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Doomy
Oct 19, 2004
word.

Rotten Cookies posted:

A question I'd like to ask everyone:
What is your stance on letting other bands borrow your poo poo?

I'll let people use my rig if the guys in my band know them well to back them up, or if I know them, or they ask before the date of the gig.

I've had people just come up on stage and expect to use my rig, or ask me right after I finish playing. I flat out tell them no, they should have contacted me before.

Who shows up to play with their band and doesn't secure an amp before hand?

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Walter
Jul 3, 2003

We think they're great. In a grand, mystical, neopolitical sense, these guys have a real message in their music. They don't, however, have neat names like me and Bono.

Does anyone know of a capo that doesn't lead to a minute of extra re-tuning once it's on? I've been having a hell of a time with mine - most of our stuff we play in Eb, but the singer wants to do E for one song (actually, the bassist, who sings the harmony).

But every time I capo my damned guitar, I get strings just out enough that I have to re-tune or suffer some really awful sounds.

Any recommendations? Or am I doing something wrong?

massive spider posted:

I've been gigging with an M13 for a while now, its pretty handy having everything you need right there, it's the most fascitaing thing in the world to drunken arseholes though.

I use an M5 in my pedal board. Thought about an M13, but frankly didn't have the money and already had the other pedals. I like the M5 a lot, though - useful "swiss army knife" pedal.

RizieN
May 15, 2004

and it was still hot.


Got my first gig tonight... Probably going to be drinking Irish coffee all day. I'm pretty stoked, I'll let you guys know about my bowel movements after the show.

Clockwork Sputnik
Nov 6, 2004

24 Hour Party Monster

RizieN posted:

I totally forgot about Sky White from Foxy Shazam!

YouTube some Foxy Shazam for more.

I love not doing it right:


E: Break a leg Rizien

Rotten Cookies
Nov 11, 2008

"Everybody relax. I'm here."


^^^ Is "not doing it right" supposed to be a band, or a description of that picture for What Not To Do: Keyboard Player Edition? Because.... what's wrong with holding a keyboard on your shoulder?

RizieN posted:

Got my first gig tonight... Probably going to be drinking Irish coffee all day. I'm pretty stoked, I'll let you guys know about my bowel movements after the show.

Good luck! And enjoy yourself!



e:vvvvv I didn't mean that in a negative way. I mean... Is there something wrong with playing a keyboard on your shoulder? If so, then I don't wanna be right.

Rotten Cookies fucked around with this message at Apr 26, 2012 around 21:21

Clockwork Sputnik
Nov 6, 2004

24 Hour Party Monster

Rotten Cookies posted:

^^^ Is "not doing it right" supposed to be a band, or a description of that picture for What Not To Do: Keyboard Player Edition? Because.... what's wrong with holding a keyboard on your shoulder?


What Not to Do With A Keyboard: 101, I guess.

During one of my gimick-ier times as a touring DJ. That and the Furbytron and the 151-covered flaming turntables are some of the more "interesting" concepts I trotted out.

Concatenation
Jul 23, 2005

Your human mentality cries out for vengeance and thrives on the violence you say you can hardly endure.

In the gigs I've played, everyone is very happy to lend or borrow all kinds of gear, usually amps. It just makes everything run a lot more smoothly if you're not having to lug a quadbox up a flight of stairs during the piddling 20 minute changeover/soundcheck time. Never had anything stolen, except for some leads that were misplaced or whatever. I consider it a price of doing business.

Walter posted:

Does anyone know of a capo that doesn't lead to a minute of extra re-tuning once it's on? I've been having a hell of a time with mine - most of our stuff we play in Eb, but the singer wants to do E for one song (actually, the bassist, who sings the harmony).

But every time I capo my damned guitar, I get strings just out enough that I have to re-tune or suffer some really awful sounds.


I have a G7th, and it's pretty good, better than my Shubb as it doesn't require any seperate adjustment. I haven't gigged with it though. http://www.g7th.com/

Walter posted:

I'm curious, how many of you use a pedalboard or rack effects in a live setting? I see a lot of what come off as really snobby posts on other guitar-related forums, in the vein of posting pictures of a tuner or volume pedal in "let's post our pedalboards" threads and the like.

