General Music Chat

Jw, I am off to the party store to get Mardi Gras beads. We have a gig tonight at a cool place and now that we are 3 piece (and the 3 of us are also the singers) I am going to try what you said about giving something to the audience, anything to make it more of a party and try moving around on stage as much as possible when I am not stuck at the mike singing. It also helps that Galveston is going ahead with the Mardi Gras to try and bring tourism back to the Island. So the beads will kind of go with that same theme.
More advise would be appreciated.

I think your on the right track from all I have read from the other guys who are pushing the showmanship angle. Taking of pictures to hand out to the crowd is another ploy often used in tourist applications.
(with the peoples consent of course) If the venue owner is agreeable. Perhaps a buy one drink get one free card from the band would stimulate the word of mouth as well. One or two handed out per gig would be all required. "Here fella buy your lady a drink on the band, thanks for your support"
I feel the whole Mardi Gras thing is a tad rediculous due to its Catholic /pagan roots. Especially in Tejas as it has nothing to do with our history.
But if name recognition is what it takes to help build tourism amoungst the ingnorant general public. So be it.

Hey Haley, I just saw this.

How did the beads go? Did you get any action like this?



Getting the crowd involved is so much a part of music. Be it giving them beads, cds, huggies, and then all the way to singalong songs. The more involved you can get the crowd the easier it is to connect with them.

Also these days people have so many entertainment options. I know who people who just sit at home on the computor all the time instead of getting out and meeting people.

My own brother is an example. He has dial up internet at his house. Sat evening he came over to my house to use my computor cause its so much faster. My daughter was with me and of course she kinda entertains herself. I told my brother if you want to play on the computor Im going out for a few hours. I come back 5 hrs later and hes still sitting there playing on the computor.

My point being you have to get people to get involved if you want to build any kind of following these days. Make your gigs something special. I dont know how but try different things.

Im learning that its not all about the music, Im in the entertainment business and if my band doesnt do a good job of that someone else will.

Hello JW, Doh! no we came close tho it did help keep people on the dance floor a little more. It was a real dead crowd, I mean these people were like zombies so I really can't say whether or not it helped kind of a bad representation I bought like $71.00 worth of beads arm bands hats visors and wasn't able to give them all out I bought enough for this Sat. also I will let you know how that one goes.
The owners said drink sales were real high but being Valentines day I think there were a lot of men taking there wifes out but you no the kind that don't dance or get out much. I don't understand it but we'll have 5 good gigs 1 mediocre gig and 1 like last Sat. no matter what we did I just couldn't seem to get the people excited, frustrating. I could tell they were enjoying the music because they stayed all night. It can be discourageing when you try so hard to engage the crowd and they just don't respond after a while you kind of loose your motivation. Past experience around this time of year Galveston has the Mardi Gras and Houston has the Live Stock Show and Rodeo (the biggest in the country) it last 2 weeks with a concert every night, this competition can kill the club crowds.

Haley, if you have a myspace going take pictures of folks at the gigs. Believe me everyone will smile at the camera. Post the pictures up and promote your myspace. The thing about myspace is that its free. It takes a little time each week but once you get a system going its pretty easy.

you can check ours at myspace.com/aintyomama1

It allows a place to post your schedule, pics and folks can comment.

At first I was resistant to using myspace but over the last year it has turned into a great tool to reach people. We are starting to gain fans who found us on there.

We try to hit people in the mid 30 range, but the younger people are wilder and more passionate about the music.

I dont know what material you play, but get a few singalong numbers. A weird one for us is Hair Of The Dog, our singer gets the women to scream the SOB part, and they just eat it up.

I feel lucky cause our group is really a HARD ROCK band. In my late teens we couldnt get gigs with this music but now it seems to go over real well.

Just keep your head up. In my area we are probably the top drawing club act at the moment. During Dec and Jan it was tough, some gigs went real well some didnt, so dont judge your impact on one gig.

The old saying make a plan, and then execute the plan helps me to keep focused when we have a bad gig. This is just like a new business you have to have some staying power to make it work and take the good with the bad.

The hardest thing we have happening in our area is club turnover. We get a really happening gig for us going and then the club either closes or changes hands. Either way is like starting over.

Keep On Rocking My Friend

An old guy that I once worked for told me the same thing, plan your work and work your plan and I try to keep this work ethic but sometimes it is still discouraging what with the turnover of musicians the booking the gigs the song list new songs trying to keep everyone happy keeping up with the web site. I think we are going to look into a myspace page and see how that goes. We play mostly Classic Rock but lately we have started to move toward heavier music because I have started to notice the crowd is getting younger and younger (or could it be I am getting older and older) anyway the younger crowds seem to like the music a little heavier and thats what I started out playing in the late 70's into the 80's hair band so really I am just going back to my roots.

Haley we have good luck with stuff like Man In The Box, Alive, Spoonman, Crazy Train, Another Thing Comin, Bulls On Parade, Suck My Kiss, basically heavy stuff, then of course the old classics Walk This Way, Rock N Roll All Nite

Picking songs is tough. Another trick is to just ask the people that come what they want to hear, We are still playing Highway Star and Stranglehold cause old fans have requested them.

I guess you have to pick songs that you as a group can pull off and act like you enjoy. My guys when we have an off night we just push harder and realize it is paid practice and just make the best of it. Some of these gigs are actually some of better ones musically.

Hang in there, its really just another job and the fun part for me is the time I get to play and wank off on stage.

A couple of places we play are late night clubs open til 3am. Bands play til 1 or 1:30. They stop taking cover charge around 12-12:30 and a lot of people have picked up on this. Its frustrating to play a couple of sets to an empty house and then people show up in droves at 1 just to get around the cover charge. The they want you to play til quitting time. But you just have to make the best of it.

The funny thing also is that sometimes we set up earl;y and come back at 8:30 and have a packed house. Then these folks tend to leave before you get to the last set. Ive seen it both ways. In the end if the club makes money at the end of the night it makes us look good, so Ive learned to always ask and make sure they are happy before we leave.

A word in defense of the stoic redneck.
Dont take it so personal J. Some people like me can sit dead still and really enjoy your show. If I am still there drinkin my beer, you are doing a great job.
I am not going to get up dance around and make an ass of myself.
Not that there is anything wrong with that, It is just not my way.

On those nights just look out over the crowd of stiffs and say to yourself. "just look at all those Georges enjoying my music"
And rock your happy ass off.

That made me LOL George. I honestly think that was the kind of crowd that was there. What is it about us musicians we can make the music but we can't dance whats up with that? I'm a dancin foo oo ool one of my legs is shorter than the other and both my feets to long (Frank Zappa) ya'll remember that song
Down here in Texas we have some different words like; Ya'll and fixin
example; Jeff jaeatyet? I'm fixin ta
My first wife was from Eureka California they moved here when she was 13 when she got home from the first day of school she asked her dad, what does fixin mean?
And we have another sayin and that is; you can say anything about anybody once the heart has been sufficiantly blessed, example; bless her heart she's so bucked toothed she can eat an apple thru a picket fence!

One of my favorite bumper stickers said "Hug a musician - we never get to dance!"

JH - "Bless her heart! She's so skinny she has to tease her hair to keep her pants up!"