Glenn Boothe is the owner of Local 506, a 250 capacity music venue in Chapel Hill, NC. Prior to owning Local 506, Glenn worked for Island Records, Epic Records, Caroline Records and Sony Music Distribution.

Local 506 is a 250 capacity in the non-major market of Chapel Hill, NC; however, we easily get ten emails a day from bands looking to get shows here and many of those emails are from acts who have never played the club and are just looking for a spot on an existing bill.  Since our average show has three acts that means seven of those ten acts get told ‘no’ by default – there just isn’t room to book everyone who contacts us.  

As an opening act at a venue of this size, your role goes beyond just providing entertainment to early arrivals.  Another expectation from both the venue and the headliner is for the opening act to help get a few extra bodies in the room, whether that is your own fans OR people you might have turned on to the headliner via your own promotional tactics

With that said, opening bands sometimes ask questions on the day of the show that often make me wonder to myself that if you haven’t taken the time to figure this stuff out before the night you are playing, then did you really tell anybody they should come to this show? But if there is one thing that makes me cringe more than any other pre-show conversation, it’s this one line: My band has a short set, can we move the start-time back? 

First and foremost, I always wonder why is this coming up 30 minutes before your show instead of the 30 days since the show was set up?   Every detail about a show is pretty much known the day the show is booked – if you think the show should start later, then that would be the time to have that discussion, not the day of the show when all the advertising has been set (some of which can be costly for a venue.) Think about this: Would customers like it if restaurants or banks just changed their opening time each day instead of the time posted on their door?

Secondly, changing the advertised show time on the night of the show displays little respect for the most important people of all, the patrons. Without paying customers, both bands and venues would suffer greatly.   Basically, the suggestion is to penalize the people who arrive on time for the benefit of those who are arriving late.  Think about this: Should we really encourage a behavior that, in a work environment, would likely get you fired.

Thirdly, those folks are likely intentionally coming late, as they aren’t that interested in seeing the entire set of your band.  You are the opener for a reason - you are less popular than the headliner.   However, in my opinion there is a benefit to someone only seeing a portion of your set – if they only get a taste but like what they hear, they are more likely to either buy your CD or come to your next show to experience more. Think about this: There is a reason grocery stores give out samples of the food they are selling, and not the entire product.

With all that in mind, most opening acts would still argue that anyone who is coming on that given night has already made up their mind to come, so there is little harm if the show is pushed back.  However, as a venue, the goal is for those patrons to come back again and since people do put value on their time, waiting around for the band they want to see leads to a less desirable experience.  In turn, patrons might think twice about attending a show here in the future, as it’s much easier for someone to NOT go to a concert than to try and guess what time makes sense for them to arrive.  Think about this: most other forms of entertainment, from movies to television shows to sporting events all start on time, they don’t wait for the audience to show up first.

So, if you wanted to go see the latest Hollywood Blockbuster, would you choose the theatre that starts the movie on time, or the one that waits for more people to show up before starting? I don’t think that type of movie theatre would last very long and in this age where we collectively have shorter attention spans, I’m not sure a music venue that operates this way can survive either. And fewer venues mean fewer opportunities for you to play.  Now, think about that!

Daniel Kohn has been working, touring, managing, promoting, living and blogging in the music business for over 15 years. His blog is read by thousands each week http://askkohnny.com.

Last week I was out at a bar watching a band play and I happened to notice something they did which was extremely subtle yet at the same time proved to be very successful at helping them sell more merchandise at the end of their show.

My guess is that they sold well over $500 worth of merch after their show all because of this one little strategy.

Basically what they did was right before their last song, the lead singer got on the mic and thanked everyone for coming down to watch them play. He then continued by saying –

“After our set, were going to be hanging out by the merch table so come and say hi!”

That was it. Nothing more nothing less. He wasn’t selling, pitching or promoting anything specifically that they actually had at their merchandise table, rather he was just informing everyone, in a very informal way that he’ll be hanging out over there.