How many of you who perform use added effects beyond your amp's dirty channel when you play live? Rack? Pedalboards? Bueller?

At least in my local (metal) scene, everyone has some combination of a noise gate, boost (usually a tubescreamer) and tuner pedal. I haven't seen anyone use much more than that.

Concatenation fucked around with this message at Apr 27, 2012 around 11:44

RizieN
May 15, 2004

and it was still hot.


So the show was pretty sick last night. I did take a gnarly poo poo before the show and felt great.

The first opening act actually bailed, but she was from Nashville TN, we're in Cincinnati, so I can understand (considering the location/venue, it's not really conducive to her genre). The band that did open for us drove like 4 hours to play this show, and they played some cover songs, but on the third cover the venue shut them down citing ASCAP and rights and stuff. Was kind of weird that they played covers because their promoter kept saying (when we asked how long their set was) "they're all original songs", which actually doesn't mean anything to me because all of our songs are original and one is 15 loving minutes. But they put on a good show and were cool about getting shut down.

The only bad thing was the sound guy hosed up and the keyboard cut out a few times and the guitar was too loud and he wouldn't turn it down, or turn the keys up. They wouldn't let us use our big rear end speakers because their speakers/PA system was "the best around town", but our speakers were definitely better. It was also supposed to be free before 11 but they charged everyone who came through the door anyway. Also we didn't get free drinks, we got "a dollar off" which didn't actually happen either.

Whatever though the show was pretty kick rear end, we rocked the gently caress out and everyone said they loved it and our show was pretty unique so thats cool. Hopefully we'll book some proper venues next time. Well, the venue was proper, but the people running the stuff weren't on the ball so much, but whatever.

RizieN fucked around with this message at Apr 27, 2012 around 14:38

burritonegro
Jul 15, 2009


Congrats, sounds like a successful show - a great thing for a first gig.

Regarding the venue, there will be better ones, but that kind of behavior is super common. When I first started out and didn't know better, we'd play places where the sound guy would leave sound check to smoke outside during the entire set.

gypsyshred
Oct 23, 2006


burritonegro posted:

Congrats, sounds like a successful show - a great thing for a first gig.

Regarding the venue, there will be better ones, but that kind of behavior is super common. When I first started out and didn't know better, we'd play places where the sound guy would leave sound check to smoke outside during the entire set.

I never understood why that happens. Its not like there is big money in running sound, if you don't like the job, don't do it.

saigon_15
Jan 6, 2006



RizieN posted:

Also we didn't get free drinks, we got "a dollar off" which didn't actually happen either.

gently caress this loving bullshit. Even if you can't pay the bands you provide them with a basic hot meal and a few drinks damnit.

RizieN
May 15, 2004

and it was still hot.


Yea I thought it was kind of weak, ALL of my preferred venues give bands free drinks. Also we didn't get paid because not enough people showed up to even pay the sound guy the full amount he wanted (bands split 100% of whats collected at the door, minus the sound guy's fee). So I didn't leave a tip for the drinks I did buy.

I'm not actually complaining, it was a show (our first) that we got to play, and a decent amount of people did show up for our set and see what we've been working on lately. Also got to see what kinks we'll need to iron out for the next show, like getting a better case for my midi controller so I don't break another slider in transportation.

The Bananana
May 21, 2008

This is a metaphor, a Christian allegory. The fact that I have to explain to you that Jesus is the Warthog, and the Banana is drepanocytosis is just embarrassing for you.

saigon_15 posted:

gently caress this loving bullshit. Even if you can't pay the bands you provide them with a basic hot meal and a few drinks damnit.

I played a gig last week, and after we played, almost as we were getting ready to leave, I discovered the green room(!), which no one told us about, and my Guitarist was flagged down by a waitress who was "trying to find us all night" to give us our 10 free drinks voucher... hmm...

