn’t turned up, so if I wouldn’t mind helping out, we could do a few songs until the next band arrived.

The singer had only been to two rehearsals, most of the songs need two guitars and I didn’t know all the material anyway. What could possibly go wrong?

So I said “yes”, I’d do it.

At 2.30pm I rolled up. They’d already set their gear up in the marquee (a small open-fronted one looking towards the bar, with a few dozen people mingling about between the two).

I put my stuff up, got my amp mic’d up to the PA, did a brief soundcheck, necked a (free) beer for courage and we were off.

The singer announced that we’d come in at the last minute, hadn’t got a full set (we’d cut the songs the singer didn’t know and removed some of those that just had to have two guitars) and that we’d do a few, then break, then do a few more etc.

One, two, three, four and we were off. The first song was one I don’t know very well, but it was okay, because I had my music stand and the lyrics and chords were clear to see. Except that after about one bar in, there was a gust of wind and my papers went all over the floor. Ho hum. I bluffed it a bit and then realised I was going to get terribly lost, so bent over, picked them up and joined in again.

Luckily, the next few I knew and they weren’t too bad and then it was time to stop and have another beer. I managed to work out a way to secure my bits of paper by the time we were on again, so the next few songs were a bit easier, as was the third and final set. We finished on Two Hard to Handle which is one the singer can do well. The crowd were dancing a bit by then, so we quit when we were ahead. There were a few people clapping, so we can’t have been too bad.

Phew, I was glad that was over without it being too bad. Except that we were then told the headlining band had just pulled out and would we go on again at 9pm? The others wanted to do it, so I didn’t feel I could say “no”.

My wife and I left to get something to eat and then I headed back. It was now dark. There were about 200 people there, some pretty pissed. Unfortunately one of them was our remaining guitarist.

The first few songs weren’t too bad, but when we launched into 20th Century Boy the singer’s mic cut out. He swapped one lead, then another and then the mic, but couldn’t get more than a second or two over the PA before it cut out again. We did a passable instrumental version, but the vocals are sort of important. Anyway, we stopped, switched channels, mic and a few more leads and started the next song. The same thing happened, only this time a couple of guys ran forward, gesticulating at one of the PA speakers. Then they started to blow out the flames that were coming from the speaker cone! A short pause ensued while we got the fire under control, disconnected the stack, tested the other one and then got going again.

We stumbled through the rest, but by then the guitarist was fluffing chords or playing them in the wrong key or attempting licks he'd never tried before. The singer was ad-libbing songs we didn’t know while the guitarist was having another trip to the toilet and finally, the singer had to start fielding the odd bread roll.

We had a couple of good songs, where the crowd joined in and a couple where some people started to dance, but mostly it was downhill. It wasn’t helped by only doing three or four songs and then stopping so the guitarist could have another beer and cigarette.

So, a few lessons:

Only play when the whole band is ready.
Have more songs than you think you’ll need.
Stick to the set list you know and don’t break too often. The crowd never really got warmed up.
Don’t drink too much!

But the most important one – no matter how bad you know you’ve been, most people don’t notice most of the mistakes. We had quite a few people tell us we were really good. Most of them didn’t appear to be too drunk either!

[hillbilly deluxe]

AND,after chatting to one of my heroes,Dale Watson after his set at a festival,it was my turn on stage with a great friend of mine,in a respected band on the country scene,Red Canyon,( i dep for them occasionally)Red was that pissed that we only played 7 tunes,or,that should be,we played,Folsom prison,guitar boogie,folsom prison,guitar boogie,folsom prison,guitar boogie,and whiskey lullaby,but it was going to be folsom prison AGAIN,until i pointed out that we had already played it three times.

Edited December 11, 2009 by hillbilly deluxe

[karlthebassist]

Hey,
Just got back from a practice with the band. They didn't seem to think last night was any where near as bad as I thought.

In fact, we have apparently been offered another gig there, this time on a Saturday night, and a bloke from another pub wants us to play at his place...

I agree that people in the crowd definately don't notice half the mistakes. But I do find it a bit dishartening, nonetheless, when I make such naff mistakes. Todays practice was really good. In a little under two hours we learnt Common People, Sunny Afternoon, Bigmouth Strikes Again, and Teenage Kicks, then worked on a few that were'nt so good last night, and now I'm in a better mood with the whole band situation.

I think the main problem is that I have never been in a band like this before where we can't rely on a venue to be full or a good sound engineer etc. My last propper band was a 10 piece soul/rnb band who's first gig was to 500+ people who were there to see US, which was fantastic. Propper sound, real stage, hours to set up and soundcheck. I think I'm just too inexperienced for playing in pubs/clubs. I think I've probably played in a pup or club less than 20 times ever...

