From the outside for many people being in a band and playing in a band can seem wonderfully glamorous. New aspiring artists can often travel for hours for a few minutes “exposure” to play to other human beings. I applaud the enthusiasm, but for those musicians “playing the long game” , there’s a really unglamorous aspect that like any undertaking amounts to a great deal of work, often for little reward or thanks…
That said, I wouldn’t have it any other way and like all worthwhile ventures you have to put in the work if you want to achieve good results.
Here are some thoughts based on observations and personal experience –
Work with like minds in creating music
In any activity that involves other people, and especially when organizing a band, if there is any chance of long term success, its always smart to work with like minds.
When I say “like minds” I don’t just mean musically, its also important to work with people where there is a sensible sharing of labour. In any group its important that everyone brings something useful to the table.
Some people may be better at organisation than others, that’s fine, as long as there is an equal (or as close as possible) division of labour. Its also important to work with booking agents that have some insight into what is needed to create a great audience experience. Of course its naive to believe you will always find like minds, but it does make for a smoother ride and helps preserve your own personal sanity! Seek out people who have a similar vision and real skills.
It’s not enough to create great songs
These days creating great music is unfortunately not enough. To reach an audience you need to be aware of how to use social media and how to connect with your audience. If you are clueless about this, then either learn the skills needed or delegate to someone who knows what to do. Unless you are signed to a record company, you’ll need to spend a fair amount of time positioning your band. My own experience is that “the back end’of what you do which includes a website, social media, blogging etc is essential. Simply playing a few gigs is not gonna cut it long term if you want to reach a bigger audience. If you have a band FB page that is static at 300 – 400, that’s not gonna cut it in terms of outside attention.
My own experience is to date all good playing opportunities have come from having a good online presence and good video. I’d love to think that creating great music is enough, but it most certainly is not the case. Working on “the back end” and organizing a band is very time consuming and for every hour on stage there’s often ten times that amount dealing with promotional aspects. I spoke to a seasoned artist in recent times who packed in touring to work in a full time job as this aspect of the music business was so time consuming and it was inevitably all being dome on a voluntary basis!
Not every live opportunity is a good opportunity
This seems basic sense, right? Well, actually not always…
In the early days of performing, live performances can be invaluable regardless of whether there is any financial reward. As you develop as a band, its useful to balance time and money and ensure that there is some benefit to playing live. My own experience in organizing a band is that some opportunities can be great at the time, but later are not such good investments. This means constantly reviewing best use of time and energy. I have blogged in the past about set times at festivals and the importance of good sound on stage. If you discover that certain playing environments have a host of adverse factors that mitigate against delivering a good performance, then its time to reconsider.
Personally being limited to a maximum set time of 20 minutes with no assurance of good sound on stage is not the best plan. Its simply not possible to show the band in any reasonable light and not worth the stress. This may be easier for solo performers, but with a band there are a number of ingredients in creating the music. When everything works in unison, its truly magical fro those on stage and for the listening audience. When organizing a band, time is precious, so its essential to make the best use of it and really pick when and where to play live. Its also useful to associate with promoters who share similar views so the working relationship is productive. Finding smart promoters with good business sense is tougher than you might imagine. I have seen extreme examples of this, the best promoter to date being Eudoro who runs very successful guitar festivals in Portugal. When my band played Lagoa Guitar Festival, the sound engineering was superb and we were well paid for our time.
Time and Money
I have always had a policy of paying band members for rehearsal time and for live performances even if the venue is not offering a fee. Fortunately I don’t have to rely upon music as supplying a my primary income stream! Being able to fund recording sessions and good equipment, means we can work at a faster pace. Time management is always a major challenge. You’d be amazed how hard it is to get even four people in one place at one time. I often think “Thank god we’re not a 12 piece band”
Planning recording sessions and arranging gigs means a great deal of coordination and planning. If you can’t balance the whole time and money equation, at some point you are going to have real problems. This can be tricky as often promoters want to pay nothing or the absolute minimum for bands. I know of a number of successful artists who threw in the towel after realizing that it was for them too little a reward for the effort. Its not all about income, but even if you are playing “for the love of the music” you still have to pay the rent and that means having some business considerations. I’m lucky to play with some brilliant musicians including Dave Bowie and Rich Ferdi pictured above from the latest “Tales for Dark and Light” recording sessions.
Have a point of view and stick to it
I have realized that “the music business” like any business, requires proper definition of intentions and a plan of action. I greatly respect artists that have a point of view rather than those that try to be all things to all people. In some niche circles like the ukulele world, there are some really excellent professional musicians who are a joy to work with and interact with. Many have found there way onto The Original Ukulele Songs platform and written articles. There are also many status seekers that crave attention and feel they need to be top of the imaginary pecking order! This can create some “interesting discussions” (I’m being polite) I’m always a fan of honest discussion and debate and think that’s quite healthy. That said, some people struggle to respect different points of view and this can result in all manner of online tantrums! My advice is don’t engage with such characters and quietly stick to your own point of view. Most artists that I love have always done this sometimes to the dismay of record companies and fans.
Don’t have your egg in one basket
There is an old saying “Trust in Allah, but tie up your camel”
This is certainly true for organizing a band. Regardless of best intentions, always have a plan b and preferably a plan c. Organizing a band is a bit like herding cats at times. Don’t get me wrong, its a terrific experience (well most of the time) but inevitably whenever you involve other people there will be instances where you need to review what you are doing. Often musicians will be in more than one band, so there can be a lot of plate spinning. I actually think that having a couple of different musical ensembles is no bad thing as sometimes band members can be out of action, so having deps and/or a back up plan is essential. Different musicians and writing partnerships can spark very different ideas in wonderfully unexpected ways. In recent times the new “Tales of Dark and Light” project has highlighted this aspect. Its also meant spinning many more plates and is without doubt my most ambitious project to date.
Setting up and clearing away at gigs
One of the key tasks in organizing a band is figuring out the equipment you need. Yes, individual members hopefully have their own gear, but there still needs to be some overall coordination. Some venues offer easy access, whereas others can be more problematic. I used to use a Fender Twin Reverb amp that was a nightmare to shift due to its weight. These days Henriksen have saved the day with their brilliant sonically superb light amps. I know some acoustic players like to just plug into a PA, but often this can result in a terrible sound often through a Radio Shack basic DI box.
The Fire Eye Development preamps solve many such problems, especially when playing overseas, so life is just a bit easier in terms of shifting gear. This setting up and clearing away gear is often not a great deal of fun, but a much needed evil. This is also where you discover if there is good distribution of labour in the band, so you are not left on your own while fellow band members head to the bar leaving you to do all the work!
Pesky details are everything
Its been said “the devil is in the detail” Often paying attention to detail is very time consuming, BUT if you want to create a good lasting impression, this is essential. Use of good photos and visuals are really important and this is a key part of organizing a band. If you are going to release an album, check nobody has used the exact same album name especially in recent years. A simple Google search will help with that. Most of this is basic common sense, but then sense is not always that common in such situations. I’m a fan of not blasting out poor quality video and audio and IMO its better to ensure that everything is released with a purpose in mind, ie organised thinking.
Conclusion
Creating and performing music is a real joy, BUT its also hard work. As they say in show business “It takes ten years to become an overnight success” Those with good focus, stamina and talent will do better than those who imagine its gonna be like some “X Factor” trip. Some of what I see in the music world makes no sense to me at all, but there are some terrific performers out there and its a real joy to connect with so many people on an international basis. The BIG project will accelerate this process of course and I have already stared contacting people about it.
organizing a band