How was your gig last night?

[E sharp]

Downham Market tonight , a new pub for us .
Cracker of a gig . Only issue was the access for the toilet was through the band . One of the guitarists and I had to be on our toes for that .
Used the Eden cab again tonight , and it sounded awesome . Seriously thinking about maybe getting shot of the light weight cabs , 'cause there's just something about that cab , for me - but it is a weighty beast . Though I only carry it from my front door to the car , so not such a massive issue .

I'll make up my mind one day .

[Marvin]

An end of year awards/charity ball, in a marquee, last night at a local private school.

Had to make a bit of an effort with appearance, lots of DJ's and posh frocks. So opted for my oldest most ill fitting suit, black shirt and a pair of DM's that I've been wearing lately whilst building a new garden wall, they scrubbed up alright.

It went really well, a few fluffs, but dance floor was busy and 3 encore songs, what more can you ask?

[squire5]

To any of the N.Ireland BCers.You know the Canal Court Hotel in Newry???. Why is it that some hotels look like a million dollars from the front,you know all floodlights and all that Pazazz,whereas round the back IE where the band loads in,is usually stinking with refuse bins,bags of putrid crap lying everywhere,slidy floors etc.We had been booked for a Wedding there last night
The loading in bay was tiny,so we could barely squeeze our 3 cars in ( we all travel independently).Then we had to unload our gear,squeeze past a great big recycling unit the size of 4 skips,into a stifling hot kitchen offshoot.We them had to load our gear,in batches,in to a tiny lift,because the gig was on the 2nd floor.having got the gear up there,we had to wait until they'd finished stuffing their faces and then load onto the small stage,with the crowd still milling about,stifling hot.
Just about to start we got the message 'you guys will have to move your cars,there's another band wanting to get in!' Moved the cars to various car parks around the Hotel as it's car park was full.Quick mike test and away.3rd number in,my bass rig decided it was too hot and gave up.Played through the PA for a while and then tried the amp again,which thankfully lasted to the end of the night.Crowd danced for the first 3 numbers then sat down again.Disco on after us,so we had to break down the gear and load out through the crowd back to the tiny lift,back to the stinking back yard,and eventually,home.Canal Court Hotel,never again.
Gig paid well,I must admit,but we earned it.I was a bit annoyed as I never got to give my Washburn BX600 that I bought of Sprocketflup on this very forum,it's first real stage trial.

Edited September 11, 2011 by squire5

[JetKing]

[quote name='squire5' post='1369207' date='Sep 11 2011, 10:58 AM']To any of the N.Ireland BCers.You know the Canal Court Hotel in Newry???.[/quote]


I know it well. Memories of quite a few Saturday nights spent drinking in there (not too many memories of a few others...)

Our gig last was night was support slot in Ma Nelson's in Belfast. It was quite good, we played 8 songs and all went quite well except for the guitar players wah pedal conking out leaving him to having improvise a few solos and our drummer stopped playing in the middle of an instrumental in one song (he thought the song was over). We managed to keep playing and he brought the drums back in in a sensible place so I don't think anyone even noticed. Not that the crowd was very big anyway. The joys of playing live eh?

Still, I really enjoyed it. It's been a busy few months with gigs but we don't have another one scheduled at the moment. We're off to the studio next month to do some recording so for the next few weeks I'll be doing some serious work on my technique...

[ShergoldSnickers]

Just got back from a gig at FruitSpace in Hull. PA far too loud out front apparently, and the monitoring was a bit inconsistent. As was my playing, so a one-all draw at home there. To be honest I'd have preferred to use just the back line, but there you go.

[gerryc]

Bloody freezing, on an articulated trailer in a pub car park right slap bang next to the sea, gale blowing, squally showers but nevertheless still enjoyable (things we'll put up with for free beer).

[BigRedX]

Up in Gateshead for a Meow Club gig at The Central.

The organisation was so much better than last week's gig (see above) and the promoters were enthusiastic and pleased to see us. Many thanks to Luna Vegas who let us borrow their backline (and who were extremely entertaining).

And another great evening. The crowd was slightly smaller than last time but massively enthusiastic - they wouldn't let us leave with playing an encore. We managed to play the new song which was only completed at rehearsal the night before without messing up. Mr Venom's new microphone stand lasted one song - we are going to have to get a Rebel Trading Stand as nothing else seems to be up to the task.

