stevel
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Band.
Gig.
Set List?
No.
I suppose I brought this on myself. I used to have to beg them for a set list - which would be written a half hour or less before downbeat, because I play keyboards and since I was using a MIDI switching system and am not a real keyboard player and use music for some songs, I have to have patches and music in order etc. Coupled with the fact that this is one of those bands that feels we have to go from one song immediately into the next (unless it's the guys who feel that who have a problem with something breaking at the show, which always happens, and they want to wait until they fix it) I don't have time to fuss with things during the show so I really need to set up as much as I can.
I got a new keyboard which has allowed me to simplify things greatly and it doesn't matter if I set things up in order as much (plus I don't need the music for as many songs anymore) so the set list order is not so crucial, and neither is me knowing it before the gig.
However, is it too much to ask to have a set list during the gig? Am I being a diva? There's a list taped to the drum riser. Half way through they say "here's the list we're using". Oh, thanks for letting me know. Then, I've got to climb through to get a peek at it, and it's upside down, and of course every time I go to look it's dark on stage.
They try to shout the names of the songs to me but they've reduced the names for most songs to one word (and one syllable) so I can't always tell what's being said.
I think even though we're just a "semi-pro" band (by somewhat recent and heated TGP definition) I believe we should still approach it as professionals. They're always on about how they want to have this awesome show and hit them song after song. But there's no list. Sometimes the bass player has to ask me, and the other night we were all starting at the other guitarist to start and he finally says "what are we doing" - he can't see it either.
I had this entire discussion with the leader a couple of months ago. I suggested we have one set list for the nights we do 3 sets and another for the nights we do 2 sets, and we can include alternates for songs we don't always want to play every night (so no two shows or venues back to back are identical) and we can include variations for events where we may want to do "album sides" or other special things we sometimes do.
And I have no problem going off list or substituting as necessary - things happen. But, I'd like to work primarily from a list at the show, and even better, have them prepared ahead of time (like weeks to months ahead of time) so we can touch up tunes for a particular gig, or be prepared for the general order, etc.
They were sending out lists by text (which is a nightmare to read and print out) but I'm fine with a sharpied piece of paper taped to the floor.
Another issue that's come up a number of times - the amount of work they want to put in (and that I have to put in) is, shall we say, too much. We learned a somewhat modified version of The Wall to play along with a somewhat edited version of the film. We spent months learning the songs, rehearsing it to sync it to the film, and we've only performed it twice. Personally, I had to learn all the key parts (I'm a guitarist and to add insult to injury I got to play very little guitar from one of my favorite albums and favorite bands and favorite guitarists - one who I could actually play well) and come up with all the sounds, as well as build necessary effects, figure out all the splits and layers and how to organize all the sounds to get to everything I needed in time, and I even printed out music necessary as well as organizing all the patch changes and everything. After all that work, I expected to play the thing more than twice (to add even more insult to injury, the bass player brings in a keyboard at the dress rehearsal to play along with things I was already beating myself up trying to cover - had I known he was going to do that I would have had a much simpler job of that tune!).
So recent gig leader says to me they want to "bring back" some songs. Well, for them "bring back" means bring back songs they used to play and already know. For me (and to some degree the other guitarist) it means I'm going to have to learn them on scratch. On keys. Not my main instrument. And they're keys-heavy songs (some rather virtuosic) and while I'd love to learn them, I can't just "bring them back". Plus, I've got to set up all the keys sounds - some of which have to be edited or created from scratch, and organize them into a playable sequence of patches. To add even more more insult to injury, some of these are songs I already had to learn for them before - on guitar. So now I've learned them twice.
I spent a week trying to learn Jump for a gig, busting my but trying to get that keyboard solo down (and I had to create a patch) and we only played it twice.
I told the leader I would need at least 2 weeks PER SONG for these songs. This is Friday. So what happens? Sunday I get a text "hey can you rehearse this week"? Well, what are we going to rehearse? Which of the 4 songs I told it you it would take me 2 weeks to learn are you asking me to now learn in 2-3 days for a rehearsal? Are we touching up the existing set (and the songs we keep skipping becuase they're not on the list that we've forgotten but could work back into the set in a week) or are we learning new material? And if so, what material?
Then I get, "we want to bring back X" - well, that's one of the songs I said I need two weeks on. If that's the song we want to "bring back", I need at least two weeks to work on it. And I need to know which of the songs we're going to work on so I don't waste time working on the wrong song (or like they typically want to do, which is learn 4 or 5 songs in a week (we're talking Karn Evil 9 here, not Tom Petty). If I go to rehearsal this week, that's yet another day I can't work on the song. All I can do is show up without having anything ready. "We also want to work on that song we started on". Oh, the one we started to learn but kind of put aside. Since we maybe worked on it only twice and never went any further with it, I've kind of forgotten it. So I'll have to rework that up. If I work that up - a week at least - I won't be able to spend any time on the other song. Which one do you want? Which one is the priority?