A Touch of Satan
Apr 6, 2009


After practicing in garages for a year and some change, my band is finally gigging pretty consistently. We go for a New York Dolls/Ramones kind of vibe, so I'm always jumping around and dancing when I don't have to stick to a mic. We're big on cheesy stage dialogue. We don't take ourselves seriously and it makes people react positively. We saw Foxy Shazam with The Darkness a couple months ago and it really got us inspired to make the show a real stage performance.

Had our biggest show yet over the weekend. Our city closed off a couple blocks and set up a stage, had a few dance crew and poetry acts before they sent us up. Last year this event drew around 1300 people, this year it was 40 degrees and I doubt even a hundred people were still toughing it out by the time we started our set. I didn't let us discourage me too much, but it's definitely a buzz killer when you're expecting to play to a packed street and nobody shows. Regardless, we gave it our all and people really appreciate that.

Always have to excuse myself from the band a few hours before the gig to poo poo. It's just good to know that it's taken care of.

There's an element of a gig that you just can't replicate in practice, so don't worry too much about how you look your first gig. Play the music right, get a feel for the pressure of a live performance.

RizieN
May 15, 2004

and it was still hot.


After my first gig the other night I found that I loving love the feeling of anxiety about to go on stage, then being up there in front of everybody and just rocking the gently caress out. I feel weird now though, because we don't have another show lined up yet and for the last three weeks I was preparing for our first show, so I almost feel like I don't have anything to do, even though I need to keep writing and practicing. I really want some more shows.

Froodulous
Feb 29, 2008

Hey, head pigeon, is this a bad post?


RizieN posted:

After my first gig the other night I found that I loving love the feeling of anxiety about to go on stage, then being up there in front of everybody and just rocking the gently caress out. I feel weird now though, because we don't have another show lined up yet and for the last three weeks I was preparing for our first show, so I almost feel like I don't have anything to do, even though I need to keep writing and practicing. I really want some more shows.

You've been bitten by the bug. There's nothing quite like playing live for a crowd. need to start a new band or something. Playing percussion in a concert band just isn't the same.

A Touch of Satan
Apr 6, 2009


RizieN posted:

After my first gig the other night I found that I loving love the feeling of anxiety about to go on stage, then being up there in front of everybody and just rocking the gently caress out. I feel weird now though, because we don't have another show lined up yet and for the last three weeks I was preparing for our first show, so I almost feel like I don't have anything to do, even though I need to keep writing and practicing. I really want some more shows.

Real rocker, you are not alone. First gig, I had no idea what to expect from myself once I got onstage, whether I would be too nervous to sing or if I'd just piss myself or what. The second I got up there it vanished, I was 100% into it. Once it was over, I didn't want it to be. The next couple days after that, my band didn't meet and I was completely listless, bordering on depressed. It's not an option for me anymore, I need to gig. I wish you all the best in finding more shows!

Walter
Jul 3, 2003

We think they're great. In a grand, mystical, neopolitical sense, these guys have a real message in their music. They don't, however, have neat names like me and Bono.

So we had our first show last Saturday. It went all right, but I wasn't really happy with my playing.

I made a lot of stupid mistakes, including some glaring ones in quiet moments when I was basically the only one playing. I wasn't the only one who hosed something up, but still, it's frustrating as hell. I pin part of it on the fact that we were playing outside in the direct sun, and some of the issues I had were problems with my guitars (which had nowhere to be but in the sun with me) not wanting to stay in tune.

And to be fair, the second set was better than the first, so things did improve. And we managed to get three different requests to book us for upcoming shows, including a private party. So it couldn't have been all bad, I guess.

Either way, our bassist (who has some decent connections around town from playing in previous bands) booked us a show on the 12th. We have two practices before then, dammit.

I know the material, as do we all, but I'm now worried about completely loving up. I know I'm over-worrying, but still... I would have liked a better first show to boost the confidence a little more.

Froodulous
Feb 29, 2008

Hey, head pigeon, is this a bad post?


Sounds like the crowd liked it, since you got booking requests. Self-critique can help you improve, but you tend to notice every little mistake you make. You can get away with a hell of a lot of errors without ruining the show for the audience.

