#1626773 - 06/25/03 04:24 PM
Dedication levels?
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mstreck
Gold Member
Registered: 12/27/02
Posts: 876
Loc: MD
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So here we are!... I was one of those guys who emailed requesting this type of forum... glad to see it materialize!
Here's my question:
How DEDICATED are your fellow band-mates to the cause? I mean in terms of time, money, level of preparedness, etc.
I'll break things down for you with my band. I will toot my own horn first. Let's see if you can guess what happens at the end...:
Electric guitar player (me) - always looking for new material, goes to see other bands practice, mixing our demos, pitching the band to clubs, designing business cards, t-shirt logos, webmaster, posting on message boards  . I own a full PA and have invested thousands of dollars into the band. I have never missed a practice in two years. First to arrive and last one to leave. Taking lessons and practicing my fingers off in my spare time (because I REALLY do need to!)
Drummer - We practice at his house - also has never missed a practice . He also owns a full PA and has invested thousands of dollars into equipment. He buys beer for everyone at practices and never asks for anything in return (and that's a LOT of beer!). Has connections and is always getting the word out for us.
Acoustic guitar player - drives 45 minutes to come to practice. Always prepared at practice! Owns quality equipment. Missed 1 practice in two years.
Bass player - drives TWO HOURS to practice. Owns quality equipment. Always prepared at practice. Has missed 2 practices. ALSO, plays his violin on "Dust in the Wind" and other songs. The violin is worth thousands of dollars and he is willing to expose it to smoke and other practice and bar-type elements.
Female vocalist - drives a half hour to practice. Missed two practices. Always prepared. Has invested zero money in the band, but HAS invested a lot of time looking for new material AND cleaning up our mess after practices... thank you, Courtney! 
Male Vocalist - drives 5 minutes to practice. Has missed at least 10 practices. Has used lyric sheets during gigs. Has invested zero in the band. Last to arrive and the first to leave.
As you can see, everything goes downhill when we get to the vocalist with the most stage time. WTF???? Is everybody's lead singer like this?
Or are the rest of us the exception instead of the rule?
As an afterthought, why is it that the two of us who can LEAST afford it are the ones who have invested so much money? Or is it because we have invested so much money that we can least afford it? 
Mike
_________________________
Petting Hendrix Do you know what it's like to fall in the mud and get kicked in the head by an iron boot? Of course you don't--no one does--that never happens.
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#1626774 - 06/25/03 05:12 PM
Re: Dedication levels?
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Tom Capasso
MP Hall of Fame Member
Registered: 04/30/01
Posts: 7683
Loc: east meadow,NY,UNITED STATES
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Mike,
Sounds tough. I'm guessing, but I'll bet if the male vocalist did as much as the female vocalist (no investment, but time spent in preparation and not missing practices), you'd be OK. Missing practice drags the band down, because there are expectations that aren't being met. We go to rehearsal prepared to work, to make music to the best of our abilities, and to have fun. Someone that isn't reliable kills the band's spirit.
Sounds like you guys need to chat...
Tom
_________________________
www.stoneflyrocks.com Be practical as well as generous in your ideals. Keep your eyes on the stars and keep your feet on the ground. - Theodore Roosevelt
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#1626775 - 06/25/03 07:14 PM
Re: Dedication levels?
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mstreck
Gold Member
Registered: 12/27/02
Posts: 876
Loc: MD
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Originally posted by Tom Capasso:
Mike,
Sounds tough. I'm guessing, but I'll bet if the male vocalist did as much as the female vocalist (no investment, but time spent in preparation and not missing practices), you'd be OK. Missing practice drags the band down, because there are expectations that aren't being met. We go to rehearsal prepared to work, to make music to the best of our abilities, and to have fun. Someone that isn't reliable kills the band's spirit.
Sounds like you guys need to chat...
Tom
We even talked about having an "intervention" but he missed that rehearsal!!!
Thanks for the input,
Mike
_________________________
Petting Hendrix Do you know what it's like to fall in the mud and get kicked in the head by an iron boot? Of course you don't--no one does--that never happens.
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#1626776 - 06/25/03 08:25 PM
Re: Dedication levels?
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Rick K.
