For most beginning bands getting and playing as many gigs as possible is one of the main goals. Playing a good show can do wonders for your promotion, but a bad show won't bring you any new fans. This article shows you 9 mistakes you shouldn't make when you have a gig, improving your chances at a great show.


1. Playing too soon

Everyone has been to at least one show where you thought, “I wish the band had practiced a bit more”. Some bands are in such a hurry to get to playing live, they forget one of the most important things about playing live: having a good set.

You shouldn't play live if you don't have enough songs. A rule of thumb is to have at least 10 songs or between 30 and 45 minutes of music. Before performing you should know these 10 songs thoroughly: don't include songs you're not sure you can't play without errors just to make your set longer.


2. Not enough technical preparation

Besides the musical preparation, you should also be prepared for technically. Make sure you know what equipment the venue has available, and what you need to bring yourselves.

"Does anyone have a b-string left?"

Guitar strings break. If possible have a (tuned) spare guitar ready, but at least have some spare strings.


3. Too long pauses between songs

You don't want to your audience to fall asleep, so make sure your set is as continuous as possible. Nothing is as deadly for an excited audience as long pauses during a show, because all guitar players tune their guitars between every song, and the drummer needs to rearrange his drum kit. Keep the amount of tuning to a minimum. Try to perform your songs in blocks of 2, 3 songs at the time, for taking a short break to tune.

Switching between the standard tuning and drop D tuning after each song takes too much time: If you have a lot of songs in different tunings, try to either have one guitar ready for each tuning, or play songs in a different tuning directly after each other.


4. Tuning with sound audible

For the guitar players: If you have some spare cash, buy yourself a pedal tuner. That way your audience doesn't have to listen to the sounds of you tuning your guitar. A small investment for looking a lot more professional.


5. Talking too much / too little

People come to rock shows for music, not for speeches. Don't bore your audience with long-winded explanations about each songs or your complete band history. Keep those for your liner notes. On the other hand, just walking on stage, performing your songs back to back, without even acknowledging there's an audience isn't too smart either. After your gig the audience should at least know who you are, and where to find your website.

When talking between songs, try to pay attention to where you are and who your audience is. Try to avoid clichés. For example, I've seen too much bands trying to be cool by talking about smoking pot at concerts in Amsterdam: I live there, I know you can smoke legally here. I'm sure every city has its own cliché people get tired of hearing at every other show.


6. Acting like it's just another rehearsal


I've been to too many shows where band members show up in their regular boring everyday clothes, standing on the stage without moving more than necessary and ignoring the fact that there is an audience.

It isn't called a show for nothing! Give the people something watch, besides your music. Otherwise they could just put on your cd and stay home. Dress up a bit. Move around the stage, if you ain't sweating when you're done, you're doing it wrong!


7. Complaining during the show

The sound man won't be excited to fix your monitor sound, if you bitch loudly about your (lack of) sound. Try to catch his attention without letting the whole world know what the problem is.

This applies to other problems also. Disappointed in the low turnout? Don't complain to the people who DID show up.


8. Don't hide backstage

This one is aimed at starting bands playing local venues. Don't spend the entire night hiding backstage, especially during the shows of other bands who play the same evening. Support the other bands by watching their performance!


9. Being too drunk/stoned/high

Yeah, yeah, we know, you're a rockstar. Well, the best way to act like a real rockstar is by rocking as hard as possible, and giving the audience a great show. Living in Amsterdam I've seen a bit too much wannabe rockstars messing up their show by being stoned out of their minds. Of course, too many bands seem to play only for the free beers they get. Sure, drinking is fun, but try to do it after your show, not before.


The main point of this article? If you want to be treated like a professional musician? Act like one!

Matthew Ryan first debuted in 1997 with May Day (A&M Records) and since, has amassed an impressive catalog of critically lauded major label, DIY and indie releases to date. Matthew Ryan vs The Silver State is Ryan's 11th record released by Brooklyn indie 00:02:59 on 4/1/08. Photo by Bob Delevante.