Following that, the band continued to play their final song and right at the very end, once again he said into the mic –

“Thanks again for coming, were xxxx. We’ll be at the merch table so come and say hi!”

What transpired after that was nothing short of amazing. The lead singer walked off the stage, B lined for the merch table, didn’t stop for anyone and before I knew it, half the room flocked over to their merchandise stall and crowded around him and the guitarist wanting to say hi.

It was incredible.

As I stood and watched all these people go over and say hi, it occurred to me how clever and undercover that idea really was.

Let’s face it, no artist likes selling their T-shirts or latest release and if they don’t mind pitching their stuff, they are usually not very good at it anyway. But this particular band figured out how to get people to their merchandise table without even mentioning that they have merchandise! There was no mention of anything other than a warm gesture to say hi.

What happened over the next twenty minutes is that as people spoke and hung out, the natural progression was to buy something and boy, did they start buying.

As time went on, the merch table became a hangout area at the venue and as more people hung around there, other people wanted to see what the commotion was about, so there was this constant gathering around this bands merchandise and for every couple onlookers, there were a few that would pull their wallets out and buy something. Some would also ask for their album or t-shirt to be signed etc.

I guess the reason why this strategy worked so well for these guys is that they were so casual and natural about it all. They never gave the impression that they were only there to sell merchandise. Rather, they made a genuine effort to connect with their fans and audience, which at the end of the day is what fans really want, a genuine connection.

Give them that and they’ll give you their wallet!

Sounds a little sick and twisted, but it’s the truth.

Alyson Miller is a CPA who provides specialized accounting and tax services to music and entertainment clients.  She is the founder of Alyson Miller, CPA PLLC a rock and roll accounting, tax, and business management firm. She has years of music business experience working for both independent and internationally recognized artist and songwriters, record labels, publishing companies and music distributors.  

Musicians can save themselves some money and reduce their tax bill if they know what to look for when it comes to filing taxes.   There are many deductions that are specific to being a self-employed musician. 

If you are self-employed (i.e., you don’t receive a W-2 from an employer) you will file your income and allowable expenses on a Schedule C as an attachment to your 1040.  The net of the Schedule C is then reported on page 1 or you 1040. 

Always keep receipts for everything along with other documentation that you may have such as tour schedules. Here is a list and brief description of the typical allowable expenses.

Travel Expenses

The location has to be far enough away that is it inconvenient to return home otherwise expenses are considered commuting expenses and they are not deductible. 

Allowable expenses include:

• Hotels
• Airfare
• Phone calls to home
• Rehearsal space rental
• Tips
• Local transportation like taxis at your destination

Meals

• Meals associated with overnight travel
• Meal expenses incurred while discussing or conducting business

You are only allowed a deduction for 50% of the meal costs and the IRS requires a receipt and documentation on who, what, where, and why you incurred the meal expense.

Equipment

• All equipment (guitars, amp, strings, etc.)
• Repairs and maintenance on equipment

Any item that generally costs more than $500 is depreciated over 5 years.  What this means is that you can take one-fifth of the costs as an expense each year for 5 years.  You may be able to take a 179 deduction which means you can take the entire cost as an expense in the year you purchase the item.

Vehicle Expenses

There are two methods allowed for vehicle expenses.  You can choose one or calculate both and choose the one that gives you the biggest deduction.

Method 1 – keep actual receipts for:

• Gas
• Repairs & maintenance
• Insurance
• Property Tax

The IRS also allows a depreciation deduction for your vehicle under this method.

Method 2

• Keep mileage log of every mile traveled

• Use standard mileage deduction for each mile traveled (55 cents for 2009; 50 cents for 2010)

If you have a room in your home used exclusively for your business such as a studio you may be able to deduct it.  You can take a percentage of the square footage and apply it to:

• Rent
• Mortgage Interest
• Utilities
• Property Taxes

Health Insurance

• Premiums that you pay as a self employed musician are fully deductible on the front page of the 1040.

Other Items

• CD’s and music downloads
• Concert tickets
• Music publications
• Wardrobe

Don’t get greedy with these items!  Wardrobe must be used exclusively on stage.

