Last 3 outdoor gigs my voice is always trashed... advice?

[lespaulreedsmith]

Last 3 weekends we have played all outdoor gigs and after load in, set up and sound check we go to play and my voice is cracking and hoarse... I drink about ten 12 ounce bottles or glasses of water all day long and especially prior to the gig (yeah, LOTS of water)
I spray 'Entertainer's Secret' like it was going out of style and can easily use a bottle during the gig as well as lots of room temp water (warm if you know what I mean being outdoors)
What gives? No matter how well I stay hydrated what keeps trashing my voice? Any suggestions? I'm stumped as it seems outdoors my vocals suffer...
btw... indoor gigs with air conditioning I seem to do much better... I thought I'd do worse vocal-wise in air conditioning but I guess not.

 

[Ogre]

No alcohol. Warm up. Try to put the more demanding tunes later in the show. Good luck!

 

[27sauce]

Maybe fix your monitor mix? Have somebody else load in.

 

[jerrylee]

Double check your monitor mix to be sure you aren't pushing too hard..and my secret is jalapeno peppers and lots of room temp water.

 

[Dave Shoop]

Just curious what songs you are singing, how many songs do you sing a night ?
If you are screaming to hear yourself because the band stage volume is too loud or if the monitor system is not good it certainly leads to problems. Some songs are just very hard on vocal cords. If you are pushing your voice to hit notes that are out of your comfort zone it also will cause problems.

Give us more info.

 

[lespaulreedsmith]

my secret is jalapeno peppers and lots of room temp water.

will get into this more after the 4th weekend (heading out the door) but what do you do with the jalapeno? Eat one raw?
Wouldn't that cause some inflammation in the throat?

 

[conanb]

Singing lessons. Seriously. I used to trash my throat until I learned to sing from my diaphram and just use my throat as the filter it goes through. Helped me sing better, longer and increased my range. Find a good singing coach. 6 lessons should do it.

 

[CC Overdrive]

What songs are you guys doing? Are you blowing out crazy difficult sings in the first part if the set? Maybe try having the bands tune down a half or even a whole step to accommodate more strenuous songs. For example, we stack some of those vocally challenging songs at the end of the set, and the band plays those song ls a half step down,on 2nd/3rd guitars....( this blows a lot of TGP'rs minds, this may incite a lot of chatter in this thread)

 

[stratocat63]

That sounds like the type of conditions one would not have trouble in. Is there anything you might be slightly allergic too? Some kind of pollen? I get froggy when that stuff is in the air.

 

[stevel]

Sleep!

Get plenty of rest.

Hydration is good, but you may need something like Gatorade which tends to give you a bit of an endurance boost. I know when we played 4 nights in a row many times the tiredness compounded the over-work of the fingers and throats, and since sleep was not always an option, Gatorade was the next best thing. We went from being one of the heaviest drinking bands to not drinking at all and leaving the venue during the break, running down to 7-11 and getting Gatorade - the alcohol wouldn't keep you going, the caffeine and energy drinks wouldn't keep you going, but the Gatorade worked.

But yeah, outdoor gigs are just tough in weather extremes or conditions. My fingers always get too sticky and I can't slide up and down the neck, or it's chilly and my hands are too cold, or there's salt air getting on all your gear and the humidity here just wears and weighs you down.

I had a discussion with our drummer about one of the things I think separates the "seasoned" players from the rest and one of those things is that seasoned players are good at is being able to work as well as they can in a variety of circumstances. Too many of us only ever get to play in "somewhat comfortable" settings so when we get stuck in a more extreme situation, we don't fare as well. Our other guitarist fell victim to that at our first outdoor gig this year and I fell victim to it at a gig where we had no setup time and there was - as usual - no planning by the powers that be...

 

[GTRJoe]

Do you warm up your voice before the gig? If not you should be. Here's one you can do in your car before the gig. Hum a few songs with your mouth closed, then sing a couple softly. Then do one full voice. This takes about 20 mins. You can do it just before you hit the stage or on the ride to the gig.

 

[FFTT]

I'm guessing allergens, not pacing yourself, not warming up properly, maybe talking too much during load in, trying to sing over the band when you can't hear yourself properly, undersized PAs.

You may want to try warm liquids rather than cold.
No dairy!!!! Sugars, Alcohol.

It could be any of these.

 

[bob-i]

I can't say what happened to you but myself, I tend to oversing when I'm outdoors. I feel like I'm not projecting and the sound is getting lost. I have to tell myself that the sound system will take care of projection and relax.

 

[HeyMrTeleMan]

You have to stop playing songs like Muskrat Love. Everyone knows they'll ruin your voice. And career...

Good luck, in all seriousness. Sounds vexing. Perhaps it's pollen or your stinky drummer? Stand downwind and you'll know.

 

[lespaulreedsmith]

Just curious what songs you are singing, how many songs do you sing a night ?

We do 4 sets of 20 to 22 or 23 so 80 to 85 total and I sing about 60 to 65 of them.

 

[Valus]

We do 4 sets of 20 to 22 or 23 so 80 to 85 total and I sing about 60 to 65 of them.

Where the hell are you playing???????? The average four-hour bar gig (three, one-hour sets) is around 45 songs, assuming you basically never pause between songs. You're doing almost twice that????? Nobody's voice would hold up to that sort of abuse.

 

[Samsun19]

I'm voice teacher, and I believe you may be placing your voice back near, or in your throat, which causes horsiness and cracking.

You might do well to find a teacher. But in the mean time try humming a challenging song until the hum sounds like a beautiful trumpet. Then sing it with exaggerated vowel's and minimal consonants.

 

[FFTT]

Our band covered 5/40 minute medley sets, but all 5 of us could sing.

Maybe its time to talk to the other members about covering a few tunes to give you a break.

 

[Dr. Tweedbucket]

Singing lessons. Seriously. I used to trash my throat until I learned to sing from my diaphram and just use my throat as the filter it goes through. Helped me sing better, longer and increased my range. Find a good singing coach. 6 lessons should do it.

This is big!! Learn to sing properly!

 

[jerrylee]

will get into this more after the 4th weekend (heading out the door) but what do you do with the jalapeno? Eat one raw?
Wouldn't that cause some inflammation in the throat?

I have the most trouble out doors during allergy season (spring - early summer) I eat sliced jalapenos from a jar and it just works for me.