Platinum Member
Registered: 07/05/01
Posts: 1659
Loc: phoenix,AZ,UNITED STATES
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Mike,
IIRC, you've been having problems with this guy for awhile now. I think it was you. We had the same dilema 6 months ago. We fixed that problem and now we're a MUCH better group. It's been SOOOO nice to be with a group that actually has fun performing again!
Rick
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#1626777 - 06/25/03 11:19 PM
Re: Dedication levels?
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mark_dog
Gold Member
Registered: 09/19/02
Posts: 536
Loc: cleveland
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I'm in High school currently. Me and the drummer are really serious but the rest just do it for fun.
I'm the guitar player and backing vocals. I invest what I can when I can. I'm would never miss a practice without a few days notice. Drummer invests what he can. We practice at his house so he won't miss a practice. Bass man misses a few practices but he's ready when we need him to be. Singer comes to most practices and has his own PA. Other guitarist is pretty cheap but comes to practices.
We don't really gig yet. We just kind of show up in random places and play: garages, parking lots, other places.
We have 2 three hour practices on the weekends and scedual other practices when we can. We are going to start playing at clubs and stuff pretty soon.
Yeah definatly talk to the singer. He is out of line and is most likely bringing you all down.
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#1626778 - 06/26/03 11:10 AM
Re: Dedication levels?
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daviel
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Registered: 12/11/00
Posts: 1805
Loc: Waxahachie,TX, USA
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I don't think you should let a singer, or any other member, hold the band hostage. What if you have 75% of your repetoire built around him and he fails to show up at a gig? Let him go. It'll be better when he's gone. Nobody's that good, IMHO.
_________________________
"It was a beautiful day, the sun beat down.I had the radio on, I was drivin'
The trees went by, me and del were singin a little runaway, I was flyin' "
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#1626779 - 06/26/03 01:03 PM
Re: Dedication levels?
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Lee Flier
10k Club
Registered: 09/13/00
Posts: 15398
Loc: Atlanta,GA,UNITED STATES
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That's all it really takes is one weak link to drag a whole band down. Sometimes it's understood that one member doesn't have as much time or money to invest as the others, and as long as everybody knows up front, it can be worked around. But people who don't show up for stuff, or consistently come to rehearsals or gigs unprepared, that kind of thing is inexcusable.
All of us in my band have had rotten experiences with previous band members who had little grasp or reality or were just plain lazy. Our drummer has a full time day job, wife, kid, etc. and still makes plenty of time to play, shows up on time for everything, helps set up and tear down, etc. So he was pretty rankled when his last band's lead singer, who lived right down the street from the practice space (while our drummer had to drive for 45 minutes in traffic after work), would show up late or cancel on a regular basis, not learn any new material, etc.
Our drummer doesn't have time to go out to the clubs and "network" and do the band business like the other two of us do, but we don't have a problem with that. He brings the PA to gigs that require it, and in general has a great work ethic. And he'll pitch in if we really need him to run an errand or help stuff envelopes The bassist doesn't have a day job and I only work part time, so we can do all the other stuff.
It's amazing how much more gets accomplished and how much better morale is, and how much more fun you have when everybody has a good work ethic. If you have a prima donna in your band, and everybody else is cool, you owe it to yourselves to either get the deadbeat to shape up or boot him/her. It's just not worth having somebody like that in a band, although you may not realize it until you get in a band that DOESN'T have anybody like that.
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#1626780 - 06/26/03 01:19 PM
Re: Dedication levels?
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CMDN
MP Hall of Fame Member
Registered: 11/13/01
Posts: 6095
Loc: Philadelphia,PA,UNITED STATES
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I'm definitely with Lee on this one.
We've had slacker/weirdo/asshole/druggie bassists in the past... we're just a four-member band, and one hinky person in the mix totally changes the band's dynamic. The bad habits/shitty attitudes spread.
For example, when we had a bassist with a serious drinking and drugging problem, our drummer started drinking more heavily because the bassist enabled his problem.
When we had a slacker, lazy bassist who canceled a lot of rehearsals, our singer got lazy and started missing load-outs, etc...
We cleared this shit up with our last bassist, who was a stickler for teamwork and calling out anyone who slacked -- before shows, onstage, after shows, on driving or promoting.
Our newest guy is the same way, only he's not quite as outspoken.
We're pretty happy right now.
_________________________
\m/
Erik
Where are we going, and why am I in this handbasket?
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