Afterwards it appears that Mr Venom has got himself an entourage of "lady friends" which is all highly amusing! Back to Whitley Bay for late-night (disco) pizza and our guitarist's dad's house where we are being put up for the weekend - luxury!

[JTUK]

A rare function as a favour...and the turnout was good but the hall had wiring issues which we never got to the bottom so my amp had to take a signal straight into effect return to eliminate a lot of noise.
Everyone thought my amp had a fault, but plugged it in at home and no problem.
This drained the gig for me. Too much hassle with village halls, early starts, masses of gear in, so something to avoid, IMO.

[rOB]

Played the Soundhouse in Leicester last night with Violet and Hey! Alaska who are on tour at the moment. Really good screamo/punk bands.

Very simple and effective soundcheck resulting in great stage sound. Ok gig, cut out a song second from end as our drummer's wrist was causing him gip again but other than that a good gig, nice response from the audience. Can't wait to play there again.

[jimmyb625]

Sunday, had my best two gigs ever.

Admittedly they were my only two gigs ever (on bass), but I didn't get stabbed and there were still people left in the room at the end, so result!

[ShergoldSnickers]

Did a gig in Hull on Saturday. Managed to leave a jacket behind, and the drummer turned up late due to locking himself out of his house and couldn't make the sound check, although he kept us informed from the start. The consequent monitor mix was not brilliant, and the guys on the PA had the front of house sound far too loud for the venue. Next time we take a tame sound tech along. We would have been far better off getting very cosy and relying on our backline. Enough moaning - we learned a valuable lesson.

[BigRedX]

Unfortunately it was another poorly organised local gig. As usual with 5 bands playing it was equipment share time, and we'd arranged to bring the bass rig (TBH I'd rather all the other bands use mine than play through the usual crap that gets supplied if I don't). However the band suppling the drums pulled out and the promoter hadn't made arrangements for someone else to bring a replacement. It turns out that there is a kit at the venue, but it doesn't have any hihat or cymbal stands (WTF?)

Debate going home there and ten which would have effectively killed the gig as the other bands would have been without a bass rig as well as a useable drum kit, but decide to show so professionalism despite the fact that promoter hasn't and so our drummer goes and gets his stands.

Gig itself goes really well, except when our guitarist misses out the new song (which we really need the experience playing live) by going straight into the next one on the set list. Mr Venom breaks yet another mic stand during the opening song - i.e. in less than 2 minutes - and also chips his tooth again. His equipment and dentist bills are starting to add up.

In the end though it's getting to the stage where we are getting tired of playing these kinds of gigs. Saturday's gig up in Gateshead very much brought that home. When we can travel hundreds of miles out of town, and the gig is well run the promoters are genuinely pleased to see us, the audience is visibly enthusiastic, plus we get paid and sell plenty of merchandise. Put this against our two most recent local gigs and playing in our home town no longer looks so appealing.

[bigjohn]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1316590753' post='1379938']
In the end though it's getting to the stage where we are getting tired of playing these kinds of gigs. Saturday's gig up in Gateshead very much brought that home. When we can travel hundreds of miles out of town, and the gig is well run the promoters are genuinely pleased to see us, the audience is visibly enthusiastic, plus we get paid and sell plenty of merchandise. Put this against our two most recent local gigs and playing in our home town no longer looks so appealing.
[/quote]

Sorry I didn't make it down. I feel yer pain.

[Low End Bee]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1316590753' post='1379938']

In the end though it's getting to the stage where we are getting tired of playing these kinds of gigs. Saturday's gig up in Gateshead very much brought that home. When we can travel hundreds of miles out of town, and the gig is well run the promoters are genuinely pleased to see us, the audience is visibly enthusiastic, plus we get paid and sell plenty of merchandise. Put this against our two most recent local gigs and playing in our home town no longer looks so appealing.
[/quote]


Know what you mean. We've only done a few of these 'multi band' gigs. They've not been a satisfying experience and we've decided to be fussy and pick and choose or organise them ourselves now. Sods law that it's always the gigs on your doorstep that are the most badly organised.

Must get around to organising a gig with your lot soon.

