You've finished the album. You've put blood, sweat and tears into every sample of audio in your ten 345–754 track Logic sessions and you're pressing confirm on DistroKid to let it see the light of day — and hopefully more ears than just your mum's. CLICK. It's done. Now you need to play a show… but you have no band.
In this post, I'm going to help you get your perfect band together, and give you the tools to keep them together and not piss them off in the process.
The People
The first and most important thing is selecting the right people. This seems easy — but people dynamics are hard to navigate. An important balance needs to be struck between how well you get along with them and their musicianship. And I'll tell you the order of importance:
This is because your goal is to curate your group's vibe. You are selecting what presence you give off to the audience. Do you want to portray rigid perfection or fun with friends? Fun with friends, right? Me too.
Before picking any members, ask yourself what your current production needs are and how many members you'll need. Could you play the live set with fewer members and utilise pre-recorded tracks?
Transparency
Get real transparent in your intentions. Write stuff down. Write down if and how you intend to pay members and what's expected. Go full boss CEO style on it — your future band members will appreciate this.
I recommend finding one member at a time and meeting up individually to have a jam, talk about musical commonalities and your vision. If you find one person you can be confident in, it'll make the next member even easier to find.
If You Can't Afford To Pay The Band
This is original music. You haven't recorded a million streams yet. You can't afford to pay these guys for rehearsal. You can't afford to pay them for the gig sometimes. This is OK. If they are friendly Joe and not perfection Frank, they will be having fun.
But you need to tell them this as early and upfront as you can — ideally in writing — and make it clear that if they're not happy with this, they don't need to commit. This makes everyone's lives easier. If you do have a budget for a gig or recording session, let them know right away too.
Write Some Charts
The best way to let a band know you're serious and avoid wasted rehearsal time is to chart your songs in detail. Use iReal Pro or the NNS (Nashville Numbers System). Export as PDFs, print a copy for each member, and give them a Google Drive folder with the charts and the recordings inside.
Give them the charts at least a week before your first rehearsal so they can listen and play through them.
The Recordings
Put recordings in a Google Drive folder. Make sure there is only one version of each song in MP3 form so they can stream it easily — low buffer times — and potentially download it to listen in the car.
Your First Rehearsals
Be aware of something very important: you are in charge. This means you have a responsibility to make every minute count by planning each part of the rehearsal.
For the first rehearsal, bring two snack options and a drink for every member. Be thoughtful and let them know you appreciate them being there. Write your pre-planned session on a whiteboard or paper at the start — this signals that you value their time.
If you're running in-ears, make sure you have all the equipment to make that work. Don't expect the band to go out of their way to buy gear for your show. Buy it yourself — you'll have a flexible, reliable system and others can jump in if someone can't make it.
The Day Of The Show
Make sure each member knows their backline expectations well in advance, and talk about stage attire before gig day — not on it.
On the day, your job as the artist is to create a calm, relaxed and fun energy devoid of stress about technical elements. Organise other people to handle logistics so you can focus on a positive sound check with plenty of banter. I recommend going to a local bar or restaurant near the venue with the band for a meal together before the show. The idea is to be excited, be together, and be confident.
Just like at rehearsal, record the show. Audio is good. Video is even better. Send these to the members afterwards — you'll be able to grow from analysing it and offer feedback for future shows.
Conclusion
What I've learnt from being in many bands is that leadership and direction are very important — as well as camaraderie and appreciation. This is a social circle you're creating. If you want everybody to be happy serving your music and excited to play with you each time, make each interaction fun, surprising and efficient.
If you do that, they'll notice the difference between how you treat them and how other artists treat them. They will choose to play with you. And when you start playing bigger shows, your transparency about finances and expectations will extend into a lasting business relationship and friendship.