A Touch of Satan
Apr 6, 2009


Froodulous posted:

Sounds like the crowd liked it, since you got booking requests. Self-critique can help you improve, but you tend to notice every little mistake you make. You can get away with a hell of a lot of errors without ruining the show for the audience.

This. You can make all sorts of mistakes live and people don't notice, especially people who haven't heard you before. My band has crashed and had to restart songs, but as long as you're quick and don't make a big deal about it, nobody thinks anything of it. If you can roll with it and remember to never apologize, people won't care or may even find it endearing.

massive spider
Dec 6, 2006

sets off a "weirdly specific fetish artwork" vibe

The thing to remember is that the crowd (for the most part) wants you to do well, they want you to pick up and keep going after a mishap and to do your best.

Maybe there are some gigs where maybe the crowd hates you, but then welp you're pretty much hosed regardlesss.

massive spider fucked around with this message at May 2, 2012 around 17:06

Doomy
Oct 19, 2004
word.

A Touch of Satan posted:

If you can roll with it and remember to never apologize, people won't care or may even find it endearing.

One of the most true things I've read in this thread. Hearing a band apologize for loving up, or stopping mid-song, that's just awkward.

Phthisis
Apr 16, 2007

Scoped and dropped...mate!


Yeah, one of the biggest things I've learned from performing in any way (not just music) is to never acknowledge your mistakes in any way, not even a half-second facial expression. The audience is there for a show, and they want you to do well. Something that isn't fun is watching someone who is clearly nervous or struggling or anything like that. A few wrong notes here or there doesn't effect the overall feel and enjoyment of the show, but reacting to your mistakes or even mentioning them really puts a damper on it, and is what ends up killing it.

Walter
Jul 3, 2003

We think they're great. In a grand, mystical, neopolitical sense, these guys have a real message in their music. They don't, however, have neat names like me and Bono.

/\/\/\
That's something I've known pretty much forever. Never cop to a mistake. Keep going as though you meant to do it. It's something I've practiced a lot, actually, to make sure I don't flinch when I hit a nasty note.

A Touch of Satan posted:

This. You can make all sorts of mistakes live and people don't notice, especially people who haven't heard you before. My band has crashed and had to restart songs, but as long as you're quick and don't make a big deal about it, nobody thinks anything of it. If you can roll with it and remember to never apologize, people won't care or may even find it endearing.

I appreciate these comments, they're helping immensely with overall confidence. I suppose that's true, you don't get booking requests if you suck.

It's funny you mention killing songs. We don't do anything special, just covers, but because one tune has me droning off an open B string (and the sun-exposure had knocked my tuning out a little), I started the song and had to kill it, flat out. "Hold it... I'm out! Gimme a sec."

I thought I was going to die, but really, what the hell else do you do? Play a whole song with a flat string? Gah.

Twiin
Nov 11, 2003

King of Suck!

One of the best pieces of performance advice I ever got was: When you make a mistake, do whatever it was you did wrong two more times. Everyone will absolutely think it's on purpose.

Walter
Jul 3, 2003

We think they're great. In a grand, mystical, neopolitical sense, these guys have a real message in their music. They don't, however, have neat names like me and Bono.

Twiin posted:

One of the best pieces of performance advice I ever got was: When you make a mistake, do whatever it was you did wrong two more times. Everyone will absolutely think it's on purpose.

When playing a solo during the show I posted about above, I hit a sour note. No so sour that it wrecked the music, but not what I intended.

I played it twice. Intentionally. And then bent the note eventually to what I had been planning initially.

Hogscraper
Nov 6, 2004

Audio master


@RizieN Where the hell did you play so I can avoid it? Ha!

Srly though, good job on getting out there. Do a few lovely shows in the trenches and I'll see what I can do about getting you tacked onto a slightly better show at the Drinkery, MOTR, or Mayday. You may not get paid but you'd probably score some drinks and a few more fans.