When David asked me if I would be interested in writing an essay for his site, I accepted immediately. I know that the goal of this site to help us, artists and hopefuls, navigate the minefields, pleasant weather and oceans of today's music business. I don't know if I can offer anything that's really gonna help you, but I know what I'll write here are some of the things I wish someone had said to me. Maybe I could have avoided a couple dark nights and wrong turns. You see, I've had my share of experiences in the major label world, the indie world and the DIY world. My story is still developing and growing. And it took me years to realize that that's something to be proud of. Because for better and for worse, a persistent career in music is an epic novel of the self in the plots, developments and twists of ambition, dreams, naivety and stupidity in a constantly changing landscape. Sometimes it's a war zone. Sometimes it's a love story. 

So the first thing I would say to anyone going after this is: the sooner you come to conclusions about your center and the real engine that motivates you, the better off you'll be. Because I can't imagine a worse fate than a life travelled down the wrong road. Life is beautiful and life takes on speed. You might be surprised by how quickly you suddenly feel a bit out to sea. So be honest with yourself and those you surround yourself with, and expect the same from them. Be willing to fail while you succeed. And make sure your aim is true. 

I could go on forever here. It could get very dense and long, like the Crime & Punishment of what should be simple advice regarding a notion - How do I make a living from music?  

I've been doing this professionally since 1996. I know John Doe writes for this site as well, and I'm sure his point of view on all of this is horizons wider than mine. But even already in my experience, people have come and gone. Some succeed, many quit, and just as many think they failed. But honestly, I've never seen anyone fail at music. Usually people underachieve and they start to assume that that is their fate and they let that dismantle their ambition. The first step in making a living in music is believing that you can. Remain vigilant and maintain balance. Protect your sense of things but be open to adjusting your approach. And be careful, because there are those that go after music and become cynical shells with no romanticism left, they kinda carry themselves like coalminers trapped in a mine. That, in my opinion, is the worse thing to happen. Keep an eye on your spirit. In short, don't be afraid to fail and don't be afraid to succeed; just don't become a ghost. 

So, to me, the question becomes - what do you want from it? 

You're gonna have to define that and make a plan that gives you the best chance of reaching that. Every artist has his or her own road. And today, the options are endless; and so is the static. Your plan shouldn't define the entire arc of your career, look at it like a step on a staircase, once you reach one plateau, define and work towards another.  A friend of mine recently shared this quote with me, I don't know who said it originally, but he said ", if you can accomplish all that you're dreaming in your lifetime, then you're not dreaming enough." That's how all of us should live and work. Music is a potent engagement when done right with resonant intent, I would suggest we all focus on that. As you go though, be careful of ego, it can turn you into a cannibal. 

So I've already said more than I planned on. But there's one last thing I would want to express to you. Today, there are many people saying that we, as artists, should accept being niche. They're saying that music is no longer a connector, or movement and that the greed in business killed music. Music isn't dead, the business is changing. To me accepting niche sounds contrary to the defiant and intimate universality of music. I don't think we should expect less from ourselves or our work. We can't accept being creepy little cults on the edge of town. Music has always been a way to define or describe our collective mood. Whether you're talking about punk, folk, country, hip hop or jazz; at it's root, music comes with the cinema and memory of where we were and where we're going in moments. It's a swing at the wisdom we're not born with. And of course in this perfect world, songs can influence, encourage or define a dialogue (both internal and collectively) in the days they were born. I would love nothing more than for music and art to overtake entertainment. If that makes sense to you, then I believe you're on the right track. Writing songs is easy, it's everything else that takes stamina, work, indestructible hope and patience.

 

David Slade and Collins Kilgore play in the indie band American Princes.  The band's fourth record Other People was recently released on Yep Roc Records

 
Anyone who’s ever had serious hopes of being a professional pop musician has heard of South By Southwest.  Specifically, they’ve heard the dictum “You’ve gotta play South By Southwest.”  Implied in that statement is the promise that this festival is an essential springboard for a band’s career that, upon playing, will rocket the group to the upper echelons of rock n’ roll stardom.  And of course everyone believes this the first time they play SXSW.  They quickly learn, however, that they have been misinformed.  We have experienced this disillusionment personally and, while not as life-shattering as one would think, it has certainly reshaped how we view the whole thing.