Always consult your tax professional about your individual situation.  One size does not fit all so finding a music business accountant is always preferable. 

Martin Atkins has a 30 year career in the music business that includes touring with the bands Public Image Limited, Killing Joke, Ministry, Nine Inch Nails and Pigface, owning an independent record label celebrating its 20th anniversary with over 350 releases, and is an instructor at Columbia College Chicago teaching The Business of Touring, Applied Marketing, and Indie Label Management. He is also the author of the book Tour:Smart.

Before we delve into the wonderful world of touring logistics, strategies, great ideas that can help, bad ideas that won’t, and a few stories along the way; perhaps we should ponder if, with all of the technological advancements every day AND (for f’s sake) the price of gas!, If it’s even necessary to tour anymore?

Yes it is, you know it is, stop smoke-screening you lazy bastard and get with it!!

You don’t need to look far for an example of how important it is to get out there. Do you think for one second that, if it wasn’t essential, that politicians ever leave home? Most of those guys can’t even bring themselves to think about other people, let alone touch them—(unless it’s on the ass). So the only reason they are out there is: 1. More ass, or 2. Their advisors told them that they had to, showed them the evidence, and pushed them out the door. Think about this the next time you see one of them getting on the ‘truth bus’ or whatever crap they are selling this week.

Every single element affecting your career and your ability to continue is helped by touring:

• Anyone anywhere is more likely to check out your MySpace page if they see you are coming to town.

• Any promoter in any other city is more likely to give you a gig if they see you are performing in other parts of the country.

• People on the web write about things that happened at shows they went to, not shows that didn’t happen, that they couldn’t go to…

• Your manager, if you have one, will prioritize you over another (maybe better?) band because you are working harder (unless the other band is Radiohead).

• You can be the eyes and ears for your label, if you have one... or for other bands too lazy or frightened to leave their home base. You can tell them where responses, crowds, sound-systems are good or where ‘promoters’ are baaaaaad.

• Your agent, if you have one, will pay more attention if you show him you are prepared to perform seven shows a week. That means if he can get you to a point where you are earning $1,000 a night, then he could earn $1,000 a week.in commissions. (good job agents don’t care about money huh!)

• The record store (if you can find one) is more likely to stock your music and put up a poster.

• Everyone from the local blogger to the local paper is more likely to review your CD or mention your show.

• You can leave behind promotional beacons… t-shirts etc, put up stickers in bathrooms, graffiti in the dressing room and generally ‘leave your mark’

• Your album (or collection of songs) will be better because you’ll have direct and immediate feedback from a real, live audience; either smiling and jumping up and down because the songs you thought were great really are, or throwing things because you are delusional and your songs are shit. Either way, this is way more valuable than a bunch of people on your MySpace page plugging their own albums.

• It is a great opportunity to triumph over your shyness (eventually without the aid of alcohol) and polish your people meeting skills.

• This is stuff YOU can do – (while you are waiting for all of the people who said they were going to do something to come through for you.)

• You are creating more of your own content, audio, video and mythical…. you can’t release a Live in Paris (Texas) album if you don’t go and play there!

And, very importantly:

• The more you play, the better you get!

• You can meet GREAT, enthusiastic people who can help you next time around

• You can discover wonderful things in other town’s thrift stores

In addition to all of this – many other things will just become blindingly obvious to you as you begin this journey. You will realize when the guitarist pukes on you for the fourth time that maybe his drinking is becoming a problem – you can reflect further on this as you pull out pieces of sweetcorn and carrots from the pockets of your jeans at the laundromat.

What does all of this mean? How will it really help you? Well, all of these bits of information are little bricks in your wall (I use that analogy a LOT) but, here’s an example of what you’ll be getting from this column to leave you with:

A simple decision for a band in the mid-west – between heading out to the west coast or staying closer to home but still hitting major markets – the difference in gas costs alone - $1200. That’s the tour support that the label that wouldn’t sign you, wouldn’t give you!

Ok, now, do I have your attention???