Also, look into the Comet. If you're not too scared to play a weekday gig I almost guarantee you can get a date here. Getting a weekend gig there is going to be tough before you proved you could bring some people in during a tough weeknight. Free admission, bands get to split a percentage of the bar sales, and you get a few free drinks and a free burrito. Score!

RizieN
May 15, 2004

and it was still hot.


It was the Mad Frog, and I completely expected it to be like that. My wife's friends and some friends from Automagik showed up and a few kids I didn't know showed up, so we had a pretty good mix of a crowd from friends and strangers.

I've shot off emails to pretty much every venue I like (Northside, Mayday, Comet, Drinkery, Japps, MOTR etc) This project is a little weird though, its 2 of us doing an all heavy psych rock instrumental set with visuals that are kind of narrative. None of our friends or anyone showing up knew what the show was gonna look like, and apparently we made a girl get emotional and cry with the last song so that was cool. The set opens heavy, hard and fast, the rock and roll stays for a while, then we close with this long epic song that goes from dark and heavy into some light really uplifting triumphant sounds. My wife said it was kind of flaming lips-ish in that regard, but I think that's a good thing.

I think when we get our "normal" rock band together(which is when we find a reliable drummer & bassist) it'll be easier to book shows, because people just don't really know what our current show is gonna be like until they see it, and it really is unlike anything I've seen on a local level. But I thought it was pretty epic and apparently so did everyone who came out. We're going to keep doing the project as it's own entity when we get our "normal" band together though.

I'd be stoked if you could hook us up somewhere semi-decent with an audience that's into the same kind of sounds, right now I don't even care about money, I'm addicted to playing live in front of people. I do like the Comet, but we like to play pretty loud and even established bands kind of have a hard time getting kids from clifton to drive north of the Tavern, but it's whatever I just wanna play.

Speaking of booking again, where's the line between nagging someone too much and just following up? I haven't done any follow up yet, but I think I should at least send one more email, maybe a few weeks after the first email?

RizieN fucked around with this message at May 3, 2012 around 17:08

Jackson1160
Jul 29, 2011


RizieN got any videos of your band? Sounds pretty amazing. First gig I did when I was younger was horrid. It was at a dinky club and we were using they're amps. Well when it came time for a clean part...lordy. The thing was stuck on heavy distortion. So cue young me clueless just standing there. That was truly something awful.

RizieN
May 15, 2004

and it was still hot.


Unfortunately no, I forgot a loving power cable and had to run home, so I got back to the venue when sound check was over and didn't have time to set up the camera, next show we're gonna record for sure, especially because if you see I think people will get the idea better and we could book more gigs. I'll post here after the next show, which I actually got two responses from venues today, so that's sweet!

Hogscraper
Nov 6, 2004

Audio master


I was about to say you need some video you can point booking dudes to.

As far as follow up goes I'd say e-mail plus call. Then if you don't hear for a few days e-mail plus call again maybe two more times. I'd say if you don't get a response that's pretty much a flat out no. Just roll with it and try again with another event later. Try not to be TOO professional sounding and know going into it that they mostly don't give a poo poo what your band sounds like just that you can get people through the door.

As far as loudness at the Comet goes I saw Jucifer there a couple of times and they played with their giant wall of amps. Pretty much half of the venue was filled with guitar cabs.

RizieN
May 15, 2004

and it was still hot.


Yea, Mayday actually got back to me seeing if they can find a fit for June or July, and I have friends with bands that'll fit so I really hope that one goes through, I love mayday.

We might film ourselves just performing, not at a live show, to have video to show, so maybe I'll do that sooner rather than later.

e; the Comet thing sounds reassuring. I know the Harlequins are paying there all month (Tuesdays) and they play kind of loud. I honestly haven't hung out there in like 2 years so I should stop by soon.

RizieN fucked around with this message at May 4, 2012 around 00:53

Summit
Mar 6, 2004

David wanted you to have this.

I did my first gig about 1.5 years ago and boy how things have changed already. I remember that first gig I was absolutely paralyzed with nerves and could do nothing but stand completely still and play my parts - if I could even pull that off. If this type of thing doesn't come naturally to you there's really only one cure for it: keep playing out til you become comfortable in front of a crowd.