South By Southwest and its Northeastern counterpart CMJ differ from the “music festival” in the classic sense of the term.  Unlike Woodstock or Reading, where already famous artists play for crowds familiar with (or already receptive to) their work, SXSW and CMJ are effectively music industry sample sales, where a horde of unestablished talent competes among itself for the attention of tastemakers – journalists, record label employees, radio promoters – whom, presumably, are the gatekeepers of fame and fortune.  The bands believe that, if they work hard and put on an amazing show, their hard work will be recognized by People Who Matter who, in turn, will discover the Band and Make Things Happen.  Consequently, South By Southwest will be the most amazing week of their artistic lives. There are a few myths and one truth to this scenario, outlined below.

THE MYTHS (note: Don’t be too bummed by any of this.  Remember, there are always exceptions to any rule!):

1. You Will Get Discovered at South By Southwest: You will no more be discovered at South By Southwest than you will playing in your practice space at home. The likelihood of an A&R rep walking in and signing you on the spot is identical in both cicumstances. This is the case for a few reasons, the first being that all of the people interested in signing bands at SXSW go into the festival with a list in hand of the artists who are already hot, and this list is long. If you’re not a regular mention on Pitchfork, or aren’t already the toast of Portland, Brooklyn, LA, London, Lisbon, or Chicago, you won’t be dropped in on by Jonathan Poneman. He’s busy checking out those other acts.

Another reason that record label decision makers aren’t going to come to your set is because they’re busy hyping the people they’ve already signed.  SXSW is a proving ground for fledgling acts on a roster so, often, the labels and managers are too busy going out and hustling attention for their own groups to be concerned with whatever you’re doing.  As you are trying to improve your market share, so are they.

2. You Will Generate “Buzz” By Playing at South By Southwest: This is where we get into a lesson on prepositions. Specifically, the difference between the words “before” and “at.” Going into SXSW with no one having heard your name outside of your incredibly small hometown (say, Little Rock, AR), you won’t leave Austin with your name on the lips of every festival attendee. As is also the case with Myth #1, the bands who leave SXSW with buzz are the same bands who went into the festival with buzz. To illustrate, we’ll recount what could have been an actual snippet of dialogue from this year’s festival:

REPORTER FROM A FANCY MUSIC MAGAZINE: Where did you just come from?

FREELANCER WHOSE REVIEW OF VAMPIRE WEEKEND YOU JUST READ: The Merge [Records] showcase.  I saw She & Him.  Zooey Deschanel is so hot.

REPORTER FROM A FANCY MUSIC MAGAZINE: Tell me about it.  Man, that record’s good, too.  

Here is a dialogue snippet that absolutely did not go down at this year’s festival:

REPORTER FROM A FANCY MUSIC MAGAZINE: Where did you just come from?

FREELANCER WHOSE REVIEW OF VAMPIRE WEEKEND YOU JUST READ: Well, last night I was walking down the street, and this guy came up to me and handed me his band’s CD.  They’re from Terra Haute, and this is the first time they’ve ever played here.  I listened to it and it blew me away, so I just went to their showcase.  It was incredible!  I’m going to make sure I tell everyone I know about them.  Here, let me give you their MySpace address.

REPORTER FROM A FANCY MUSIC MAGAZINE: Awesome!  I’m always on the lookout for something new.

3. Playing A Lot Of Shows Will Impress People and Your Hard Work Will Pay Off: At our first SXSW (2006) we remember hearing about a certain buzz band at the time (Tapes ‘N Tapes) and how they were playing a record 6 shows that year.  "How ambitious and hard-working they are," we thought to ourselves.  “Clearly, this has a causal relationship to the fame they are enjoying.”

The following year there were a number of bands that played at least six shows, and the New York Times ran an article about The Black Lips (who played eight shows), discussing how they were the "hardest working band at SXSW."  This year we tried it out and played 6 shows (in 2 days we might add) and it just so happened that THIS WAS THE NORM for bands playing in Austin in 2008.  We heard rumors of one band playing a remarkable 11 shows, and more absurdly, a band that made 12 appearances.  That works out to 3 shows a day for 4 straight days, or possibly 6 shows a day for 2 days.  However you parse it out the important thing is that the New York Times wrote about neither of these bands. We're not sure if they got any real hype from playing this many shows, other than providing an eyebrow-raising factoid for musicians to scare each other with.