GREAT – if you want to start reading up on this, taking control of as much of your career as you can – then there is a great deal on my e book here or you can go to Amazon and get it here.

Martin Atkins

Todd Hansen is the Creator of Better Than The Van , a couch-surfing social network for bands on tour. Todd has spent the past 10 years playing/touring in bands and running a label out of Minneapolis. He now calls Austin, TX home and spends his time creating new ways to help bands do great things.

I feared writing this blog post only because I've read so many in this vein and usually there is very little new information. But, Dave asked me to so why not right? I'll give it a go.  Disclaimer:  I hope those that read this peel off some new ideas; or it lights a fire under your butt to tour; or gives you cause to lambast me with ironic whit about how my ideas are passé'.

I know touring is hard but it's absolutely necessary. If you want to quit your job and do music you must tour. It's even more important now as most money to be made is out on tour. Plus if you find yourself on a label, they'll expect you to be in a van more than your apartment.  Let me tell you one quick story from a few years back about Syd Butler of Les Savy Fav and owner of French Kiss Records.

When I first met Syd French Kiss was picking up a band from the label I was helping to run. Over drinks one night The Plastic Constellations (TPC) and I listened to Syd talk about his expectations for the band. TPC would not be sitting around, waiting for something to happen. Syd's conviction was borderline religious. "Tour, tour, tour…that's it", he would say and drive the point home the rest of the week. He believed that on whatever level a band exists, touring is beyond a necessity.   I couldn't argue. Syd had built a band and a label on that foundation. In the years that followed, Syd never let up, always asking TPC when they were touring next, even when they were out on tour. I got it. A label is helpful but a band's success is usually launched via your four-wheeled pirate ship sailing to all points USA. (Note: Syd’s not alone, read the last paragraph of this interview at Hypebot with Patrick Amory of Matador Records.

Understand I don't think that all bands just kick back, write some songs and wait for magic to happen. But it's important to know that making a personal connection in other cities builds momentum and makes your band familiar. Yes, I know this isn't a new concept but I'll keep going. As you meet other bands and people you build a friend base that evolve into a fan base.  It's these people that act on your behalf in those cities by passing along your music and stories of your show(s) to friends. Word of mouth is the most potent marketing tool.

So how do you get shows outside of your city when you don't have a booking agent or are just starting to tour?

Simple. Relentless networking. My DYI game plan was to go around the venues and straight for bands in the cities I wanted to play. I'd hop on MySpace or like site and start asking around. I looked at it no different than being in my home city and meeting people/bands at shows. It becomes mutually beneficial situation as they are probably looking to tour as well. They help you, you help them and your network grows. They may not be able to help when you right away, but they might pass you on to another band; or introduce you to someone at a venue; or hook up a house show. Basically don't be afraid to ask for help and give help when asked.

It takes time, patience and genuine willingness to help people out but the benefits are worth it. Be smart when you try to show swap by finding bands that fit the style, genre or mode of your band. Obviously you’ll have a better chance of the crowd being into what you’re doing. You will make stronger connections that can lead established friend bases that grow into fan bases. MySpace is not the only option either. As social networks become more tailored for particular needs, space will be created for sites dedicated to helping bands with the practical necessities of touring; like finding a free place to stay after a show.

Steve Gerstman has twenty years in the music merchandising business, having worked at Winterland, Signatures and Brockum. He started Steve Gerstman Services, Inc. in 2001, which currently incudes among its clients Eric Clapton, Queen and Stray Cats. In 2007, Gerstman began Cut Merch (www.cutmerch.com ) which he calls the "First 21stCentury Merch Service."

INSIDE TIPS ON TOUR MERCH:

You have finally booked some shows – congratulations! – and now you’re looking forward to the big day.  And if you haven’t been living on Mars for the last few years, you know that selling merch is a way to make money.  After all, touring can actually cost you money, especially at the beginning, and selling merch can make the difference between costing you money and breaking even – or even making some!

