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One more rant: Attitude Introduction Oh well, here we go. You might say "Oh no, not another one of those pointless rants about stuff like the biz and it's rules... where are the licks?" But hey, just like I said in "You Didnt Try To Call Me", this stuff might be just as important as some pentatonic licks or whatever... so here we go!!! OK, let's talk about "attitude". This becomes really important once you start dealing with other musicians, bookers, producers etc. I learned that it is important to be self-confident, but you gotta avoid developing a "tunnel-view". What I mean by that is: You should be self-confident about your abilities, about what you learned and know. Of course, as a musician, you can never really say "OK, I'm perfect now, I can stop learning and developing !" But you should be aware of your abilities. One mistake that a lot of younger, rather unexperienced people do: They hand their demo-tape to everyone they consider important. Musicians, journalists, promoters etc. That is not really a mistake, BUT usually they hand over the demo and add certain comments such as: "Here's our demo. I'd be glad if you'd listen to it (going great so far, but...)... but it's really not representative of the sound of my band (GREAT! Why hand it to someone then?!?) because my amp was broken and I had to borrow another one, our drummer had the flu so he didn't play well, and..." Honestly, why should that person still listen to that demo? After these comments, he'll have some kind of expectation in the back of his mind, which might alter his impression of the tape. If you really think the tape is not representative, don't use it to promote yourself. Dump it! Make another one! Seriously, most people will know that a young band can't afford recording their demo at a multi million-dollar studio. They won't mind a lack of overdubs or mastering. It's not uncommon. But don't point it out in advance. Seriously, I am telling you all this because, when someone hands me a tape (like a student, or someone who attends one of my workshops or meets me at a tradeshow) and tells me in advance how much it sucks, why should I listen to it after all?!? Of course you shouldn't be TOO self-confident. Walking up to someone saying "Hey dude, forget about all the other demos that were given to you today. Listen to OURS, it'll blow your mind, it's the best you ever heard in your life !". For some people, this might work, but in general, I wouldn't recommend to hand over your tape saying things like that. You gotta find a way which lays between downplaying it and exagerrating. Something like this: "Hi, this is our demo-tape, I would be happy if you'd listen to it. We tried our best, and I hope the important stuff (songwriting, charisma) rings through. Thanks" Get used to this kind of consideration and political stuff. It's showbiz, after all... Working with others It's the same when it comes to working and playing with other musicians. It's important to show a positive attitude here. Of course you should be aware of any problems you have to deal with. What I mean is: sure, there can be problems, but it really doesn't help if you bitch and complain about it or really make your bandmates / colleagues nervous... it makes it even worse for all of you, and it sure won't help to fix those problems. I remember a show where I was booked as a "hired gun" (a replacement player) by a band for a pretty huge gig. It was not only that it was going to be a pretty big show, no, the whole show would be recorded by a radio station. The keyboarder of that band 'had a freak accident a few days before the show, and it was obvious that he wouldn't be able to play in the show. The band called up a company which was spezializing in getting "hired guns" for occasions like this, an agency. They recommended a keyboarder, his name was Dave (Hey Dave, didcha find a MIDI-controllable coffee machine yet?!?) Together with the actual keyboarder of that band, he learned the songs and prepared notation and leadsheets to help him through the gig. Dave actually said "Guys, I'll do my best, please don't worry too much, it's gonna be alright". Now, the band actually had a lot to take care of and worry about regarding that show, so it actually was a good idea of Dave to calm them. Sure, you still worry a bit in the back of your head, but the guys just thought "OK, Dave's a pro, he seems to be pretty confident and positive that he's gonna do a good job, so let's try not to worry too much. We're gonna go up there onto the stage and deliver a good show". I'm not saying that you shouldn't worry about anything anymore. But it's not really cool if you happen to get a great gig and you spoil that success for yourself by being miserable abotu it and driving yourself insane, worrying. You should be on your toes and well-prepared, but you also should try to relax, trust in your abilites and enjoy the occasion. So anyway, the band played the show, Dave came in well-prepared with leadsheets and some notes