aj2003 Posted September 15, 2003 Share Posted September 15, 2003 Does anyone else find that musicians in general are the flakiest people around? I've been trying to be a member of a normal gigging band for about 2 years now. I was with one bunch of guys for about 17 months before the drummer started cancelling all the time to play baseball instead. You'd think getting in a band wouldn't be that hard, especially in a large city, but I've had nothing but trouble with uncommitted, weird, misrepresented individuals. Is total wierdness in music the norm? I'm amazed that live music ever gets played or records get made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henryrobinett Posted September 15, 2003 Share Posted September 15, 2003 Originally posted by aj2003: Does anyone else find that musicians in general are the flakiest people around? Is total wierdness in music the norm? I'm amazed that live music ever gets played or records get made.Yes. Yes. Me too! My suggestion is to be as organized as possible. Call and confirm and re-confirm like a pest. Leave as little up to chance as possible. This will do two things: cover your ass when musicians start the flake dance and weed out the real flakes who can't stand organiztion. They'll realize how serious you are. Rule #1 - Don't you flake EVER. If you do you have to make up the damage big time in order to try gain some respectability back. I know. I've blown rule #1 in my own band a few times. All the best, Henry Robinett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guitarzan Posted September 15, 2003 Share Posted September 15, 2003 welcome to my hell. i have one interest and it is music. ok.. i still like watching cartoons and playing nintendo with my 2 boys ( 6 and 8 yrs old). but i sure know what you guys mean. the last bunch of guys i played with were on and off depending on if the other guitarplayer and drummer were playing hockey. or the other guitarplayer was playing golf. think about it ..when it was winter there was hockey. when it was summer there was golf. why do people flip flop? i would guess some people are more the social type. not saying that we are anti social. but i would be happy to be locked up for several months working with a band , where some others would not be able to deal with being away from the crowd. i think this separates people who are really into playing from people who can play an instrument but don,t really need to play to be happy. guess which type i want to play with? the present band i am in is sort of going in circles , we just finished a 6 song cd. are preparing to record a full length cd in the next month or so and i am starting to feel like i am the only one who is thinking about this. sad part is i joined this band. i was the new guy until we replaced the bass player. we are not gigging ( 4 out of 5 of us have full time work ) but the plan was to work out our schedules and do some dates this summer( it didn't happen). i feel some of my band mates are waiting for miracles to happen. dream on . i play because i love it and i don't care if i get a cent to play. but the key is i want to keep playing. i can't get distracted ( the exception is family responsibility)... no i don't think its musicians that are flakey, its just when you are in a group human flakeness is more obvious. http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=193274 rock it, i will Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherri Posted September 15, 2003 Share Posted September 15, 2003 Flakey? We went through eight guitarists before we found one who was as serious about the band as the rest of us. Now lately our drummer, a founding memeber of the band, has been doing a lifestyle downslide that's scary to watch. My pep talks aren't working, so I'm going to have to put the screws to him. Shape up or. .... www.metalblues.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
revolead Posted September 15, 2003 Share Posted September 15, 2003 Musicians are like girlfriends, they both can bring great joy and pleasure, but are often flaky and painstaking. Plus they both end up costing lots of time and money in the long run. Shut up and play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leadfootdriver Posted September 15, 2003 Share Posted September 15, 2003 Yes! I guess it's just par for the course. I think that people that are capable of expressing emotions in music, are more sensitive, and mood prone. MySpace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Franknputer Posted September 15, 2003 Share Posted September 15, 2003 Or, it's possible that music attracts flaky people - especially the notion that you are allowed, or even expected to be flaky as an artist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
george costanza Posted September 15, 2003 Share Posted September 15, 2003 CK's got it---people think artistry involves being "free & easy". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mudcat Posted September 15, 2003 Share Posted September 15, 2003 It's been a good ten years since I was actively trying to be a performing guitarist but I've got a bunch of stories about working with flakes. I found that the flakes I dealt with fell into two main categories: 1) "No talents" who thought they had talent (and therefore didn't think they needed to rehearse) and... 2) "Extreme talents" who sabotaged their chances of success at every opportunity. I was especially frustrated by a singer/songwriter I played with who wrote catchy tunes that didn't sound like anyone else, had a unique pop/rock vocal style and could play the guitar just well enough to write his songs. We played with an excellent drummer and an adequate bassist. As lead guitarist my playing was the glue that held everything together and gave the band it's signature sound. Unfortunately our bass player was personality #1 above and the singer/songwriter was personality #2. Making matters worse, they both were really into the Replacements and wanted to emulate them as much as possible. Talk about a recipe for disaster! Long story short, after playing an opening gig for the Long Ryders, jamming onstage with Warner Hodges from theScorchers and begining to get our own local following, they bagged me for my insistance on actually rehearsing and showing up at gigs with a set list. They ended up breaking up about three months later. The happy ending is both the singer & bass player later acknowledged the error of their ways and we remain friends to this day. I actually ended up playing in another band with one of them for awhile. I also played in another band with a singer/songwriter who was category #2 above. His method for self sabotage was too much dope. I'm certain that was unique to his situation. Mudcat's music on Soundclick "Work hard. Rock hard. Eat hard. Sleep hard. Grow big. Wear glasses if you need 'em."