Band rant :(

hotpickups · August 2015

So I arranged a band meeting the other night. Wanted to discuss introducing a 10% incentive fee for band members getting gigs. There was a majority in favour of it but put it on ice in the end as the remaining against it would leave etc.

What came next was a surprise though. The singer said she only wants to do gigs in the bath/Bristol area and doesn't want to do weddings as she was worried her voice might pack in on the day and upset the bride.

The band broke up the next morning. I must be the most unlucky musician who keeps picking up these people

I'm chucking in running bands and gonna find a band to join so all I need to do is turn up and play.

Admittedly she does have a full family life and has a 10 month old baby so getting back from a gig late could be an issue. However, we never had any of those gigs booked yet so wasn't an issue at the moment

Rant over

Tex Mexico · August 2015

Mate, took me fifteen years to find bandmates that were competent and not dicks.

IvisonGuitars · August 2015

Oh dear. Sorry to hear this David but sound like they were a bit amateur at best, especially the singer. So I agree, time to find some gig hardened, experienced musicians and get those amps roaring! :-)

hotpickups · August 2015

Thanks Neal. yes I think she wa a bit small time (in a good way

) but had a great voice and wanted to drive the band to get more gigs but only in a small localised way. As mentioned I did know about her family commitments when I took her on so partly my fault to some degree. The rest of the band wanted those wedding or better paid gigs and her comments scuppered those thoughts.

Any want a guitarist in their band. I've got top kit and good band working attitude lol

miserneil;734766" said:
Oh dear. Sorry to hear this David but sound like they were a bit amateur at best, especially the singer. So I agree, time to find some gig hardened, experienced musicians and get those amps roaring! :-)

hotpickups · August 2015

I've been running bands for the past 8 years but they always seem to break up around the time I ask the band for help promoting the band to get gigs etc

Tex Mexico;734765" said:
Mate, took me fifteen years to find bandmates that were competent and not dicks.

BenSirAmos · August 2015

I'm so fed up I've gone solo. I'll know if I can bear my own company in a couple of months, I guess.

bigjon · August 2015

After three years of recruiting my own band on a per-gig basis because I was fed up with band politics and ratio of rehearsals to gigs, I've ended up with pretty much a settled line-up who do the vast majority of my gigs! :-)

guitarfishbay · August 2015

Sorry to hear this but probably better now than later. Finding bandmates is the hardest part. All the best with what you do in the future.

Drew_TNBD · August 2015

A 10% incentive fee? So... what... the band member that gets the gig gets 10% of the fee from that gig? That seems ... dodgy to me. I wouldn't agree to that, and depending on the band, I'd probably leave too.

hotpickups · August 2015

What so all the hard work calling, delivering leaflets, business cards and general running about for the gig to happen shouldn't be acknowledged with a little percentage?

Drew_fx;734956" said:
A 10% incentive fee? So... what... the band member that gets the gig gets 10% of the fee from that gig? That seems ... dodgy to me. I wouldn't agree to that, and depending on the band, I'd probably leave too.

robinbowes · August 2015

Drew_fx said:

A 10% incentive fee? So... what... the band member that gets the gig gets 10% of the fee from that gig? That seems ... dodgy to me. I wouldn't agree to that, and depending on the band, I'd probably leave too.

What's dodgy about that?

hotpickups · August 2015

Everyone would've got the chance to receive it but it does weed out the band members who don't want to do any work but receive the same money as the people who do

It's fair but it wasn't the reason why this band failed

bigjon · August 2015

Drew_fx;734956" said:
A 10% incentive fee? So... what... the band member that gets the gig gets 10% of the fee from that gig? That seems ... dodgy to me. I wouldn't agree to that, and depending on the band, I'd probably leave too.

In my system the "manager" who gets the gig and promotes it is treated like an extra band-member, so for several of my gigs the bassist has received double even though it's my band!

