ChaNce
Auto-banned?
Hey, I thought with our experience on this board, we could come up with a really good list of tips and tricks that make the process of playing live that much more enjoyable (being on stage is fun, but the rest of it can suck).
I'll start with a few from my experience. Please put even the most obvious tricks on the list: I'm hoping this will be a resource for all. This list assumes most of us have read the rules of metal, and deems them true.
Things to bring to the gig:
-Backups of all cables
-Duct tape
-2 sets of strings for each guitars (and a few extra high E strings).
-A Bunch of extra picks
-My band usually brings a single extra amp (like a fender or something smaller) so if someone's rig totally dies, we can still at least play the gig.
-Everyone brings their own tuner
-An extra beater guitar (a strat, say
) as a backup. If you can afford it, buy a few "show" guitars, and leave your real nice stuff at home. You can pick up crappy 7s nowadays for a few hundred dollars. Do it.
-And jesus christ, get some earplugs. You will thank me 10 years from now when your can sleep in silence instead of with a constant ringing companion in your ears.
If it is outside and cold:
-Hand warmers
-Don't stand there staring at your guitar. You worked hard to get on that stage. Enjoy your interaction with the crowd. They want to see you perform, not stare at your fingers.
-If you don't have a light show, an industrial worklight will work wonders. Set it on the ground next to the drummer pointing up, and have the rest of the lights turned down. Kind of looks like a strobe. Especially useful if your band primarily stares at their fingers
-If you are playing technical stuff that requires you to have your guitar up under your neck, lengthen your strap and take a trick from Slash and put your foot up on something and then place the butt of your guitar on your thigh, neck straight up. Zakk Wylde does this as well. You can shred with your fingers by your teeth, and still look good. Remember, live is a show. The album is the music
-Club PAs usually SUCK. Super midrange, abusive highs, boomy lows. On top of that, since your shows are packed, all the bodies suck up the highs, making things sound like you are listening through a wet rag. The thing is, it means your sound doesn't sound as good as it does in your bedroom or practice space. I usually try to cut out the bottom end on stage, and let the PA add it back in. What you don't want is that "whump" sound when you chug away on your low B string. Also, tell your bass player to ease up on the distortion. He isn't in Tool. The cleaner the bottom end and bottom midrange, the nicer the experience for your crowd, with the added benefit that your singer can actually hear themselves.
-I know you will hate this, but the DRUMMER is the most important person in the band, especially if you are unknown and playing shitty little clubs. Here is why: by the time your crowd has heard the first band and had a few drinks, combined with screaming in each other's ears to hear their friends, they are hearing nothing but a loud, mooshy buzz in their ears, and pretty much deaf to any nuance.
But they can still feel the drums. Further, most people have an intuitive (if not accurate) feel for how hard drums are to play well: you have to move your hands and feet, right? Finally, the drummer tells the audience when a song starts, ends, climaxes, etc. Your 7 string minor sweep arpeggios don't. In fact, unless you have a good PA, great gear, a good sound guy, and a great room, the crowd can't really hear your soloing anyway. Of course, they could look at your fingers to know your are doing something interesting, but the only person interested in your fingers is you.
Some thoughts on setting up your show:
Usually the shows that I see or play in are 2-4 bands on weekday evenings. For no other reason than tradition, these shows seem to start at about 8:30-9:00 every time, even on work nights. Further, I'm assuming that the bands are essentially local or regional. Obviously, if Slayer is the last band, no one is going to leave.
My personal campaign to start shows a bit earlier aside, if you have a choice, I have figured out that the optimal slot to be in is......
The second spot. Here is the logic. The opening band is usually new, and no one knows them. Further, since all people are chronically late, even their friends will be late (they will be your friends if it is your band). Finally, anyone who is coming to the show knows this about the first band, so they will try to get there about half way through the first band to get a good spot to see the rest of the bands. That means no one will be there for the first band.
It takes two drinks for a person to get properly lubed for a show. The first is purchased as soon as he or she arrives at the show (in order to get into the flow of the scene), and the second between the first and second band.
Therefore, people are in their best mood for the show right after the first band ends. They are in attendance, and ready to rock. The second band is the beneficiary of this.
Wouldn't the third be better? Well, maybe. People drink more, rock harder, etc. However, people also have jobs and such. It just seems like the crowd peaks during the second and third acts, and then the fourth, ostensibly the headliner, gets the leftovers.
So, go second, unless you are big enough that people will stick around for you regardless what time you go on.
-NO DRUM SOLOS. NO GUITAR SOLOS. NO SHTICK.
