Once again in a band

Well, this didn't go as planned. We met and started out with playing Summer Of 69 practically as soon as I had gotten my gear set up... Went somewhat well, except the timing was messed up. Then we went into Highway Star, and actually managed to make it sound somewhat good... After that we talked a bit, and that pretty much killed it for us. It turns out that our goals and ambitions are in fact not the same. He insisted on sticking to the club circuit, and said that he would rather not hold us back, so we should probably find another drummer (his words, not mine).

We continued jamming a little. I played the opening arpeggios to Knockin' On Heaven's Door, and he joined in with a count-in just before the Power Chords in the intro came about. Sounded epic. Nothing less, honestly. We continued playing through the song, and had a bit of fun with that, before I (without warning him) played a little transition-thing and kicked right into a sped up version of Smoke On The Water. He followed suit. Again, sounded epic and was fun to try for once.

After that, we talked a bit more, and then decided to go home. I had a fun evening jamming with the drummer, but we most likely won't continue (sadly).

On the bright side, I've got a bassist and a second drummer just called me on the way home, so all hope is not lost. And I learned a few new songs in preparation for this, so yay! Looks like I've got a second chance coming up :)

Huh, I'm a little surprised. I would have thought that the drummer would want to go along until you surpassed where he wanted to go. It sounds like the issue is that he wants to stick the club circuit, but you have larger ambitions?

The way up is through the club circuit, so regardless I'd think you'd be doing clubs for a while.

Regardless, sounds like you had a good jam and made some good music!! Can't ask for much more.

Hopefully this new drummer works out for you. Good drummers are hard to find.

Originally Posted by: maggiorHuh, I'm a little surprised. I would have thought that the drummer would want to go along until you surpassed where he wanted to go. It sounds like the issue is that he wants to stick the club circuit, but you have larger ambitions?

Believe me, I gave him the offer, but he insisted that we find another drummer, instead of having him with us all the way up through the club-circuit.

Indeed, we did make some good music (and neither Knockin' or Smoke were planned, actually). I just hope that part goes just as well with the other drummer... Anyway, I'm going to find a time to jam with the other drummer and the Bassist, hopefully next week.

I suppose it just demonstrates that starting a band is more than a musical thing. It's basically a social experiment - you've got to find people with roughly the same goals and ambitions, and then collaborate with them and their personalities. Inevitably many experiments will fail, sometimes even though the music is good. But you will benefit from every jam session, even if it goes no further. It's just important not to get disheartened...so all the best for next time!

Originally Posted by: Steve BarrowI suppose it just demonstrates that starting a band is more than a musical thing. It's basically a social experiment - you've got to find people with roughly the same goals and ambitions, and then collaborate with them and their personalities. Inevitably many experiments will fail, sometimes even though the music is good. But you will benefit from every jam session, even if it goes no further. It's just important not to get disheartened...so all the best for next time!

Indeed. I learned a lot from jamming with him. First off, I learned that I need to work more on my timing (already knew that). Second, I proved to myself that I can actually learn songs pretty well fast, at least the more simple ones. And finally (and to me, most importantly), I proved to myself that I can actually clear my mind, stop worrying about anything, get lost in the moment and just have fun. Our little Knocking On Heaven's Door and Smoke On The Water jam was, without exaggerating, the single most fun thing I've ever done in my whole life up until now! And for someone who grew up in Hell and still hasn't completely made it out yet, that takes a lot!

I'm definitely going to keep trying to start a band. I haven't heard from the new drummer yet, but I'll be patient, and just be glad I have a bassist... And I'll keep this drummer's email address, so I can contact him, should we need a stand-in while playing the club-circuit... Or in case I just want to throw together some "no strings attached" jamming (or start a side-project for fun, or need some drums on songs in the future or whatever reasons I might come up with). Until I hear from the new drummer and the Bassist, I'll just continue practicing and learning. I think Christopher's Arena Riff-Rock course might be worth re-visiting, along with some of the songs here that I plan to learn.

Anything new on the band front Kasperow? Your silence either means you've been super busy with your band and don't have time to post, or things are still taking time to develop...

