parania/ 1st gig/ bad sound

[insomniac_guitarist]

hey peeps , im new here and from engand! but dont hold that against me lol

ive jus read all the mails in this section , and just thought id add to them. The first gig i ever played was to over 500 people and a panal of judges at a band blitz competition where everyone there was there to support the other bands so it was a ***** crowd for me ,but we kicked some arse and the advise a friend gave to me came in handy , he said " fukk everyone and everything , when ur on stage you are the star and dont let anyone tell you otherwise , if they heckle you , rock out even harder , if they throw stuff at you , throw it back , but never quit". as it happens that advice came in really handy and we kicked some arse and it was a wikid gig. We even managed to sell 300 copies of our demo to people who were against us b4 we took the stage. i suppose the moral of this one is that ppl are stoopid , so just play loud music at them until they do what you want! lol

more advice needed tho...

on stage i have these sort of parania attacks that my songs are ***** and that no one likes me or my band , its really hard to deal with and keep playing through it , my hands start to shake and its not good if you're half way through a solo! lol
Ill be the 1st to admit my music could be more 'talented' but i play what i think sounds good and im not gonna put a huuuuge solo into a song that it doesnt suit just to keep a few 'elitist technical guitarist' fans happy. sometimes simple songs work better?!? i think so anyway.

does anyone else have problems playing there own material??
any advice?
We have quite a big local fanbase now and everyone says they " love " us , but im jus paranoid all the time.
of course i get nervous when im on stage , but dont we all? this is harder to deal with and could mess up my band for me.

anyway. ill shut up now.

cheers for your time ppl.

[the_dreamer]

i suppose the moral of this one is that ppl are stoopid , so just play loud music at them until they do what you want!

Not quite. Put your audience before yourselves, and always ask yourself how they react to certain material. You might even be forced to play stuff that you hate!
You're there to entertain them, not to play for yourselves. Don't forget that.

People seem to relate easily to three things in songs:

1) Rhythm. There *must* be a definite pulse and groove to your music. Even straight 16th strumming feel (punk) must have its stresses.
Rhythm is one of the easiest ways to communicate to your audience.
To know whether your message is being felt, watch the way ppl move to your music - are they swaying/clapping to the beat? Headbanging on the downbeats? Are they confused on how the music is divided?

2+3) Lyrics and Melody. These go hand in hand, really... try to make the chorus very well enunciated as you sing (so people catch onto the words), and use catchy phrases (assonance, alliteration, rhyme will be your best friends)

If your songs already contain these 3 points, then they are most likely "good songs!"
Notice that 'complex solos and rhythms' aren't necessary factors. If the crowd loves solos and are dying to hear one, then don't be afraid to do whatever you can to give them what they want.



[This message has been edited by the_dreamer (edited November 05, 2003).]

[BrettV]

Yeah. What he said.

[This message has been edited by tk00022 (edited November 05, 2003).]

[Chicken Picken]

Re; Everything that The Dreamer had to say.

Very well put. I will agree 110% that a good solid rythmn played tight will usually hook the audiance. You cant expect the audiance to like every song you play, but they will immediately forget a bad song once they here one they like. Chances are the beat stays in their heads long after the show as well.

[Kniteli]

Well, the main effect you want music to have on the audience is to evoke emotion, this can be inspiration, sadness, or in my opinion the easiest, anger. A well placed solo can push a songs emotional value to amazing heights (think Stairway to Heaven).

[dmt]

Wow, good post the_dreamer! I'm currently getting back into songwriting after a long time break, and you are words are a great reminder! They also got me thinking...

kniteli has a point too in that a solo could be the thing that people remember about song (even though long guitar solos are currently out of style). More commonly than a full-blown solo, perhaps, is it'll just be a little guitar riff people might remember (the intro (and later repeated) guitar riff from the Sugar Ray song "Every Morning" comes to mind here). The main thing though is that popular songs have to have what is called "a hook". "The hook" is something that grabs you (usually on first or second listen) and makes you remember the song and even want to hear it again. It's the part that runs through your head, you hum or sing. If there is a music video or DVD associated with it, the hook could possibly even be visual - such as a dance move you practice when you think of the song. Most commonly though, the hook is sung words, and of all the words, it's probably the chorus. The hook could also possibly be some tricky lyric buried in the verse that makes people think in a new way, but that would be much harder to get across live than a catchy chorus.

Some songs could be filled with lots of little aural delights - hooks for the listener to hang their memory on. Not all songs have to have a strong hook, though - just the ones you want to be popular! There are other reasons to write songs, and there are more contemplative pleasures than the immediate gratification of a big ol' hook slamming you in the face. But, you said you're worried about your songs being accepted by the audience, so following the_dreamer's advice about a strong rhythm and having a hook (especially, a strong chorus) would be a great move. Make songs that immediately grab people and that they keep humming the next day! Heck, if you do that well, you might become a millionaire!

Another good thing to keep in mind if you want to be popular is don't pitch your songs to the guitar geeks in the audience! Don't worry about them. Get the heads banging and the chicks dancing. If you're really into lead guitar (which it sounds like you're not), then you might throw in some shred stuff there to keep it legitimate for your shredder crowd, but it sounds like that's not you anyway. If it's not, then don't worry about them.

Beating the shakes can be a toughie - I get it public speaking sometimes. I never know when it's coming..., but it doesn't come at all in situations where I fell comfortable. Figure out how to be truly comfortable onstage. Good luck!

[SKEETER]

First of all, never consider yourself a star even if you become one. The important people at a gig are the people you are playing for, not the band members. You learn this from playing bars, you are there to entertain people, and if they want you to play polka music on kazoos, that is what you do. Forget the crowd while you are playing, and don't worry about it being perfect. Most people who go to see bands are tone deaf, and the few musicians that are likely to be in the audience have screwed up onstage themselves, they overlook it. I always consider gigs to be paid practice. Even musicians miss it when bands screw up, so, don't stand there with your ******* puckered closed scared to death you are going to hit a clanger. You ARE going to hit a clanger. Ever watch late night talk shows on TV, that are recorded before live audiences? The bands are always perfect, right? HARDLY! THey are not fooling anyone, after they tape the show, there is no doubt in my mind the musicians stick around to dub over all the screwups they made. Same with live albums, bands are notorious for fixing live clangers in the studio. The best bands ever to hit a stage make mistakes regularly, it is just that, most people normally don't notice. Especially in bars, when most of them are drunk and too busy dancing and having fun to care if you are a virtuoso or not. Quit trying to be the next big thing and just have a ball playing, if God wants you to be a star you will, and all the trying in the world won't make you one. One thing for sure, if you look like you are scared to death on stage, a record label is not likely to come out of the woodwork to get you to sign papers no matter HOW good you are. HAve fun, that way you will look like you are having fun..........