Ok, let's add stuff to this list. I'm sick with the flu this weekend, so I feel like writing I'll add more as I think of it.
I'll start with a few from my experience. Please put even the most obvious tricks on the list: I'm hoping this will be a resource for all. This list assumes most of us have read the rules of metal, and deems them true.
Things to bring to the gig:
-Backups of all cables
-Duct tape
-2 sets of strings for each guitars (and a few extra high E strings).
-A Bunch of extra picks
-My band usually brings a single extra amp (like a fender or something smaller) so if someone's rig totally dies, we can still at least play the gig.
-Everyone brings their own tuner
-An extra beater guitar (a strat, say
) as a backup. If you can afford it, buy a few "show" guitars, and leave your real nice stuff at home. You can pick up crappy 7s nowadays for a few hundred dollars. Do it. -And jesus christ, get some earplugs. You will thank me 10 years from now when your can sleep in silence instead of with a constant ringing companion in your ears.
If it is outside and cold:
-Hand warmers
-Don't stand there staring at your guitar. You worked hard to get on that stage. Enjoy your interaction with the crowd. They want to see you perform, not stare at your fingers.
-If you don't have a light show, an industrial worklight will work wonders. Set it on the ground next to the drummer pointing up, and have the rest of the lights turned down. Kind of looks like a strobe. Especially useful if your band primarily stares at their fingers
-If you are playing technical stuff that requires you to have your guitar up under your neck, lengthen your strap and take a trick from Slash and put your foot up on something and then place the butt of your guitar on your thigh, neck straight up. Zakk Wylde does this as well. You can shred with your fingers by your teeth, and still look good. Remember, live is a show. The album is the music
-Club PAs usually SUCK. Super midrange, abusive highs, boomy lows. On top of that, since your shows are packed, all the bodies suck up the highs, making things sound like you are listening through a wet rag. The thing is, it means your sound doesn't sound as good as it does in your bedroom or practice space. I usually try to cut out the bottom end on stage, and let the PA add it back in. What you don't want is that "whump" sound when you chug away on your low B string. Also, tell your bass player to ease up on the distortion. He isn't in Tool. The cleaner the bottom end and bottom midrange, the nicer the experience for your crowd, with the added benefit that your singer can actually hear themselves.
-I know you will hate this, but the DRUMMER is the most important person in the band, especially if you are unknown and playing shitty little clubs. Here is why: by the time your crowd has heard the first band and had a few drinks, combined with screaming in each other's ears to hear their friends, they are hearing nothing but a loud, mooshy buzz in their ears, and pretty much deaf to any nuance.
But they can still feel the drums. Further, most people have an intuitive (if not accurate) feel for how hard drums are to play well: you have to move your hands and feet, right? Finally, the drummer tells the audience when a song starts, ends, climaxes, etc. Your 7 string minor sweep arpeggios don't. In fact, unless you have a good PA, great gear, a good sound guy, and a great room, the crowd can't really hear your soloing anyway. Of course, they could look at your fingers to know your are doing something interesting, but the only person interested in your fingers is you.
Some thoughts on setting up your show:
Usually the shows that I see or play in are 2-4 bands on weekday evenings. For no other reason than tradition, these shows seem to start at about 8:30-9:00 every time, even on work nights. Further, I'm assuming that the bands are essentially local or regional. Obviously, if Slayer is the last band, no one is going to leave.
My personal campaign to start shows a bit earlier aside, if you have a choice, I have figured out that the optimal slot to be in is......
The second spot. Here is the logic. The opening band is usually new, and no one knows them. Further, since all people are chronically late, even their friends will be late (they will be your friends if it is your band
). Finally, anyone who is coming to the show knows this about the first band, so they will try to get there about half way through the first band to get a good spot to see the rest of the bands. That means no one will be there for the first band. It takes two drinks for a person to get properly lubed for a show. The first is purchased as soon as he or she arrives at the show (in order to get into the flow of the scene), and the second between the first and second band.
Therefore, people are in their best mood for the show right after the first band ends. They are in attendance, and ready to rock. The second band is the beneficiary of this.
Wouldn't the third be better? Well, maybe. People drink more, rock harder, etc. However, people also have jobs and such. It just seems like the crowd peaks during the second and third acts, and then the fourth, ostensibly the headliner, gets the leftovers.
So, go second, unless you are big enough that people will stick around for you regardless what time you go on.
-NO DRUM SOLOS. NO GUITAR SOLOS. NO SHTICK.
Ok, let's add stuff to this list. I'm sick with the flu this weekend, so I feel like writing
I'll add more as I think of it.
very important, ive had stuff stolen and its just infuriating
