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#63572 by FBDrummer
Mon Apr 13, 2009 9:17 am
maybe it's just me or maybe I'm not looking in the right places but I'm having a really tough time finding members for our band.

here's a little background info. I played drums for a few years when I was a teenager. i was in 2 garage bands and eventually things changed in my life and I quit playing. Now, some 15 years later I picked up playing again and while I'm what I would consider and intermediate drummer I dont feel like I'm anywhere near my full potential so I started taking lessons with a major drum mfg. endorsed pro studio drummer.

My wife is a singer who sounds pretty much like amy lee of evanesence and other than being a church soloist she doesnt have any experience performing with a band.

We started out just messing around playing some cover tunes along with the cd's pumped through the PA system and then decided it would be fun to start a band so I posted an ad on craigslist looking for a guitarist and bass player.

We got a few responses but not really anything that we were looking for, it was either someone who played a totally different style of music (even though I was pretty specific in the ad) or someone who was already in 3 other bands and didnt have time to show up to jam, why they even responded to the ad is still a mystery me.

I finally found one guitarist and while he seems like a decent guy he's basiclly a total beginner so that really doenst help us much.

Do you all have as much trouble finding the right people for your band?
I dont know if it's because we're middle aged or what, granted we dont have much experience but that can be overcome pretty quickly.

any suggestions on where to look for people? We're located about 25 miles outside a major metro area and the closest music store is located there.

-Dave

#63573 by ratsass
Mon Apr 13, 2009 9:31 am
Any clubs around there that sponsor jam or open mic nights? That's a good place to show others what you can do and see what others have to offer. It may take awhile, but it's a good start. Also put ads up in the music stores telling what styles of music you do. I'd put my age on there too. It may keep younger bands from contacting you, but if they won't contact you because of your age, they probably wouldn't hire you because of it and it'll save you some time. If a younger band does know your age and contacts you anyway, it means they're really in it for the music and will work out better in the long run. Also, you should put up separate ads. Most bands aren't looking for a package deal. You may end up in separate bands, but later, after you've played a bit and people get to know you better, one of the bands may want to hire the other. May not be the best advice but it might get one or both of you playing sooner.

#63574 by FBDrummer
Mon Apr 13, 2009 10:23 am
Hey Ratsass,

thanks for the advice. There are a few clubs around my area, I know of one by my house that does open mic night.

we're not really looking to join an already established band, we decided to go in this together so we're just looking for guitar/bass player for our own band.

even though I'm not really looking to join another band I may try to work on something on the side for some extra cash, maybe find a working band looking for a drummer. I'm not used to playing in front of people so I just have to get over my stagefright LOL.

Too bad my ex garage band guitarist/best friend lives 1000 miles away. we just recently reconnected after some 20 yrs and he came to visit this weekend, it was just like old times except he's now a pretty accomplished guitarist but we just click together, it's like we can read each others minds when we play and a connection like that is really tough to find.

I guess I'll just keep posting ad's, practicing and hopefully the right people will eventually come along.

P.S. love your bands name!

#63635 by ColorsFade
Mon Apr 13, 2009 11:05 pm
Our band had a lot of trouble early on finding members. We live in a quad-cities type area. About 50,000 people in two towns right next to each other, and then about 45 minutes away are a couple small college towns.

Initially we just posted ads on Craigslist. And we got the same kind of responses: people who didn't read the ad very well (they were into different genres) or people who had way overvalued their own talent level. We got people who couldn't show up on time, etc. It was real depressing.

Then we started putting up fliers and advertising in the local paper/Moneysaver. That changed everything.

I found out several weeks ago that our local newspaper has some free classifieds, so we could advertise for band members there. I put a cheap ad in a the Moneysaver and got replies from that. We made up a flier with our band logo and a brief list of bands we were covering, and starting putting those up at every guitar shop/music store we could think of. We also put fliers up at the colleges, which ended up being a great idea, because we got our singer that way (a lady going back to school, so we got someone our age and not a kid).


So my advice would be:

(1) Make up some fliers and start distributing them to anywhere you think musicians are going to pass through. Coffee shops, guitar shops, movie theaters, bars (karaoke bars too), etc. Fliers are cheap (cost of paper if you've got your own printer and a decent image program like Photoshop Elements).

(2) See if you can get a classified ad in your local newspaper for free. Some papers do free ads for certain types of classifieds.

(3) Put an add in a Nicklesworth/Moneysaver papers if you've got anything like that in your area. I paid a couple extra bucks and got our add on the front page. Big capital letters: ROCK COVER BAND NEEDS BASS PLAYER. Don't waste money on a length ad; they can call you for details.

(4) Certainly, finding an open mike night and going out helps; but have some kind of paper with you. A business card, a flier, something so people can know you're serious and so they can contact you back.

(5) If you've got bars in your area where live bands come play frequently, chat with the band members between sets. Musicians know other musicians. See if anyone can give you a lead. We had a chance to recruit a bass player from a gigging band that did a show in our town because he'd seen our flier and his band was going to disband shortly. He was looking for his next gig and we were there (we found someone else instead, but hey - nice to know we had another option).