1. PLANNING THE TOUR MERCH

Like other aspects of your tour, you need to think through what you will want to sell on your dates and, very importantly, how many to produce.  Regarding what items, don’t try to get too fancy or different with your tour merch.  There are many reasons why bands sell t-shirts, mostly black if they are of the rock variety.  It is because (1) that’s what their fans want and expect, and (2) they provide good profit margins.  It is important to try to figure out how many to produce, an issue I will deal with later.  Along with t-shirts, sell your CD if you have one.  If you are going out for the first time, or in a city where you are appearing for the first time, or if you otherwise are playing to new people, and you are playing in clubs that hold less than a hundred people, that’s all you really need to have.  If you want to carry more, consider a keychain or poster, or a girl’s shirt.  (Baseball caps usually are embroidered, and you won’t want to incur the set-up costs for a small run of caps.) 

2. DESIGN

If you have a CD cover design or a design on your website or MySpace page, use that, or at least tie it in.  If you have a logo on the CD, use that.  Don’t make changes in typeface or colors if you want to project an image to people that they will remember.  T-shirts are billboards for your band, and having the t-shirt reflect the same (or similar) images as your CD cover and your web presence will help people remember you and associate it with you.  I also recommend that you make your tour merch tour merch, by which I mean that people who buy merch at shows like to see (and show their friends) that they “were there.”  An itinerary back (if there are, say, six confirmed dates or more) does that.  If it’s less than six dates (say, in a month’s time), then you might not want to date the merch – because you will want to sell them over a longer period of time, and you won’t want to sell “stale” product.  Finally, keep your designs simple.  That means only print two sides (forget sleeves) and keep the colors down.  Going crazy on prints and colors on a short run of shirts raise the cost more than you can make up on the price you sell them at. 

3. PRODUCTION

You have to balance the number of items you produce with the cost per item.  The more you produce, the less each will cost, but the more you are out-of-pocket.  It is the goal of every merchandiser and band to come out of each tour with as few items as possible, especially if you’ve “dated” them with an itinerary back or other date. It probably isn’t as critical when it comes to CDs as you probably have a garage full of them.  If you do a keychain, a simple acrylic one that uses a digitally created photo is the cheapest to produce, and the result, with two sides in color, looks pretty cool.  When you are thinking about how many shirts to produce, consider the number of people you expect at each show, the number of shows, and then multiply that by the “per cap,” meaning what you project you’ll sell per attendee and divide by the price you will sell them for.  Whew!  There’s a tool on the www.cutmerch.com website for this you can use for free.  Go to the site and send a note.  It’s called the “forecast tool.”  Another resource for posters or handbills (you may want to give out handbills at the shows) promotes your website, announce tour dates or record release, whatever.  It’s www.psprint.com.  Very reasonable prices for anything printed on paper and easy to use website.  Regarding the print run for apparel, try to meet the minimums that keep per item costs reasonable.  As to what “reasonable” means, you need to shop around.  And don’t forget that your costs may or may not include set-up costs.  Don’t assume: Ask!

4. SALES

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 Carol the bar owner:

Hello John,

I was wondering if you could answer some questions for me.

Our bar booked a show with a band by verbal agreement for two weekends in a row. The first weekend they were there they were incredibly rude, and were even overheard in the bathroom telling people to not come to this show because they don't like our bar. While onstage they called us by the name of a different bar, and when corrected, they lead singer said loudly in to the microphone "I don't f-ing care"!!

The manager took him aside during the next break and asked him to correct himself in the next set and he spent the rest of the night sarcastically stating that he was at "The correct name of our bar" and he was "Sooooo happy" to be there.

At the end of the night the manager told him not to bother coming back next weekend, that we would find a band that wanted to be there.

Long story short, they are taking us to small claims court for breaking a verbal agreement.

We're wondering if they even have a case? Does this type of thing happen often?

Thank you for your time.

Carol

WWJDD?