John_P · August 2015

You've certainly had some bad luck with band members.

imo you have a few routes forward - just join a band and enjoy letting someone else be the leader (doesn't stop you helping and contributing).

or be a full on band leader and be very firm and clear that's it's your band and you do the work so you get an extra cut - if other members want to help, they get more. Then you're free to have options of using dep players and no one can hold the band hostage to doing this or that gig.

or just accept that some people aren't comfortable with marketing and booking gigs but maybe they are worth having in the band anyway because they a good players, help with the gear and you like working with them. The price for that is that you sometimes feel like you're doing more than your share but the payback is gigs you enjoy.

Drew_TNBD · August 2015

hotpickups;734958" said:
What so all the hard work calling, delivering leaflets, business cards and general running about for the gig to happen shouldn't be acknowledged with a little percentage?

[quote="Drew_fx;734956"]A 10% incentive fee? So... what... the band member that gets the gig gets 10% of the fee from that gig? That seems ... dodgy to me. I wouldn't agree to that, and depending on the band, I'd probably leave too.

It just sounds really foreign to me. Where do you draw the line? In my band, I may not do the driving and I may not organise the majority of gigs (although I've done my fair share) but I do and have done since we started 100% of the recording, 100% of the editing, 100% of the mixing, etc... etc...

People should play to their strengths I think. If somebody doesn't have *any* strengths then I'd question why they're in the band in the first place.

I dunno... as I say, it just seems foreign to me - not something I've ever done. I can see it causing rifts and giving people a chip on their shoulder.

There again, another part of it is that if it's your band... and your the primary song-writer, and people are there to serve your needs musically... then most of the admin stuff also falls on your shoulders imho.

robinbowes · August 2015

I think the difference here is that you're talking about an "originals" band, whereas we're talking about cover/function bands.

It's a common problem in the latter that some members don't pull their weight, and incentivising by rewarding whoever got the gig is a good idea.

The dynamic is very different in an original band.

R.

hotpickups · August 2015

Yeah I agree. They are good players but I did feel resentful that I was doing all the editing of videos buying software to do it and on and on. They just did turning up and doing the gig and getting paid. I think I'd like a bit of that now

Drew_fx;735106" said:
hotpickups;734958" said:What so all the hard work calling, delivering leaflets, business cards and general running about for the gig to happen shouldn't be acknowledged with a little percentage?

[quote="Drew_fx;734956"]A 10% incentive fee? So... what... the band member that gets the gig gets 10% of the fee from that gig? That seems ... dodgy to me. I wouldn't agree to that, and depending on the band, I'd probably leave too.

It just sounds really foreign to me. Where do you draw the line? In my band, I may not do the driving and I may not organise the majority of gigs (although I've done my fair share) but I do and have done since we started 100% of the recording, 100% of the editing, 100% of the mixing, etc... etc...

People should play to their strengths I think. If somebody doesn't have *any* strengths then I'd question why they're in the band in the first place.

I dunno... as I say, it just seems foreign to me - not something I've ever done. I can see it causing rifts and giving people a chip on their shoulder.

There again, another part of it is that if it's your band... and your the primary song-writer, and people are there to serve your needs musically... then most of the admin stuff also falls on your shoulders imho.

Drew_TNBD · August 2015

robinbowes said:

I think the difference here is that you're talking about an "originals" band, whereas we're talking about cover/function bands.

It's a common problem in the latter that some members don't pull their weight, and incentivising by rewarding whoever got the gig is a good idea.

The dynamic is very different in an original band.

R.

Ah. That wasn't 100% clear to me, although I should've guessed at the mention of weddings I suppose!

Deijavoo · August 2015

FFS!

PinstripePhil · August 2015

Running a band is completely thankless. You have to proceed with very measured expectations or it will eat you up; by the minute.

hotpickups · August 2015

I consider myself fully consumed then. I'm gonna join a band now. Alternatively build a band from only band members who've been band leaders then they'll all know how much work is needed

PinstripePhil;744802" said:
Running a band is completely thankless. You have to proceed with very measured expectations or it will eat you up; by the minute.

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Band rant :(

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