Originally Posted by: maggiorAnything new on the band front Kasperow? Your silence either means you've been super busy with your band and don't have time to post, or things are still taking time to develop...

I'd honestly wish the first of those two possibilities was true... but it's not. I haven't had much progress in a while now... I'm hoping to get something going before the end of the year (my expectations have dropped... a lot).

On an unrelated note, not playing with band-mates means I have plenty of time to practice and learn stuff I want to learn, both technical stuff, speed-building exercises and songs... For instance, I recently decided to re-do Christopher's Arena Rock-tutorials, and this time I'm really learning a lot more than the first time I did them. I've only gone through the first part so far, but I can already now say that it's made at least 3 songs on my list of songs to learn ("Nightrain" by GNR, "Peace Of Mind" by Boston and "Four Leaf Clover" by Electric Guitars) much easier to handle, despite "Peace Of Mind" having difficulty 5 here!!! It's really just about getting the triad inversions down. Then the rest of the riffs come somewhat smoothly :) I've got a feeling that once I get "Peace Of Mind" down, I'll do everything I can to make it a staple in my band's setlists. It's hard to explain why, I just love playing it in Rocksmith. "Smoke On The Water" and "Knockin' On Heaven's Door" can be fun to play with others, but this tune just beats both, anytime! It just annoys me that I've played it over 20 times in Rocksmith, and who knows how many times I've used the Riff Repeater function, and I still couldn't get the damn Verse-Riff down. Now, it seems pretty easy :)

Now I just hope people actually want to hear "Peace Of Mind" when I get a band together... Then again, I've noticed that when I go to concerts, people want to hear any cover that the band performing can play properly and look like they enjoy playing, so I should be safe :)

I was afraid that would be the case. You have a great attitude though - keep working on your skills in the meantime. As long as you keep your ear to the ground and nosing around, you'll get yourself situation with a band sooner or later.

It's interesting that you mention "Night Train" by GnR. That song has come up in discussion for our band. The other guitarist is a big fan. Sounds like it should be a fun song.

I agree - any song that you can play well that you show enthusiasm playing is bound to go over well with an audience. Boston had some great tunes back in the day...the stuff that air guitar was made of!

Good luck!

Indeed. No point in wasting my time waiting for a band to form around me. It's much better to practice while searching for a band, even if I don't get in a band anytime soon :) On the bright side, starting from October 13th, I'll be spending 10 weeks in completely unknown surroundings with a few hundred (if not thousand) strangers. Maybe someone there plays an instrument and wants to start a band :) I'd be surprised if I'm the only one there who plays an instrument (especially since that town is one of the towns I most frequently see mentioned in band-adverts...)

Until I get a band up and running, I'll just keep practicing with patience, and seek out inspiration wherever it might be. In the last year, I've already seen 10 different bands, been to 2 clinics, talked to two of my guitar-heroes twice, and found out when and where the best local band rehearses (I swear, that one is by coincidence! I was walking the dogs, and could hear some music, and then noticed that it was that local band, but only because I could recognize the riff from one of their own songs... Guess where I am walking the dogs every sunday afternoon ever since then). And to top it off, I've got 5 more concerts coming up in the next half year. Having grown up listening to Queen, I just had to get a ticket for their only concert in Denmark in 24 years next February! Yeah, I'm pretty damn excited about that, in case you couldn't tell :)

I just listened to the video your band has put on Facebook. Sounded very nice, even if the guitar at some point was very hard to hear :)

Just stay involved and stuff will happen!

Thanks for checking out the video. It was recorded with my audio recorder just sitting on a chair the way I always record our rehearsals. If we were recording a true demo, we would have paid more attention to levels and stuff.

Originally Posted by: maggiorJust stay involved and stuff will happen!

I'm not completely sure what you mean, but I'm doing what I can to help myself. I just got home from a triple-gig (or rather, a Blues competition), and two out of three bands were actually very good. During the second band's set, the room had gotten too hot, so I had to take my shirt off, so I was just sitting there in my Aerosmith tour-T-shirt and apparently the singer/rhythm guitarist in the second band noticed that, and when they were done, he thanked everyone for coming, "and especially you in the Aerosmith shirt. They're too cool!" His words directly (translated into English, of course).

