BAND PRIMER-FEBRUARY 2010

STARTING A BAND THAT WRITES/PERFORMS THEIR OWN SONGS-PT.1

-I hope everyone is off to a great 2010! The last couple articles have been on advice/suggestions for starting a cover band. Now we’re going to the other side-to bands that want to write & perform their own material AKA “original bands.”

-As in starting a cover band, you need to have a strong foundation-& that starts w/ the band members. It’s very important to be specific in what you’re looking for. It may take longer this way, but it’s also less of a time waster. Example-years ago I was looking for a drummer for my band CAROLINE BLUE. I put an ad out in the paper & received about 11 calls.1-2 were into the style of music CB is-most of them were blues &/or classic rock players. Be specific so when you do get a response, you already have some common ground-the more the better.

-Like most types of bands, when you get someone who might work, one of the 1st things you do is set up a jam session to see how good the person is-as well as seeing how the vibe/chemistry is. As important as skill/ability is, just as important is attitude-if not more so. You need to know if you can get along with this person. Communication is very important for any type of band. Don’t forget that he or she is also auditioning you as well. The type of music the person plays is a factor too, but not as much as a cover band per say. Example-a cover band that does jazz interpretations of Metallica tunes probably won’t go over well in a cover market-most people want to hear the CD versions-not someone’s interpretation of it. However,in doing your own stuff-that could be your “style”.

-It can take a long time to find the right people to fill out a band. There are other options though. Many bands consist of 1-2 people who play all the instruments & their main thing is creating their own music & recording it. Nothing wrong with that-in fact, there have been times when CAROLINE BLUE had only 1 member in it-and that was me. Our last CD, “Not For The Innocent.” had me hiring a drummer to play on the tracks. The rest of it-with the exception of a gang vocal on 1 song-was all me. Another way is to have one person doing the above-and then hiring a “live” band to play out the material. I’ve done this with CB as well & both subjects will be discussed in more detail in future articles.

-See you all next month!

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