SUCH DRAMA ! ! No, I don't think that they have a case.  How much money was guaranteed? $100? or was it just a door deal?  This band really should get a life & spend a little more time making music rather than bitching & moaning & working on their rockstar attitude. You ought to have one of the burly bouncers find the band & threaten the shit out of them (most likely they'd fold like an oatmeal outhouse) . . . KIDDING ! ! I don't think this happens very often 'cause people usually have better things to do.  Maybe show in court, roll yr eyes at the judge & say, "Really? Are you kidding me? you're going to all this trouble for some crappy bar gig?" (Of course that's not to say yr bar is by any means crappy). Have they actually filed the small claims suit? I doubt that they will actually get around to that. Musicians are really wired that way.
 Don't forget; wear a tie in court, have fun & 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 .

Martin Atkins has a 30 year career in the music business that includes touring with the bands Public Image Limited, Killing Joke, Ministry, Nine Inch Nails and Pigface, owning an independent record label celebrating its 20th anniversary with over 350 releases, and is an instructor at Columbia College Chicago teaching The Business of Touring, Applied Marketing, and Indie Label Management. He is also the author of the book Tour:Smart.

No, not shellfish philanthropy - SELFISH - what I mean is this - GIVE of yourself - open up and HELP someone other than yourself - it will PROBABLY help you way more than spending the same amount of time doing the same old stuff you have been doing and not getting the amazing results you read about on the side of the cereal box.

Lets look at a tiny example - putting up posters........you could put up another 50 of the same posters that no-one has really been taking any notice of for the show that you haven't sold many tickets for - OR, offer to help another band (maybe an out of town band you've connected with through the internet) don't try and hash out some quid pro quo deal before you do it - I LIKE the idea that I'm allowing someone the option of totally ripping me off - that's the best way you can see very quickly what they are really made of - and, when its only a few posters and a few staples (and a parking ticket and a trip to the emergency room because you stapled your hand to a telegraph pole) - then its a pretty cheap litmus test of personality - ok?

So, what might happen - well, the out of town band might also ask if you know of a place to stay - do you?, they might also ask if you know where they can get their mellotron fixed, or they might think that here is a guy that's DOING SOMETHING in a city they need help in - and what would happen if you were actually on the bill???
Maybe, after doing this for ten bands you meet the promoter(s) in town. Believe me the ones that are really doing this will NOTICE someone who is running around putting up posters - instead of talking the talk and then binning them! They will see you here and there and register this activity - so that, when they have a problem with a show that needs some extra work and all of their street teamers are off touring with their band or sick or sick of touring or whatever - you will get the call. Maybe you'll just get to know the people at Kinkos and get a discount or meet your new guitar player (been there, done that). 

I'm not saying, hang on tight cos next week you're joining the fucking BEATLES!!!!!!!! I'm just offering up some different ideas.

 I'll be in New Orleans on Monday sept 15th at Loyola - a free Tour:Smart lecture open to the public at Nunemaker Hall from 5 til 6pm - come and get a flyer that gets you in to my dj spot later that night for free! Then I'll be at the Baltimore Music Conference, New York City (Film Screening and Art Show), Philadelphia and Virginia - come and say hi!

Peace Love Respect

Martin Atkins

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 Pete in New York

What would you do if a drunk punk throws bottle rockets at you onstage during a solo acoustic show?

WWJDD?

It seems obvious that you have to keep yr cool and fire back some choice words to the dummy who wishes he had enough talent to be on stage rather than firing bottle rockets from the audience.  As Peter Case once told me, "Don't lose yr cool, man. If you lose yr cool, you lose yr power."  Occasionally this kind of disturbance can save an otherwise dull show, it's happened to me.  Where the show goes along, good but nothing special. Then some drunk start mouthing off & you've got immediate conflict & something memorable. Just go w/ it, be witty & don't get ugly.  If it comes to that, hopefully there is some security guy to "throw the bum out" or you might just have to put up yr dukes, this if course is a last, & ultimately never satisfying, resort.  And handling these things (stupid people or equipment failure) just gets easier the more time you have to deal w/ them.  Keep yr cool & no one will notice. If they do, they just think how cool you are.

good luck, I hope this helps
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 .

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!