Then, after the third band went off-stage and the judges left to decide on a winner, I went out to the bar to get another drink, and guess who was there? The singer/rhythm guitarist from the second band, that's who. So I ordered my drink, and we sat down and talked about all kinds of things, like music and gear and stuff. When I went back into the venue's main room, I sat down right in front of the stage as before I went to get another drink, and that guy asked me if I'd like to sit down at his band's table. I accepted the offer, of course. I'm a musician, so why not sit among other musicians? By the time I left the venue for the night, I'd managed to make at least one new friend, and got hooked on two new bands.

I don't know what is going on, but since I started playing guitar, I've seriously changed mentally. I used to avoid strangers, and had very few friends. Now, I can easily sit down and chat with someone I don't know, and even attempt to befriend other musicians. It's actually quite scary, when I think about it... I'm not as paranoid as I used to be...

I believe that's what you mean by "stay involved"?

On an unrelated note, I got to hear how a real '65 Fender Deluxe Reverb Amp sounds. It sounds much more amazing than my Mustang's simulation of it...

Yep, that's exactly what I meant - stay involved with the music scene as you've been. Keep mingling with musicians and who knows what will happen.

I've had a similar experience being around other musicians. They all seem to be more than willing to discuss music with fellow musicians. At the open mic we go to regularly, I'll be sure to complement somebody who I thought sounded really good. It will inevitably turn into a conversation. I've NEVER been one to walk up to a stranger and initiate a conversation.

Pretty cool stuff.

Originally Posted by: maggiorYep, that's exactly what I meant - stay involved with the music scene as you've been. Keep mingling with musicians and who knows what will happen.

I've had a similar experience being around other musicians. They all seem to be more than willing to discuss music with fellow musicians. At the open mic we go to regularly, I'll be sure to complement somebody who I thought sounded really good. It will inevitably turn into a conversation. I've NEVER been one to walk up to a stranger and initiate a conversation.

Pretty cool stuff.

Yeah, I did pretty much the same thing at some open-air gigs back in August, where three local bands were playing (although I left after the first band had played their first song, then came back in time for the second band). The second band kicked ass, the third band could have been cool too, but their sound was too muddy and the guitar didn't cut through. But I made sure to get ad close to the second and third band that night too, and had a little talk with them (the second band only became much more awesome after I found out where and when they rehearse). Always cool to hang out with fellow musicians :cool: And then there was the other time back in August, where I met and talked to the best two guitarists in Denmark... And befriended them too :D

I wonder if I'll get the chance to do the same when Pretty Maids comes to my town and plays at that small venue? That would certainly be awesome.

So, today I got an offer from a somewhat local band, who's looking for a Lead Guitarist. My first reaction was "Awesome!" Then I read as much as I could about them, and found out that they describe themselves as a mix of Punk Rock, 80's Heavy Rock, Classic Rock and Heavy Metal with a strong emphasis on the melodic aspects. And to be honest, that only made the offer all the more appealing. So I checked out the few songs that their mail linked me to. Some of them could be better, but I doubt they'd put their best material out for anyone to hear for free...

So far, I've listened to all of their songs 3 or 4 times, so they're starting to grow on me. I'm thinking of trying to learn one of their songs for the first rehearsal, just to show that I'm serious. And to mess with them right from the start... Sadly, I'm unable to rehearse with them on Monday evenings at the moment, so we've agreed that first rehearsal will be after Christmas, and they'll keep the spot open until then (awesome, right? And they haven't even heard my playing! Pretty damn nice of them to keep the Lead Guitar spot open for me for 6 whole weeks!). The least I can do to repay that favour would be to show up well-prepared, and with a tube-amp that I like the sound of (probably a Fender. I don't know why, I just love Fender amps! I'm not too big on their guitars, but their amps are really awesome!).

And now I'm just hoping things are going to work out with that band in 6 weeks... And that they'll be playing some gigs throughout 2015 while I'm with them...

Wow, that's really cool! Too bad it's so far out...but the time will fly by I'm sure.