[BigRedX]

[quote name='Low End Bee' timestamp='1316597847' post='1380048']


Know what you mean. We've only done a few of these 'multi band' gigs. They've not been a satisfying experience and we've decided to be fussy and pick and choose or organise them ourselves now. Sods law that it's always the gigs on your doorstep that are the most badly organised.

Must get around to organising a gig with your lot soon.
[/quote]
Thanks... That would be fantastic!

If you want to see what we're like live before committing to a gig we're on at The Hope & Anchor on Saturday 24th September.

[squire5]

[quote name='Johnston' timestamp='1316588922' post='1379912']

Isn't that just Newry

You weren't by chance at the wedding band showcase thingy in Antrim at the weekend?
[/quote]

No.wasn't there.The thing is,we're not really a wedding band,but if somebody asks us to do a Wedding.....well, we're not fussy.We'll play anywhere

[BigRedX]

Friday night with my covers band.

In the end it was OK, but nearly didn't happen as our singer had been ill all week before hand and had missed the pre-gig rehearsal and we were worried that there was going to be a poor turnout. However finding out that a gig that has been planned for months isn't going to actually happen until until midday on the actual evening isn't great. Shouldn't have worried though. We easily covered our cost and made a nice b it of profit. Played reasonably well as a band with only one cock up that the audience would have noticed.

However I'm not sure how much longer I can keep this up. It's fun, but nowhere near as much fun as it should be and TBH Dick Venom & The Terrortones is more fun, doing more things and for me more musically satisfying. As a covers band I feel that we're just not professional enough and we seem to have problems playing "as a band". If it wasn't for the fact that one of the guitarists is a very good friend of mine I would have probably knocked this on the head a year ago. This is supposed to be an "easy gig" after all the hardest job - writing some great songs - has already been done for us. If it was just a question of learning the songs off the recordings and getting together once in while to quickly run through them as band I'd be fine, but there seems to be a more fundamental problem and I'm not sure how it can be addressed for a band that's pretty much "just for fun".

Sorry about the rant, but the limitations of this band have been brought home by how well things are going with Dick Venom as illustrated by:

[BigRedX]

Saturday night with Dick Venom & The Terrortones at the Hope & Anchor in London.

Big accident on the M1 means that we (and one of the other bands) are late getting to the venue. Turns out it doesn't really matter. Sound is a bit ropey at the soundcheck, but we're running out of time so we'll live with it. Pointless worrying since by the time we come to actually play everything will have changed anyway.

Gig itself it great. The sound is fine with some bodies in the audience and the two other bands have sorted out any on-stage issues. Our drummer pounds away at the drums and sounds great unlike the earlier bands who's drumming had sounded a bit weedy. Manage to keep the majority of the audience who'd come to see the other 2 bands entertained and stop them from leaving. And a fair number of them seemed to be really getting into it. Played well - all the gigging that we've been doing recently has improved us more as a band then any number of rehearsals can. Remembered to play the new song and the fake ending to "Spider Queen". Lots of compliments about the band afterwards and sold some CDs. Even got back to Nottingham at reasonably sensible time. Good stuff all round.

Edited September 25, 2011 by BigRedX

[Jambo10]

Played at a 40th birthday party last night. Only the 4th time with new singer and each gig is getting a stronger and tighter unit with her.
All went well, manylaughs, and many business cards asked for with a good possibility of other bookings coming out of it.

[Oopsdabassist]

Sat night in Chesham, dunno if its just round there, but Sat night pubs crowds are definitely down, those that were there however were up for a boogie and we had a ball, sound was good too (my 1st outing with the New Eden 4x10)just my luck the only 2 muso's in the pub were bassists! just glad I didn't know before as I would have been extra nervous!
Landlord seemed well happy despite low turnout, we got an invite back

[Monckyman]