You gotta network some. They're not going to beat your door down, unfortunately.

#63639 by gbheil
Mon Apr 13, 2009 11:28 pm
I found our bassest and drummer right here on the Bandmix.
It took months of doing searches and sending E-mails via the Bandmix seach function and contact system. After several auditions we found just the right people for both positions.
Good luck!!

#63645 by ANGELSSHOTGUN
Tue Apr 14, 2009 12:40 am
DAVE,
Sometimes you have to work with the people that pass through, and help them grow. I have jammed with some extremely talented musicians. If their goals are not the same, it won't work. PERIOD...... Putting together a band,needs to have a purpose, such as having fun, or the basic reasons we pick up our guitar and play. The Best band I ever worked with, started with another guitarist, who couldn't keep time, could barely form chords, and could'nt tune his guitar. HE HAD DESIRE.. I HAD PATIENCE. A year later he was ROCKING.
Go to my space and see what I am talking about. The bass player is a converted guitar player that could'nt keep time, could'nt tune his guitar, did'nt understand basic song structure, etc etc etc. Five months into playing every other week, and a little coaching from me, he is doing OK. HE HAS DESIRE!
The keyboard you hear, is from someone who never played in any sort of band situation previously. His solo on "YOU DONT LOVE ME" was his first atttempt at a solo, NOT BAD. GLEN, " BARKING MEN", giongi2 11787

#63714 by FBDrummer
Tue Apr 14, 2009 7:14 pm
thanks again for the advice, I may have finally found a bass player. He seems to be at about the same level as I am, same age and into the same type of music, looking to jam and develop his skills more. Just what I was looking for.

giongi2, I'm working with the guitarist even though he's way below the level we need for the band, it's fun to have him just come over and mess around with stuff. I went to check your stuff on your profile, took a few seconds as I was stopped dead by the blonde :shock: . Anyway, sounds pretty good. I'll check the myspace in a few.

#63753 by ANGELSSHOTGUN
Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:53 pm
THE BLONDE IS JUST ONE OF THOSE "groupies" MUSIC DOES HAVE IT'S BENEFITS!!!!! DON'T TELL ANYONE.....

#63755 by ANGELSSHOTGUN
Tue Apr 14, 2009 11:04 pm
P. S.
YOU HAVE TO PUT SOME MUSIC UP. I AM AMAZED AT ALL THE BANDS AND MUSICIANS THAT ARE NOT SHARING WITH EVERYONE ELSE. ALL I AM HEARING IS VERY TALENTED PEOPLE LOOKING FOR BAND MEMBERS. YOU WILL NEVER HEAR ME BE CRITCAL OR MAKE FUN OF ANY BAND TRYING TO CREATE ART!!!!!!!! SHARE!!!!!!!!!

#63764 by hoover_vac
Wed Apr 15, 2009 12:21 am
Craigslist, Guitar Center bulletin boards.

#63802 by Crip2Nite
Wed Apr 15, 2009 8:50 am
giongi2 wrote:THE BLONDE IS JUST ONE OF THOSE "groupies" MUSIC DOES HAVE IT'S BENEFITS!!!!! DON'T TELL ANYONE.....


ummmmm... I know that girl... :wink:

#63865 by cliff keller
Wed Apr 15, 2009 7:21 pm
My input for getting more responses: included some music that you are playing on. I am amazed how few people posting do this, it's no extra charge and it quickly lets you figure out the talent level of the musician.

I've been able to collaborate with people on Bandmix, but if there is no music uploaded I don't even bother contacting them.

so, give that a try, and good luck. We need drummers in San Diego, movig is an option too. :)

#63866 by Chippy
Wed Apr 15, 2009 7:35 pm
I totally agree. However you have to pay to upload music which is cumbersome in these times. :wink:

cliff keller wrote:I've been able to collaborate with people on Bandmix, but if there is no music uploaded I don't even bother contacting them.

#63981 by ColorsFade
Thu Apr 16, 2009 4:06 pm
giongi2 wrote:P. S.
YOU HAVE TO PUT SOME MUSIC UP. I AM AMAZED AT ALL THE BANDS AND MUSICIANS THAT ARE NOT SHARING WITH EVERYONE ELSE. ALL I AM HEARING IS VERY TALENTED PEOPLE LOOKING FOR BAND MEMBERS. YOU WILL NEVER HEAR ME BE CRITCAL OR MAKE FUN OF ANY BAND TRYING TO CREATE ART!!!!!!!! SHARE!!!!!!!!!


You shouldn't be amazed.

There are really good reasons most people don't have music up. Like myself, a lot of people lack the equipment to record properly. Most of our money goes into our rigs, not into mixers and software and whatever else is necessary to record stuff.

#64004 by jw123
Thu Apr 16, 2009 6:13 pm
Crip2Nite wrote:
giongi2 wrote:THE BLONDE IS JUST ONE OF THOSE "groupies" MUSIC DOES HAVE IT'S BENEFITS!!!!! DON'T TELL ANYONE.....


ummmmm... I know that girl... :wink:


She looks familiar to me too!

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