Also, I've found that moving around ALL THE TIME, even by myself, helps a shitload. If not to get into the habit then to practice the feeling of playing while you swing your instrument around. It's not a natural thing to do and I found just pacing around the room while I practice at home helps immensely.

I'm better now but not perfect. I could stand to move around more, especially playing in a 3-piece rock band. I move around a low-average to average amount now, but as with anything else you really have to do things over the top to stand out.

Edit: I'll also say that I think every member of the band should rock out / move around / do something. Just because you are not the 'front man' or you're not taking a solo is no excuse. People expect you to move around and look as if you're into what you're doing. Even if you are in your head if you can't sell it you will have a much tougher time keeping people coming back. This is a lesson I have struggled to learn myself but it's absolutely true. I've watched so many bands that play like absolute garbage but they freak the gently caress out on stage and people love it. Fighting it because 'it's about the music mannn' seems great until you're playing to 5-9 people every time you go out. That poo poo gets old quick.

Summit fucked around with this message at May 4, 2012 around 01:12

GRBass
Apr 25, 2008


Have a solo show coming up next saturday that I'm really looking forward to, though the singers dad isn't doing so good right now so anything can happen between now and then. Also have a show with gently caress the Facts on the 23rd that should be awesome. This summer should prove to be pretty eventful for us should things go well. unfortunately my band has been plagued with a serious case of "life happens" as of late. Our E.P was well received locally when it came out. We won a battle of the bands to get a chance to open for Kiss, which was awesome. We had pretty much had the first full length in the can when that gig took place except for some vocal touch ups that needed to be done. Then the album release, mastering and duplication, took a long time because of a plethora of reason. Some of which were my dad had gotten incredibly ill and passed away within a span of 4 or 5 months, the guitar player had a son, and just over all money issues. We managed to get the album out before the end of 2011, and have a cd release show which was amazing. the beginning of the year hasn't been so kind though as living in northern ontario and having icy steps our first gigs were ruined by our singer slipping and trashing his back on his concrete stairs. After all of that though, within the last month we've played with kittie on a memorial show for a local musician that passed away, and have a bunch of nice gigs lined up. So, things are starting to look up for the first time in a long while. that is of course if all goes well for the singer's dad, which I'm hoping they do because I know how hard it is to have that poo poo happen and try and stay enthusiastic about things. On the good side my uncle has a car customization company that does car shows and he asked if we'd come play at his company's booth in quebec city pretty much all expenses paid... I think we'd have to be pretty retarded to pass up that offer...

Hogscraper
Nov 6, 2004

Audio master


@RizieN Yeah, I don't go to the Comet that often myself but they do treat bands pretty well there.

I want to add this just because it's fresh in my memory and possibly it will help anyone dealing with pre show jitters.

My band just announced we're calling that project quits after 7 years this week. Don't apologize! I'm not terribly upset about it. Anyway, if you read through the Facebook announcement comments it's all variations of "Man, you guys were the best live band I have EVER seen". I read these comments and say to myself "really?! the best you've ever seen?". It's hard for me to swallow but I will share the 3 keys to my personal success that I hope you all can build on.

1. Move around the entire time
2. Don't dress like your audience
3. Be a smarmy, charming motherfucker and unapologetically tell a bad joke or three.

...and you have to unapologetically be able to do all three in front of 5, 500, or 5,000 people consistently.

Every band I've ever adored live had these three things going for them in some way or another and I hope you guys all do the same and people tell YOU that your band is the best live band they've ever seen. It's really not as hard to pull off as it may seem.

As a related aside to this I went out tonight and saw Daikaiju live for the second time. It would absolutely STUN you how much charisma you could have with no vocals, no banter, and no face (they wear kabuki masks). They made 75 people sit down on a dirty rear end sticky bar floor without uttering a single word. Amazing!