I`m gearing up for my first gig for over a decade on Sat.
Yesterday I checked both basses over in advance of sticking some Elites on the MIM jazz and putting a P/S switch on the backup.
Once we dcide on final set order I`ll have a quick organize on the GT6B and print some setlists with patch numbers on.
I`ve been away for a fortnight, and the singer had domestic issues that needed resolving so we`ve had two hours rehearsal last tues,in the last 4 weeks which was ok, a bit more enthusiasm than finesse but we remembered most of the set!
So, now we have 3 reh this week of about 3 hours each to slick it up a little and organise the set a little better.
This will be the singers FIRST live performance and her confidence is critical, so these rehearsals will also be about maintaining and reinforcing that.
It`s not a big gig, just a bar with about 150 people but it does fill up and is almost a residency in that we will be doing a month of Saturdays on and a month off (a rare thing nowadays).
The small size of the gig means nothing to the singer, to her it`s very important!
So, the tension rises..
Also, the drummer has been mumbling things like "I`m not sure there will be room for that Ampeg cab, but we can just put you in the P.A."
I considered the P.A, an LD Systems 15" sub and 12" satellites which sounds great for vocals and a bit of keys and politely declined his kind offer.
So, we`ll see where that goes!
None of my cabs are smaller than a 1x15 and the HLF footprint isn`t significantly smaller than that so...I may just stick with that, although I`m looking at a smaller mini rig (courtesy of MB-1) which could sit on a keyboard stand.

More to follow.
MM

Edited September 27, 2011 by Monckyman

[LeftyBiskit]

[quote name='Monckyman' timestamp='1317114776' post='1386783']
I`m gearing up for my first gig for over a decade on Sat.
I`ve been away for a fortnight, and the singer had domestic issues that needed resolving so we`ve had two hours rehearsal last tues,in the last 4 weeks which was ok, a bit more enthusiastic than finesse but we remembered most of the set!
So, now we have 3 reh this week of about 3 hours each to slick it up a little and organise the set a little better.
This will be the singers FIRST live performance and her confidence is critical, so these rehearsals will also be about maintaining and reinforcing that.
It`s not a big gig, just a bar with about 150 people but it does fill up and is almost a residency in that we will be doing a month of Saturdays on and a month off (a rare thing nowadays).
The size of the gig means nothing to the singer, to her it`s important!
So, the tension rises..
Also, the drummer has been mumbling things like "I`m not sure there will be room for that Ampeg cab, but we can just put you in the P.A.
I considered the P.A, an LD Systems 15" sub and 12" satellites which sounds great for vocals and a bit of keys and politely declined his kind offer.
So, we`ll see where that goes!
More to follow.
MM
[/quote]

Good luck for saturday Dave
Whats the name of the venue?,
Let us know how it goes.
T

[Monckyman]

Hiya Trev, tis a small bar called the The Green Room in altringham. it`s a good place to showcase the set and drum up other gigs (I hope). Going to be a pretty busy week as one of my vehicles is o/s so I `m taking the wife to work and back as well as rehearsing!
Kinell, I should have been a plumber!

[Delberthot]

Well it was a partial success on the gold bass front.

Its a gnarly wild beast of a thing. If I remember correctly I had a rack mount compressor and I think I may have to get myself a compressor again to tame it.

Bit of a problem in the first set as the strings were rattling badly so I used the Thunderbird for the rest of the set. Raised the saddles quite a bit for the second set but its was still quite rattly so I gave in.

Think I'm going to have to spend more time setting it up. the neck is poker straight so I'm going to give it a tweak to get some relief into it.

I play the thunderbird with my right hand right over the bridge pickup but there's a huge expanse on the P so I'm thinking about one of two things - making myself a ramp to play over or going the whole hog and getting the body routed for a soapbar bridge pickup.

Need to think about that one. I like having the precision sound but its missing the treble bite of the thunderbird

[WalMan]

Four hour r/h with the prog covers band in the morning followed by a gig with the country/americana band in the evening mean I am aching this morning.

R/h went well until womeone poked their head roung=d the door and said "I've booked the room out after you" so there was a mad panic to pack up and get clear, not helped by the fact that while I normally use the studios old Trace combo (very old & knackered but it does what it needs) yesterday I had loaded the full rig to work on how to use the bass plus bass pedals so I had a lot to pack & get out.

Evening...well it was a paid r/h really. Venue on the edge of town. Poster lost/binned. Noone much there bar a few kids (GOD I FELT OLD!! ) but we got through. Few cock ups but generally OK.

Stood and chatted to a young guy who has just started down the path of bass in the break.

Packed up and home in time to have a chat with my main band's drummers other band who had been playing round the corner from my house and were stood outside the venue gassing as I got back.

Quote from their bassplayer
[quote]So Al, if rockers play rock and proggers play prog, who plays country?[/quote] to which the answer was clearly[quote]Me[/quote]