Back in ’06, Tapes 'N Tapes were probably not the first band to play 6 shows at the festival, but they had been all over the blogs in the weeks leading up to the festival, and their frantic schedule was one thing that people zeroed in on when giving them praise. It illustrates the principle that bands only attract buzz at SXSW by bringing it with them.

The term "hard working at SXSW" is a myth insofar as it's a redundancy.  The first two times we played the festival, doing only 2 shows apiece, our experiences were equally as taxing as our 6-show stint this year.  No matter what you do you will A) be on your feet entirely too long, B) drink entirely too much, and C) will likely to expend far too much mental energy hoping that someone there will have the power or the will to break your band.  Festivals like SXSW and CMJ serve mostly as a way to say "Hey, we're here" or “Hey, we’re still here.”  It's just a matter of paying your dues, like appearing at your monthly Rotary Club meeting. Except instead of paying the Rotary treasurer you pay Sonicbids.

THE LONE TRUTH:

1. You Can and Should Have Fun at South By Southwest:  Make this a pleasure before business experience and you’ll have a blast.  While there are a lot of downsides to every band in the known world descending on a single town, the upside is that a ton of phenomenal music is made available to you, all within walking distance.  Further, you literally cannot escape the festival without being showered in free alcohol and barbecue so, if that’s your bag, then get psyched.  We’ve stumbled onto incredibly intimate, awesome shows of unknown bands who have become some of our favorite artists.  We’ve also gotten to see crazy, huge stuff like Mastodon, David Byrne, John Doe, and Iggy Pop for free.  You can also get free shoes.  We know this for a fact.

Fundamentally, festivals like South By Southwest or CMJ are week-long celebrations for a ton of people who are, for whatever reasons, completely committed to a bunch of different aspects of music, from making it to selling it and all the points in between.  It shows just how wide a sampling of cultures throughout the world are affected by pop music‚ to the point where people will travel for days and days just to celebrate its existence (and to hype their own little piece of the cake, but still, we want to end this on an up note).  While these festivals aren’t going to make you famous (unless you’ve already got something going for you, such as being Zooey Deschanel), that fact is effectively beside the point.  You go to these things to play shows for the pure sake of playing shows, and to experience music for the pure sake of experiencing music.  And this is the best thing that one could possibly want, ultimately.

- David Slade & Collins Kilgore

The rapid growth of Internet radio is undeniable. According to Edison Media Research 33 million Americans listen to a radio station over the Internet during an average week and AccuStream iMedia Research reports that online radio music generated 4.85 billion total listening hours in 2007, up 26.1% over 2006. I personally listen to Internet radio at least 12 hours a day and find it a very powerful tool for discovering new artists.

Radio airplay has been used as one of the primary ways to promote an artist and their music since the beginning of the industry. Record labels developed large radio promotions departments and / or hired independent radio promoters to develop relationships with influential Program Directors securing airplay for their artists. Independent artists have long been all but locked out of terrestrial radio airplay and its promotional benefits. The ongoing shrinkage of niche stations, specialty shows and local decision making for programming have further reduced opportunities for artists who fall outside the mainstream or don’t have the support of a major label.

Internet radio now provides independent artists with unprecedented access to a large and growing audience and promotional opportunities that had only been available to label backed artists. Many of the leading Internet radio stations accept submissions directly from artists so there is no need to incur the cost of hiring a radio promotions person or firm to work a new release to Internet radio stations.

While some stations offer centrally programmed channels many Internet radio stations allow their users to create custom radio stations based on their preferences. Some of the more popular Internet radio stations have developed powerful recommendation engines that, with the help of the listener community ratings, assist their users in discovering new music. With Internet radio the programming power largely resides with the user community instead of a Program Director. Social networking components on some sites allow members to build profiles, add friends, share favorites and discover new music through friend recommendations and by joining groups. The social networking aspect of Internet radio also provides artists a great way to connect directly with their fans by sharing their favorite music, building their own stations or adding unreleased tracks.

Musicians in niche genres (say zydeco or death metal) who have traditionally had the least opportunity with radio now have a great opportunity to be heard by fans of their specific genre. With Internet radio fans of unique or niche genres can easily search groups, genre lists or stations and artist tags to find and discover new artists. Suddenly being in a niche genre becomes an advantage since it’s much easier for that artist to be found or standout than it is for their contemporaries in much more crowded genres like pop or country music.