So I'm ranting here, but everything is always "fly by the seat of your pants". I'm sorry - while we actually excel at that, and I like it, I also like some structure when we're trying to "work". I guess my work ethic is different (or rather, they have none). It's almost as if they thing we say "we want to play X" and all of the sudden, it just happens. We tried two songs that just flopped. And honestly I think the reason they flopped is because not everyone learned all the parts correctly - they just got the "gist" of the songs. And these are the types of songs where expectations of them being played "like the record" are high, and they aren't the type you can "arrange" or "improvise through" and so on. Another song nearly had a train wreck and has two major errors in two different places. It's because people don't know their parts well enough. Me, honestly, I don't know my parts well on that one either but I think me and some of the other members are to the point where we're not going to put in weeks of work on a song that we might drop in a week (which we might drop because it doesn't sound good because no one knows their parts...).
Anyhoo, I'm kind of ranting and venting.
But this always happens to me. I get frustrated with a band because they don't do what I see as basic preparation (and communication). Then I come off as the whiny one (at least I think I do) or the ahole becuase I'm the one who has the problem with it. One of the beautiful things of being a hired gun is I just do what I'm told and keep my mouth shut. That's fine when I'm learning songs on guitar and gigging them. But when it involves all this extra stuff, I have trouble not saying something about it. And the leader knows I put in all this extra effort and thanks me for it and will even say "I know you said two weeks" and then kills me with kindness. But at some point I feel like I have to put my foot down and deliver ultimatums, which never go well (I'll never be a diplomat).
There are more pros than cons in this band, and it's there are some really strong aspects - more so than any other band I've ever been in - and the negative stuff is really minimal in comparison, in the grand scheme of things, and as compared to other bands I've survived.
Still, am I asking too much? Set list for the show, preferably in advance, and advance notice of songs to learn, with time enough to learn them?
I mean, if they can't wait for me to learn the song, maybe I'm not the guy for them. But it makes me feel guilty like I'm holding them back. Even though they've said they understand, it still makes me feel bad like I'm not a team player or I'm not putting in enough effort, etc.
Rant over.
Gig.
Set List?
No.
I suppose I brought this on myself. I used to have to beg them for a set list - which would be written a half hour or less before downbeat, because I play keyboards and since I was using a MIDI switching system and am not a real keyboard player and use music for some songs, I have to have patches and music in order etc. Coupled with the fact that this is one of those bands that feels we have to go from one song immediately into the next (unless it's the guys who feel that who have a problem with something breaking at the show, which always happens, and they want to wait until they fix it) I don't have time to fuss with things during the show so I really need to set up as much as I can.
I got a new keyboard which has allowed me to simplify things greatly and it doesn't matter if I set things up in order as much (plus I don't need the music for as many songs anymore) so the set list order is not so crucial, and neither is me knowing it before the gig.
However, is it too much to ask to have a set list during the gig? Am I being a diva? There's a list taped to the drum riser. Half way through they say "here's the list we're using". Oh, thanks for letting me know. Then, I've got to climb through to get a peek at it, and it's upside down, and of course every time I go to look it's dark on stage.
They try to shout the names of the songs to me but they've reduced the names for most songs to one word (and one syllable) so I can't always tell what's being said.
I think even though we're just a "semi-pro" band (by somewhat recent and heated TGP definition) I believe we should still approach it as professionals. They're always on about how they want to have this awesome show and hit them song after song. But there's no list. Sometimes the bass player has to ask me, and the other night we were all starting at the other guitarist to start and he finally says "what are we doing" - he can't see it either.
I had this entire discussion with the leader a couple of months ago. I suggested we have one set list for the nights we do 3 sets and another for the nights we do 2 sets, and we can include alternates for songs we don't always want to play every night (so no two shows or venues back to back are identical) and we can include variations for events where we may want to do "album sides" or other special things we sometimes do.
And I have no problem going off list or substituting as necessary - things happen. But, I'd like to work primarily from a list at the show, and even better, have them prepared ahead of time (like weeks to months ahead of time) so we can touch up tunes for a particular gig, or be prepared for the general order, etc.
They were sending out lists by text (which is a nightmare to read and print out) but I'm fine with a sharpied piece of paper taped to the floor.