Good luck!!! At least you have plenty of time to prepare so you can "wow" them.

Originally Posted by: maggiorWow, that's really cool! Too bad it's so far out...but the time will fly by I'm sure.

Good luck!!! At least you have plenty of time to prepare so you can "wow" them.

Thanks. I just dug a bit deeper and found a few more of their songs online. Since there's a chance I'll be playing those songs if I end up joining them, I decided to give them a listen. Honestly, the ones they had openly pointed me towards were better. The ones I found on my own weren't that great (mostly due to the lack of riffs in those)...

Of course, my top priority with this band would be to come out, get some on-stage experience, meet some musicians and take it from there. And as they say, beggars can't be choosers. I can either take an opportunity that presents itself and go along for the ride for a while, or I can keep searching and perhaps never find a band. So I think going along for the ride will be the preferable option. I can always keep coming up with my own riffs and songs next to playing their songs, even if the styles are vastly different. I still intend to get a solo-career going at some point. But for now, I'll take it slowly and prepare as much as possible before Christmas :) I've some pretty awesome opportunities waiting around for me :)

Kasperow,

I'm thinking you may want to learn more than one song in the 6 weeks. Reason: If they do pick you up, you will have to learn a lot of songs in a short period of time to be ready to hit the stage with them. If you have one song down and 2 or 3 more kind of worked out you will be in a better position to impress them and cut down what you have to learn before you're ready for the stage.

I would wish you luck, but if you are ready you will not need it. Go rock them.

If you really want this gig, you should learn all of their tunes you can listen to. Learn them as well as if you were there when they wrote them. Learn them inside out and upside down and work on some cool parts you can put in there to make them sound even better. As long as you have an amp that sounds OK, don't worry about the gear. You can buy that later. If you make it sound like you are the only one who can play those tunes as well as them, guess what? You will be playing those tunes and more with them. There will not even be another choice of guitarists in their mind. You will be the ONLY choice for them.

Originally Posted by: haghj500Kasperow,

I'm thinking you may want to learn more than one song in the 6 weeks. Reason: If they do pick you up, you will have to learn a lot of songs in a short period of time to be ready to hit the stage with them. If you have one song down and 2 or 3 more kind of worked out you will be in a better position to impress them and cut down what you have to learn before you're ready for the stage.

I would wish you luck, but if you are ready you will not need it. Go rock them.[/QUOTE]
Good point. I just didn't want to set too high expectations for myself until I find out how easy or hard the songs are. The more of their songs I can learn before rehearsing with them, the better for everyone involved. Like you say, I'll have less songs to learn before being gig-ready, and I won't be holding them back as much. I don't intend to focus too much on their solos just yet. I'll rather improvise some of my own in the beginning.

[QUOTE=VinceMarrone]If you really want this gig, you should learn all of their tunes you can listen to. Learn them as well as if you were there when they wrote them. Learn them inside out and upside down and work on some cool parts you can put in there to make them sound even better. As long as you have an amp that sounds OK, don't worry about the gear. You can buy that later. If you make it sound like you are the only one who can play those tunes as well as them, guess what? You will be playing those tunes and more with them. There will not even be another choice of guitarists in their mind. You will be the ONLY choice for them.

Excellent points. I could probably go for a while with just my little 40W solid-state combo. It might not be good enough for them, since it's not a stack (I've watched their only music video, and in it, they play through huge stacks)... For now, I'll focus on learning, dissecting and analyzing as many of their songs as possible before the rehearsal.

Well, well, well... With each passing day, it seems I learn more and more about this band... Apparently they're not quite as "up-coming" as I had first thought. In fact, they both have a small international fan-base and at least one endorsement deal already! I don't think any band who has endorsement deals and fans outside their home-country can possibly count as "up-coming". On the bright side, that could indicate that they're actually serious about playing music (or atleast they're serious about playing music for a living)... On the down-side, though, it may also be harder to get my own style and tone through, since they probably already have a sound and style that their fans like... Things are starting to get interesting now, although touring will not be a possibility for me anytime soon (not that I know if they're planning on going on tour, of course)...