Internet radio is a very powerful promotional tool but it can also help artists actually make money from their music as well. Several of the Internet radio stations feature a “buy” button next to the track while it’s playing. The button links to a digital retailer like iTunes or Amazon. Providing music fans the option of immediately buying the track they really like is an opportunity many (myself included) have a hard time passing up.

Additionally, much like songwriters and publishers can get paid through ASCAP, BMI or SESAC for airplay on terrestrial radio, Soundexchange pays royalties directly to performing artists (and copyright holders) for tracks streamed on Internet Radio. The royalty payments for Internet radio are based on actual plays or streams and not estimates like terrestrial radio royalties. Artists and sound recording copyright holders must register with Soundexchange to receive payment. Millions of dollars in royalties from digital music services have been collected but not yet paid out simply due to the lack of a mailing address for many artists. If you are a recording artist and / or copyright holder please register at Soundexchange today!

There are an untold number of Internet radio options currently available. Below are a few worth checking out who have a large listener / user base and accept submission directly from independent artists. If there are other stations we should add to this list please let us know.

AOL Radio:Mail Submissions To

AOL Radio
Pete Schiecke
770 Broadway 4th Floor
New York, NY 10003 USA

Last.FM: Artists can build their own profile page and directly upload their music

Pandora: Mail Submissions To

Music Genome Project Submissions
360 22nd St. Suite 440
Oakland, CA, 94612 USA

Yahoo / Launchcast: Mail Submissions To

Yahoo Music
Gina Juliano
2450 Broadway Avenue
Santa Monica, CA 90404 USA

 

 

 

John Doe is the founder of the seminal Los Angeles punk group X, a solo artist and actor. John answers questions from our community members in the WWJDD? blog. Photo by Autumn de Wilde.

A question from Bonny in Austin:

 

Hi John,

I have been relentlessly asking everyone I come in contact
with this question as I finish CD#2, recorded with the
magic of Pro Tools and a gaggle of big talent from here in
Austin. (at Jumping Dog Studio w/Ron Flynt)

The question I have: how important is it to spend $175
dollars an hour to master, compared to, say, $250? I
realize you can't actually answer that question but would
like your opinion on the merits of a well-known and
obviously talented master-er as opposed to a less-famous
and/or experienced one. It seems with the whole new "music
is free" and internet downloading vs. vinyl and discs, what
level of perfection is actually appreciated/necessary in
the end? I'm also wondering if as technology is making
mastering capability more available perhaps the price might
be coming down. I'm not a cheapskate or unwilling to spend
money on my art, but just trying to get the facts.

I am not exactly professional, I write and play locally
because I love to, and it keeps me (sort of) sane and
hopefully someday someone with a wonderful voice will cover
one of my songs. Or rip me off and get me some publicity.

Thanks for your response, and I loved the Austin show! I
feel very honored to have shaken your talented hand.

Bonny

myspace.com/bonnyholmes

WWJDD?

Dear Bonny,

First, don't let anyone rip you off! ! ! Hopefully someone will cover one of your songs & you'll be rich, famous & satisfied.

There's no doubt that mastering can make a good record, great & a mediocre record, really sing, so don't under estimate it's value. On the most basic level it puts your record through the best bass, treble, mid-range EQ you can imagine, and then saves that marriage. You can make a record better w/ good mastering, you can't save a badly recorded or conceived record. Regarding mastering choices, you simply should match the cost of mastering w/ the cost of the project. Most mastering labs have mastered more than a few records. Listen to them & make you choice based on the sound & how it relates to your record. You wouldn't master a hip-hop record @ a place that usually does country records, simple eh?

If you recorded on pro tools, I would recommend using the pro tools mastering program w/ the engineer who recorded it and save you self the significant cost of mastering. I've found the program is reliable & does a pretty decent job. If it's still doesn't make the record sound as you thought it could, then take it to a mastering lab that masters records similar to yours.

best of luck
and as always, thanks for writing,
JD

If you have questions for John Doe about music, the music business or life feel free to email them to wwjdd@knowthemusicbiz.com.

For more information on John Doe check out theejohndoe.com or YepRoc.com .