he had prepared, and he did play great, nailing all the fills and everything. To sum this story up: Try to be optimistic and positive, be friendly and polite, and always try to give your best. Sometimes, people might not remember how good you played, but how cooperative and professional you were. THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT, AND I SEE PROOF OF THAT AGAIN AND AGAIN Another example? Last year, a friend of mine invited me to join him and his band on stage to play a song with them as an encore. I went to the venue when they set up their gear, just before the soundcheck. There were quite a few problems... the PA-system was... well, not really state-of the art, on top of it the soundguy wasn't even very familiar with it. During the soundcheck we figured out that there would be only 2 of 4 monitors working (so only the drummer and the singer had a monitor), which is not really a comfortable thing for a rockband. The guys were getting a) nervous and b) very bitter and pessimistic, calling this gig the "worst they ever had" even before it started. Well, I didn't have much to loose, since I was only sitting in for one song, but I still tried to cheer them up, telling them that it still would be a cool gig, giving them some advice on how to deal with the lack of monitoring. My point is, even if there are very bad circumstances before or during a show, you're not making it better by getting all bitter about it. Of course it's unpleasant, but it makes it even worse if you're depressed or angry or whatever. And really, there always seems to be a problem anyway, so you wouldn't enjoy too many gigs at all! The Tunnel-view Sometimes you happen to develop a "tunnel-view", which makes it hard to work with others. One example? OK... A few years ago, the band I was in back then was asked to fill in for a band that wasn't able to make it to a certain gig. So we were all excited (it was a bigger show) and were like "Yes, we'll do a really good job then and blow everyone away". So we went to the venue and set up. Back then, my guitar setup was still pretty elaborate... I had a big rack full of stuff, a stereo setup plus I used an acoustic guitar. The other band's guitarist would have used a rather simple "mono" setup, so the sound engineer at that show wasn't prepared for my bigger setup. So he walked up to me and was like... "Uhm... well, if you really want to have boths cabs miked plus use the acoustic guitar, we won't have enough channels left and will have to cut back on the crowd- and drum-mics..." I didn't notice that he was politely asking me whether it was ok to just play a mono setup, to make life easier for him, for the sake of the show. Also, he hinted at the fact that it would help a lot if I'd used a Strat for clean sounds and maybe leave the acoustic in it's case, since I was going to use it for only one song anyway. But... I was stressed, and I was determined to give the people a good show. I wanted to use all my gear. I had developed a tunnel-view and was only interested in playing a good show and using all my stuff, not even noticing that I was giving the sound-engineer a really tough time. I kinda snapped out of it, and I said "OK, I understand. Let's work together here." I used only one cab, left the acoustic in its case, and I think I did good that night anyway. I also was happy that I had made it just a bit easier for the sound-guy. First of all, it felt good cuz he was a bit happier too and had an easier job, and also I knew that he'd most likely remember that, which would be good in case we'd meet and work together again... Working with your bandmates Just a few short things about dealing with your bandmates. I recently wrote about critics in the forum, writing that I don't think that it's fair that some artists pour their heart into a new record and some critic just writes "A bunch of crap". It's not about holding back your opinion, it's how you put it. I think it would be neat if some critics would instead write "Ít's not MY cup of tea, so that's why I don't really enjoy this record", instead of writing something like the above. And the same applies to working with your band. If i.e. your bassist comes up with a cool new lick, but you don't like it, don't go "This sucks, man, I am not gonna play it." Instead, try something like "Ok, I like the basic idea, let's work on it and see if we can make more out of it" or "OK, lemme see, I can't really relate to it but let's see whether we can slightly alter it, or let's see whether I can add something on the guitar which fits to it". Do you know what I mean ? How would you feel if you write a tune, and you really are proud of it and your bandmates would go "No, dude, that sucks!". So try to be nice about it, and most importantly, give it a chance! Same goes for performances. Imagine you play a show, and you think the performance of your drummer wasn't really up to par. Now, don't walk up to him and go "Dude, tonight you really sucked!". Sure, most "pros" are able to play pretty decent every night, but... what