The reality of playing live is quite a different experience than being in a rehearsal situation. Our producer Carl Rosamond regularly comments “One live appearance is worth 10 rehearsals” and in my view he is 100% correct!
There are many factors as a musician you can take care of that will mitigate against “Murphy’s law” but there are many aspects of performing in these environments that you really can do nothing about. So unless you hand pick your venue, audience and bring your own PA, sound engineer, the chances are that there will be some “unforeseen” elements occurring during the gig!
Essential Gear
I make a point of bringing the excellent Fire Eye Red preamp/DI boxes for all instruments, as well as high quality lava cable leads for the instruments. These take care of one aspect of what can be problematic in terms of sound reproduction and these are easy to take to gigs. It’s of course also essential to take spare batteries, spare strings, multi tool “leatherman” tool and other gadgets! Of course taking products and flyers for social media and gigs is smart. The frustration factors in live situations include PA problems in terms of getting a good sound, and a room that has terrible acoustics! Audiences can also vary massively and its crucial to remember that these days the general attention span of each person is not great. I have attended pub gigs from quite respectable bands where “the audience” talks endlessly throughout the set and are not really there to hear music! This means as a band picking where are who you want to play to…
Playing Original Songs
Playing original music can also be a challenge for many audiences, who often want to hear what is familiar to their ears. I am a great believer in creating and delivering original songs and to date the band have written 30 tracks, 20 of which have been either recorded or are being mastered. I am known for lamenting the number of cover versions that appear online compared to creating original songs! The original songs of today will be the covers for tomorrow… Its also a very different experience being on stage and noticing audience reactions. In a recent duo outing I was intrigued to discover that the a Capella “Amish frame of mind” was superbly received by the audience. This has made me review our live set and discuss with other colleagues how we sequence the set in these situations. Its useful in my view to introduce the songs which makes it more interesting for those who may hear these for the very first time. Stand up comedians refine their material by doing small intimate appearances to work up material. They lament the arrival of IPhone and similar devices as often people start posting this “work in progress” online…
Yes it’s all practice, practice, practice…
I see live gigs in a similar way. They are an opportunity to discover what people respond. Some recorded material doesn’t really translate in a live situation for a variety of reasons. This means it’s a judgement call what to include in the final set and to make sure it flows. Its also useful to have a flexibility in swapping songs if that’s going to work better with a specific audience situation. One thing is certain, it’s all practice and refinement! The good news is that anything can happen and the bad news is that anything can happen!