It's all a confidence thing I suppose. Don't think, just do it.

snorch
Jul 27, 2009


Walter posted:

When playing a solo during the show I posted about above, I hit a sour note. No so sour that it wrecked the music, but not what I intended.

I played it twice. Intentionally. And then bent the note eventually to what I had been planning initially.

Vic Wooten has a bit on his Groove Workshop DVD that explains precisely this trick, basically under the headline of "there are no wrong notes".

Summit
Mar 6, 2004

David wanted you to have this.

I'm curious what other bands do for promoting shows. What is most effective?

We have the obligatory Facebook so we can message anyone who's liked us there, and we created an event for the show. Do flyers work? Where do you put them? I guess I've never personally gone to a show based on a flyer, so it's hard to wrap my head around it working. Another band we know goes to shows in their same genre and passes out their own flyers outside, and that seems to be working for them.

Rotten Cookies
Nov 11, 2008

"Everybody relax. I'm here."


Summit posted:

I'm curious what other bands do for promoting shows. What is most effective?

We have the obligatory Facebook so we can message anyone who's liked us there, and we created an event for the show. Do flyers work? Where do you put them? I guess I've never personally gone to a show based on a flyer, so it's hard to wrap my head around it working. Another band we know goes to shows in their same genre and passes out their own flyers outside, and that seems to be working for them.

Going to see other bands in your genre seems to work. If only because of this.
If you're present in your scene, people will recognize you and know you. If other bands like you, then the other bands' friends and fans will like you. Steal other bands' fans.

And while I've never gone to a show purely off seeing a flyer, it does get you in people's heads. They might not go to a show, but the next time they see you on a lineup they'll think "Ohhhh poo poo, I've heard of them!" So there are bonuses to that.

RizieN
May 15, 2004

and it was still hot.


If you live near a college campus throw the fliers up there, otherwise you could throw em up in stores and similar bar/venues with permission. People might not go to a show based on a flier, but if the flier is cool and they look at it, and later on someone drops your band's name or they see you on a bill they'll remember seeing the flier and might think "hmm, maybe I should check it out..."

And you absolutely must go out and support other local bands so that they'll be more inclined to support you, or think of you when booking a gig. I've made a lot of new friends from doing this, and a lot of new friends in similar bands all trying to gig the same locations. Its a scratch my back scratch yours kind of thing.

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Sarx
May 27, 2007

The Marksman

I'm really glad this thread exists. I tried to start a thread about touring here a year or so ago thinking there might be a fair amount of touring musicians on SA but there wasn't demand for it.

I've been playing gigs across the U.S. for the last two and a half years trying to slowly grind out a fan base.

One thing that musicians should always have is an email list. The email list catches everyone who was too drunk to remember the show or who couldn't afford your CD but would like to later. It is super important to have this or you're really making it hard on yourself to make new fans.

Also, in this day and age, you want to engage your fans when they come to talk to you after your set. A million people have albums they could steal and download, but they just got an experience from you and you want to cash in on that while its fresh. Talk to them and find out what they're usually into and why they like your stuff, its like free market research.

Another thing is the days of the merch booth are dying. You need to grab merch and walk the crowd with it. You will find that there are people who loved your set, but aren't used to buying music because most bands they know are easily accessible to pirate or are just plain shy.

There are a few ways to take credit cards via smartphones. Get one of these worked out. A lot of people just don't carry cash, but want to buy your music.

The last thing is show touring acts love. If you are playing with out of town acts, hook them up with as much of the payout as you can, and let them play the middle time-slots of the night. If you have spare space for them to crash and they aren't super shady, offer it up. You will find this kind of hospitality in a lot of places when you are on the road, and the independent music scene needs this sort of system to survive. Also, if all your CDs are free giveaways and the touring act is trying to sell theirs for gas money, wait to announce your free giveaway so they have time to move product before you undercut them. Also, talk to them about tacking on their merch with yours, so if you have a good friend that wants to buy your band's new t-shirt, you can say something like "Did you like that second band? For five more dollars I'll throw in their album?"

I'm sure I'll think of some other insights I've picked up on over the 500 shows I've done in the last few years but that's a good start.

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