if your drummer had some personal problem, like trouble with his girlfriend or his family, or had just experienced a really tragic experience without telling you yet? Or what if his monitor isn't loud enough or his monitor-mix is bad? Stuff like that can really alter your ability to play good, and it's not helpful if after the show, your bandmates jump at you and go "Dude, that was horrible!" Instead, walk up to the guy and say something like "Hey, are you ok? Is there anything wrong? Or did ya have any trouble out there?". You get the idea, I guess... "Making it..." OK, let's talk about a general attitude regarding your career. First of all, yes, you should be optimistic and self-confident. You should be eager to "make it" (whatever that means). But you shouldn't be TOO eager. There's a difference. "Being eager": You know what you want, and you won't let some problems stop you. You are going your way, working towards your goal. "Being TOO eager": It's hard to draw a line here, I know. But if you're too eager, you're pretty much TOO focussed on what you wanna do, you're not willing to take a little detour, which might be necessary at times. Sure, if you wanna be a successful band / artist, it's helpful to have good musicians in the band, to have good songs, to play out a lot. But sometimes, that might not be enough. Sometimes (most times) it takes a lot of luck to get where you want to get. Now, don't take this as an excuse (like "Ok, I just am not lucking out, so I might as well just wait for my big break..."). It takes a lot of hard work, you should be willing to invest that. But, i.e., you should be careful about setting yourself some "dates", like "OK, it's a new year, by July we should be a step further" or "By the end of the year, we should have a deal". Cuz, sometimes things don't work out the way you want them too. So, once that "date" gets closer, the pressure will increase. "Man, we figured that by June, we should have reached that and that goal, and it's May already and we're not any further"... Lots of pressure here, and if you don't achieve your goal, it will get depressing. Believe it or not, I saw a really good, talented band break up because of this stuff!!! Which leads us to another point: chemistry. This is a huge, and kinda difficult topic. What I mean by chemistry is not only that you get along with your bandmates (doesn't help if you get into fights with your drummer at every rehearsal), but that everyone in the band should be willing to go for the same things, to reach the same goals. To give you an example: My first actual band (or shall I say "band-like thing") was me and another young player from my hometown. We didn't know any drummers or bassists, so we decided to learn some songs and jam while looking for bassists and a drummer. But, when I finally had found a drummer and a rehearsal room, the other dude was like "Uhmm... you know, actually I think I don't really want to take that step". He was actually lucky to meet up once a week and jam on some tunes. Which is fine. But we had a difference in goals here, and so we split. That is what I mean. Everyone in the band should have similar goals and attitude, should be willing to invest the same amount of work. Because otherwise, it might get to the point where you are about to take some risky or big step, and all of a sudden one or more members of the band are like "Ok, I think it's a bit too risky for me". Like, i.e. you wanna save up a bigger amount of money to get into an expensive studio and record a great sounding demo. Or you wanna book a club to play a big show ("pay to play"). Now, someone in the band might go "Hey, I don't wanna invest that much money, it's too risky. What's wrong with playing really small venues for another year?" There's nothing wrong with that persons attitude, it's just different than the attitude and goals of the others. Either you have to find a compromise (which often is tough) or you have to split / replace that member (which isn't easy either, and can throw you back a whole lot). So, to sum up this part of the article: Be optimistic. Talk about and set your goals. But don't set them too specifically (The date-thing). If you have some success, if you climb up the ladder a bit, enjoy it, but don't take it for granted. If it takes longer than you expected, don't let it depress you too much, don't let that break up the band or take away your "bite". Don't be jealous of others (like "Man, those dudes in that boygroup never learned how to play an instrument, never spent hours wood-shedding, never broke their backs toading a 4X12" from the rehearsal room to the venue... and they're big stars and I ain't"), get used to the fact that it's a biz. Try to be happy with what you're doing, try to be satisfied. Be professional and try to do a good job (mentioned above, the story about the keyboarder). OK, after this rant, I'll skip back to some actual music-instruction next time. Hope you found this interesting anyway... |
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