Thanks for all the messages though, its certainly comforting. Think I might be letting it get to me a bit too much.
Karl

[oldmanrock]

[quote name='Moos3h' post='681314' date='Dec 11 2009, 01:40 PM']You'll always be your own worst critic (and rightly so, or you end up like Prince or Robbie Williams) so don't sweat it too much ... write it off, learn what you can from it and move on.[/quote]
I agree. You'll get bad gigs as well as good ones. Put it down to experience and make 'em 'ave it at the next one!

[darwin]

We don't have bad gigs very often but when we do both guitarists get really stressed about it. I always say to them you need a bad gig every now and again to make you appreciate the good ones and keeps you on your toes.

Don't get stressed about it, I'm sure the next one will be a corker !!

Edited December 11, 2009 by darwin

[Cat Burrito]

I've lost count of the number of gigs I've done to a handful of people with poor PA and cramped up in the corner. The reality is that you shouldn't beat yourself up over it. Work out what went wrong, what can be done differently to ensure it doesn't happen again and then move on. I live for the bigger better gigs but I've learnt to enjoy the less exciting ones too.

In terms of people coming, a lot of "promoters" are really just bookers and it comes down to bands to promote. In terms of your tone, this is something that comes with experience and you can always tweak an amp slightly between songs. Sounds like you worked out the earplugs weren't helping on this occasion and rectified that soon enough. Things will get better I'm sure

[skankdelvar]

TBH, that sounds like a normal gig for me. Boxy venue, tight for band space, no foldback, boomy bass, no soundman and a few one-off mistakes. The only things that might differ would be the luxury of hearing the other instruments and having an audience in double figures.

Welcome to the Pub Covers Circuit

[Toddy]

Aye,,,,, And not just the pubs,,,,,

Last night,, huge hall in the North East,, 2 x Dance floors..
Big Xmas bash,,£32 a ticket etc.

Everyone up dancing after the meal,,DJ introduces the band..then cos its "his"gig turns all the room lights off,,, everyone sits down,, understandably,,, you cant see !! makes us look a right bunch of charlies,,, few people tried to dance in the dark,,, but not really happening.. ended set after playing real well,,,,told venue owner to get his DJ sorted,, second set,, both dance floors full...... but it killed the atmosphere for us,,,,,mind you xmas bashes,,,,thats another topic.....

Rant over,,,,,,night before was awesome,,Darlington Rocks!

99% of peeps after few beers cant even remember what you played,,still affects YOU tho...

[Happy Jack]

If you have a recorder of some sort (I use the Zoom H2 and H4) then it's well worth recording EVERY gig you play.

You're not making a live album, it's just bloody useful to be able to settle down the next day and hear what the audience heard. The most appalling cock-ups during songs that had you all glaring at each other on stage turn out to be ... well, more or less nothing actually.

If you sit down as a band with a beer and listen to the recording, you'll all be laughing and singing along to the recording before you know it.

As to the size of the audience, you play AT a crowd of 100, you play WITH a crowd of 10. It can be harder to get the 10 dancing, though.

[fatback]

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='686090' date='Dec 16 2009, 09:50 AM']As to the size of the audience, you play AT a crowd of 100, you play WITH a crowd of 10. It can be harder to get the 10 dancing, though.[/quote]

Oh, nice point.

fatback

[WalMan]

[quote name='karlthebassist' post='681505' date='Dec 11 2009, 04:52 PM']I agree that people in the crowd definately don't notice half the mistakes. But I do find it a bit dishartening, nonetheless, when I make such naff mistakes.[/quote]
IMO just go for it and don't acknowledge fluffs by scowling at whoever but laugh it off between yourselves, not to the crowd. Chances are the odd slip will completely pass them by, as most probably will larger ones if you act like you meant it

I've mentioned our vocalist forgetting White Wedding and having the crowd sing it back at him elsewhere, but we just smiled amongst ourselves & got on with it.

I've got carried away with the occasion before and headed of up the dusty end for a fill that goes horribly wrong, or just plain hit the wrong note and 99 times out of 100 only the rest of the band notice, and possibly one of the guys who helps us out roadying and we'll have a private smile about it. The pub crowd could give a monkeys most of the time.

Did a dep with a show band years ago where we had to get up early and do a bit of "eating" music with the keyboard player shouting chords from a fake book, which it transpired was missing a page for one of the numbers. Needless to say we were ignored for most of the "eating" music but at the end of the one with the missing page that had sounded like the most bizarre free form jazz in the middle, the diners put down their knives & forks and a smattering of applause broke out