-The Webb Wilder Credo- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SF audio Posted September 16, 2003 Share Posted September 16, 2003 I think music is mostly an escape or fantasy for these so called "flakes". People that think about doing all sorts of stuff, and really don't have priorities or the wherewithall to stick with it. We all see rock stars and think it would be a cool life. Money, women, drugs. It hardly seems like the end result of hard work and dedication, does it? When some people see that a band/career is a committment, and it's not all fun and games (damn hard, and even boring at times) then they lose interest. Where's the easy ride? Nope. The thoughts expressed in this post are the opinions of SF audio and MAY be used or misquoted anywhere you want, either in print,on the internet, or on the bathroom walls.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caevan O’Shite Posted September 16, 2003 Share Posted September 16, 2003 There are a lot of excellent points made on this thread, especially the previous one on "categories" of flakes made by Mudcat. Ever hear, or think about, how law enforcement attracts certain power-hungry, abusive types? Not to say that this is a rule- it's just that some of these sorts of folks flock to that field, and some get in. Dreamy, flakey, freaky, dysfunctional types are often attracted to this music scene, as it represents the particular lightbulb that attracts- and sometimes burns- these particular moths. Ask yourself- What Would Ren and Stimpy Do? ~ Caevan James-Michael Miller-O'Shite ~ _ ___ _ Leprechaun, Esquire _ ___ _ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mudcat Posted September 16, 2003 Share Posted September 16, 2003 Thanks for the kind words Caevan. My advice for anyone trying to put a band together is to point blank ask potential bandmates what their intentions are. Some folks may seem to be serious but really aren't. Just ask 'em and they'll probably tell you. The other problem is musical conflict. Assuming the players aren't in one of the two categories I listed in my previous post, musical conflict can either be healthy or unhealthy. Healthy musical conflict can spur creativity. If, however, you plan on playing rock music(meaning something Nirvana-ish in your mind) and your fellow guitarist plans on playing rock music (meaning Ingwie-style shredding in their mind) it ain't gonna work. Just make sure everyone is on the same page from a commitment standpoint as well as where you are trying to go musically and you will head off a bunch of problems. Mudcat's music on Soundclick "Work hard. Rock hard. Eat hard. Sleep hard. Grow big. Wear glasses if you need 'em."-The Webb Wilder Credo- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Bear Jew Posted September 16, 2003 Share Posted September 16, 2003 yeah... musicians are weird like that. It's rare that you find a really good players who actually have their heads on straight... and then when you do, they might not be interested in doing what you're doing... and if they are, they might not be able to do it as much as you want to... Or they might be broke. Or whatever. It's hard. That's why we're on bassist #6. \m/ Erik "To fight and conquer in all your battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists of breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting." --Sun Tzu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NMcGuitar Posted September 16, 2003 Share Posted September 16, 2003 Good points about the expressive & artistic personality types also being prone to various oddities (ie, "being flaky"). I work in theatre, so I get to see it from actors, directors, designers, musicians, etc. all the time. But, I also think that you can be as flaky as you want and still be responsible (showing up on time, going to rehearsals, acting like a professional, etc.). My $0.02 May all your thoughts be random! - Neil www.McFaddenArts.com www.MikesGarageRocks.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tedster Posted September 16, 2003 Share Posted September 16, 2003 Originally posted by CaevanO'Shite: Ever hear, or think about, how law enforcement attracts certain power-hungry, abusive types? Not to say that this is a rule- it's just that some of these sorts of folks flock to that field, and some get in. You said a fucking mouthful. "Cisco Kid, was a friend of mine" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caevan O’Shite Posted September 17, 2003 Share Posted September 17, 2003 Aaahht!!! ("LOL") I thought of you as I typed that analogy, Tedster! Hey, do a search (I don't know how to provide a link to the post) for, and read, Small Town, Too Few Musician Blues... Since I posted that, I'm sorry to report that the drummer was terribly unreliable, too! I've just resigned myself to the fact that, if I want to further persue musical collaboration, I'll have to move to a real city again, in a few years. Sigh... Ask yourself- What Would Ren and Stimpy Do? ~ Caevan James-Michael Miller-O'Shite ~ _ ___ _ Leprechaun, Esquire _ ___ _ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Djinn1973 Posted September 17, 2003 Share Posted September 17, 2003 Damn, I thought it was just me... I kept running in to jackholes that just wanted to run around saying they were "in a band", or needed to get high to play, or were in it for "the chicks man,the chicks" or dudes that were going to set the world on fire, if they could ever get out of bed. Yeah Musicians are Flakes So those calluses are supposed to be there; right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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