Another issue that's come up a number of times - the amount of work they want to put in (and that I have to put in) is, shall we say, too much. We learned a somewhat modified version of The Wall to play along with a somewhat edited version of the film. We spent months learning the songs, rehearsing it to sync it to the film, and we've only performed it twice. Personally, I had to learn all the key parts (I'm a guitarist and to add insult to injury I got to play very little guitar from one of my favorite albums and favorite bands and favorite guitarists - one who I could actually play well) and come up with all the sounds, as well as build necessary effects, figure out all the splits and layers and how to organize all the sounds to get to everything I needed in time, and I even printed out music necessary as well as organizing all the patch changes and everything. After all that work, I expected to play the thing more than twice (to add even more insult to injury, the bass player brings in a keyboard at the dress rehearsal to play along with things I was already beating myself up trying to cover - had I known he was going to do that I would have had a much simpler job of that tune!).
So recent gig leader says to me they want to "bring back" some songs. Well, for them "bring back" means bring back songs they used to play and already know. For me (and to some degree the other guitarist) it means I'm going to have to learn them on scratch. On keys. Not my main instrument. And they're keys-heavy songs (some rather virtuosic) and while I'd love to learn them, I can't just "bring them back". Plus, I've got to set up all the keys sounds - some of which have to be edited or created from scratch, and organize them into a playable sequence of patches. To add even more more insult to injury, some of these are songs I already had to learn for them before - on guitar. So now I've learned them twice.
I spent a week trying to learn Jump for a gig, busting my but trying to get that keyboard solo down (and I had to create a patch) and we only played it twice.
I told the leader I would need at least 2 weeks PER SONG for these songs. This is Friday. So what happens? Sunday I get a text "hey can you rehearse this week"? Well, what are we going to rehearse? Which of the 4 songs I told it you it would take me 2 weeks to learn are you asking me to now learn in 2-3 days for a rehearsal? Are we touching up the existing set (and the songs we keep skipping becuase they're not on the list that we've forgotten but could work back into the set in a week) or are we learning new material? And if so, what material?
Then I get, "we want to bring back X" - well, that's one of the songs I said I need two weeks on. If that's the song we want to "bring back", I need at least two weeks to work on it. And I need to know which of the songs we're going to work on so I don't waste time working on the wrong song (or like they typically want to do, which is learn 4 or 5 songs in a week (we're talking Karn Evil 9 here, not Tom Petty). If I go to rehearsal this week, that's yet another day I can't work on the song. All I can do is show up without having anything ready. "We also want to work on that song we started on". Oh, the one we started to learn but kind of put aside. Since we maybe worked on it only twice and never went any further with it, I've kind of forgotten it. So I'll have to rework that up. If I work that up - a week at least - I won't be able to spend any time on the other song. Which one do you want? Which one is the priority?
So I'm ranting here, but everything is always "fly by the seat of your pants". I'm sorry - while we actually excel at that, and I like it, I also like some structure when we're trying to "work". I guess my work ethic is different (or rather, they have none). It's almost as if they thing we say "we want to play X" and all of the sudden, it just happens. We tried two songs that just flopped. And honestly I think the reason they flopped is because not everyone learned all the parts correctly - they just got the "gist" of the songs. And these are the types of songs where expectations of them being played "like the record" are high, and they aren't the type you can "arrange" or "improvise through" and so on. Another song nearly had a train wreck and has two major errors in two different places. It's because people don't know their parts well enough. Me, honestly, I don't know my parts well on that one either but I think me and some of the other members are to the point where we're not going to put in weeks of work on a song that we might drop in a week (which we might drop because it doesn't sound good because no one knows their parts...).
Anyhoo, I'm kind of ranting and venting.
But this always happens to me. I get frustrated with a band because they don't do what I see as basic preparation (and communication). Then I come off as the whiny one (at least I think I do) or the ahole becuase I'm the one who has the problem with it. One of the beautiful things of being a hired gun is I just do what I'm told and keep my mouth shut. That's fine when I'm learning songs on guitar and gigging them. But when it involves all this extra stuff, I have trouble not saying something about it. And the leader knows I put in all this extra effort and thanks me for it and will even say "I know you said two weeks" and then kills me with kindness. But at some point I feel like I have to put my foot down and deliver ultimatums, which never go well (I'll never be a diplomat).
There are more pros than cons in this band, and it's there are some really strong aspects - more so than any other band I've ever been in - and the negative stuff is really minimal in comparison, in the grand scheme of things, and as compared to other bands I've survived.
Still, am I asking too much? Set list for the show, preferably in advance, and advance notice of songs to learn, with time enough to learn them?
I mean, if they can't wait for me to learn the song, maybe I'm not the guy for them. But it makes me feel guilty like I'm holding them back. Even though they've said they understand, it still makes me feel bad like I'm not a team player or I'm not putting in enough effort, etc.
Rant over.