One of my resolutions is to get back into gigging. I stopped at the ripe old age of 29 thinking "sod this for a game of soliders".
I've long come out of a toxic relationship and have a job which is now literally a ten minute drive away. I have become the cliche of the ex gigging musician (giant pedal board, flamey prs etc)
So no more excuses, I do miss playing but not the looking after man baby bit.
I can't be the only one whose gone back into it after such an absence. I'm not sure what i want to play. For some reason I've been playing a lot of the stuff of my youth (grunge) I'm thinking a quirky covers band.
I would love to change my username, but I fully understand the T&C's (it was an old band nickname). So please feel free to call me Dave.
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There are places to look for musicians. Ads in music shops have been taken over by websites. Musicradar did an article that list a few https://www.musicradar.com/how-to/the-best-sites-for-finding-musicians-and-band-members.
I'm not expecting to be the next big thing. But finding like minded individuals takes time. I'll check that link out cheers
When you do, the other musicians will find you.
Go to open mics, charity gigs, local free festivals and talk to anyone who sounds half decent.
My advice is keep an open mind on what you might enjoy - I've preferred to be involved in good quality stuff even if it hasn't been my preferred genre, or in one case much more commercial than my own tastes. I've also enjoyed being in a couple of tributes, which I hadnt expected, but adds variety alongside originals.
Without a vocalist who can sing in key and have a degree of stage presence it is a frustrating experience from beginning to end.
Also, a drummer who is reliable and not in a billion other bands.
Studio: https://www.voltperoctave.com
Music: https://www.euclideancircuits.com
Me: https://www.jamesrichmond.com
Thursday nights were the band rehearsal night but many ended up being cancelled due to one member not being able to make it. Whenever we did practice it was 90mins/2 hours of driving through rush hour traffic on M25 (none of us lived within an hour of each other) to get to the practice room only to "practice" for an hour (it was booked for 3 hours from 6 til 9). But we never ever started on time and people would start leaving around 8pm cos of work the next day. A large proportion of it was one guy talking about his weekend plans and overall just talking too much, which slowed down and broke up momentum so much people couldn't be bothered to do anything.
Everyone else had careers which is fair enough, we all gotta earn a living and weekends were gone, 3 had gf's and pretty much spent it with them.
Since I've been guitar tech'ing for a mate's metalcore band, and occasionally filling in for shows. Its been great fun, I feel part of the band even though I'm not an official member and the whole group dynamics is totally different. We live pretty close together, the main band HQ is 15 minutes away so its easy to meet up. Songwriting is different too, not all crammed in one room with the pressure of writing something from thin air in an hour. Its usually 2-3 of us, with guitars and a laptop, recording any ideas we have.
Cos of the good time I've been having I'm beginning to think if its even worth me joining another band or forming a new one again. It takes years to build up your profile again and being in my mid-30's I don't think I have the time or money to keep investing in something that may not see much return. Earning money is my priority now so I may have to do the band as a weekend thing. But I will always enjoy the gigs. The atmosphere and the environment is something I do miss, aside from all the other shit.
I've been asked back by my old band but I straight away said no cos I don't want to go back there. I do fear the whole bad experience will make me never want to join another band ever again.
I managed this back in 2004, and blogged about it a bit here:
http://www.racerxband.com/board/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=21344&p=466825
The pictures from all those broken links are here:
https://www.facebook.com/pg/cyrencerocks/photos/?tab=album&album_id=314718758576847
As you can see from the Facebook page, our adventures continued for almost 30 gigs over several years.
Sadly, that band came to an end last year. I've been really busy with other areas of life, but I'm keeping an ear to the ground for new opportunities and had a fun jam with a chap not too far from me the other week.
Joining/completing a band (what I did above) is very different from founding a band (what you are describing, I think).
I had a break from 26 to 37.
Was in bands from 18-26 and put my heart and soul into it and made and lost mates along the way due to the politics and brutality of trying to make a living from it. Turned my back on a fairly decent record deal because i couldn’t trust the other lads to behave themselves in a way to ensure it was worth jacking in my day job for. Had great vintage gear which most of it ended up in cash converters for barely sweets money and it would take me about 10 grand to buy back.
Bought a boss br800 and wrote about 30 songs in a mad creative month a couple of years ago and put ads out for a band and now gigging fairly regularly and enjoying it immensely.
I set some ground rules, I.e. praccy once a week. I have a 9-5 job and a wife and they take precedence but if we book a praccy we turn up for and ready and leave all the other shit at the door and enjoy the music. If we invest anything, time or money, we all put in the same and we respect each other’s sacrifices too.
It’s much more pleasurable than when I was younger. I know how to appreciate it more and savvy enough to know when to switch into band mode and home mode. It’s easier to be efficient and know my limit and I play to my my strengths and avoid my weaknesses.
I also am writing playing and singing about stuff I’m old to enough to have actually done and experienced so it’s more real.
It’s perfectly manageable and it’s keeping me fresh and young and disciplined. I’ve found good people to do it with though that helps. Nowhere near the best musicians I’ve ever played with but we are great and doing it in a way that suits our best abilities and it works. The gigs I’ve done in the last 12 months are the best I’ve ever done and I know how to enjoy them too. Probably because I’ve done it for myself and with no expectations and the pressure that comes with it. It’s purely for fun and it that freeness and comfort makes it easier for the audience to enjoy too.
Downsides... as a gigging older originals band.
I begrudge having to use promoters to get gigs in good places as venues don’t want to take the risk doing the bookings themselves any more. You still have to do the promotion yourself and are expected to bring high numbers of people to pay £7-£10 which is a bit steep. Never mind, If you bring more than 20 they’ll give you a quid back for each ticket. Ahh bless.
Also, there is a big need to have to use social media which can be a pain in the arse but a useful tool if you’re willing to put the effort in. I wouldn’t use it were I not in a band.
The age thing isn’t an issue to me, we can mix it with the young cool kids, but if your on a bill with entirely younger bands and their following they can be a tough nut to crack.