Members jeff42 Posted August 15, 2014 Members Share Posted August 15, 2014 Some of the frequent posters will know Ostrich Hat was a trio born out of the want to play more than the band i was in was playing and the fact that smaller venues were looking for live music. Some places so small that even a trio was squished in a corner. That was 3+ years ago. Now Ostrich Hat has grown from an acoustic trio playing background music to a Party Rock Power Trio and we are playing bigger rooms in the area and there are even better gigs waiting... if we become a LEAST a four piece. Yep it was pretty much laid out for me this week. We have been passed over by some places because we were a trio. So we added one of the new musicians from our New Project (see my thread about new project audio demo) but only for the bigger gigs. So as of right now Ostrich Hat exists in 3 forms: 1. Ostrich Hat (the original trio aimed at smaller clubs/bars/restaurants) bass player /lead vocals, drums & guitar player/lead vocals. 2. Ostrich Hat (4 piece aimed at bigger clubs) New bassist, Lead vocalist, drums & guitar player/lead vocals. 3. Ostrich Hat (5 piece aimed at weddings, private parties, corporate events & casinos) New bassist/horn player, New keyboardist/guitarist/horn player, Lead vocalist/ bassist when needed, drums & guitar player/lead vocals. So my question is should we have the same name for all 3 versions or should version 3 stand on its own with a new name? I really need a way to market this easily and successfully. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Opus Antics Posted August 15, 2014 Members Share Posted August 15, 2014 Use the same name. Offer three configurations based on the need. The core is still the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members StratGuy22 Posted August 15, 2014 Members Share Posted August 15, 2014 Ostrich Hat. We have the perfect lineup for any occasion and budget. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Howie22 Posted August 15, 2014 Members Share Posted August 15, 2014 Ostrich Hat. We have the perfect lineup for any occasion and budget. +1 I do this approach with my group. Solo, duo, trio, full band. Let the client choose based on the requirements of the venue and event (and $$$, of course). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members trevcda Posted August 15, 2014 Members Share Posted August 15, 2014 +1 I do this approach with my group. Solo, duo, trio, full band. Let the client choose based on the requirements of the venue and event (and $$$, of course). Absolutely. We even offer event production and DJ services. Having a show that's scalable with the same name perceived value and the ability to manage things that directly affect us for a fee is good for us and gives us an opportunity to head off some of the things that event and wedding coordinators don't think of or don't seem to care about. We had one exception where we rebranded the duo act that was performing in the off months for considerably less money in small clubs to avoid/hide from the venues we charging a lot more. That was more about staying in practice really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Vito Corleone Posted August 16, 2014 Members Share Posted August 16, 2014 I agree with the others. One name. One act. Different sized packages and formats to fit your budget and/or your venue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members WynnD Posted August 16, 2014 Members Share Posted August 16, 2014 There's a black tie band out here by the name of Moment's Notice. Guess the guy that started it owns the name, but he'll provide any combination you want. He'll also provide as many bands as he needs for a night. (Think I've heard of three Moment's Notice playing on the same night at the same times.) I don't know if they still exist. (Not been looking for them.) So, by all means, use the one name for all configurations of your band. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators MarkGifford-1 Posted August 18, 2014 Moderators Share Posted August 18, 2014 My first thought, for the Wedding/Party/Corporate version, is that you'll do a whole lot better if you have a female lead singer up front, and a male, too. Other than tribute or niche bands (like an '80s hair band act) I don't think I've ever seen an event band that didn't have a girl. MG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jeff42 Posted August 21, 2014 Author Members Share Posted August 21, 2014 Female lead? not at this moment although we will not rule it out if we find someone that will work. Things are going decent already We will have a reoccurring casino gig with the 4 piece starting in nov 2014. Then Once every 6-8 weeks in 2015 I was told with the possibility of doing it with the 5 piece after the new year. We have 2 weddings booked in june 2015 already with the 5 piece line up and we haven't even finished our video demo or promo stuff. (hopefully that will be shot and done in the next 2-3 weeks) right now everything is booked under the name Ostrich Hat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wesg Posted August 21, 2014 Members Share Posted August 21, 2014 You could call the wedding version, "Ostrich Top Hat". ... Yes, there's a reason I don't get to name things. Wes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members WynnD Posted August 22, 2014 Members Share Posted August 22, 2014 Gotta admit that I love having at least one female voice in a group. Doesn't have to be the lead vocalist, but I love the additional material that having a woman in the group adds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jeff42 Posted August 22, 2014 Author Members Share Posted August 22, 2014 Yes a woman would be great and there was/is talk of adding if we can find one and it pays to have an additional member. Right now... nope. And with that said, most additional material can be sung by a guy too if you approach it in a certain way... It really applies mainly IMO to modern pop covers. We have done many of them with the last two bands: off the top o my head: California gurlsraise your glassbad romancepoker facejust danceking of anythingTimbertake it off Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Vito Corleone Posted August 22, 2014 Members Share Posted August 22, 2014 And with that said, most additional material can be sung by a guy too if you approach it in a certain way... It really applies mainly IMO to modern pop covers. I think it's less about whether a particular song can be performed or not than it is about the overall presentation of the act. There aren't a lot of all male bands doing well in the private event circuit unless they are really gimmicky or niched a tribute act or some such. There does seem to be a ceiling for such bands in certain markets. There's a reason why virtually every private event band has a female up front and it isn't because they all love working with girls so much or because they really, really want to play more Gaga songs. Or even because they are all trying to be just like every other band that went before them. It's because it's become just a basic part of the lineup that's required and expected for a live band for certain types of gigs. Kind of like whether you're going to use a live drummer or a drum machine. Not saying you guys need to add a chick. You do what you want for the reasons you want. Every band is different with different motivations and expected results and all that, of course. But I am saying that to the degree you're looking to add/subtract different members playing different roles simply to be able to easily and successfully market the band for different events and price points, there's probably no easier Return on Investment move to make than to add a pretty girl up front who can sing decently. For us adding each female was an automatic $1000-$1500 increase on our gig price. Since they each only get paid a fraction of that per gig, adding them was a no-brainer from a financial standpoint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Blackbird013 Posted September 15, 2014 Members Share Posted September 15, 2014 I'm late to this party.. but I would actually advise AGAINST calling each band "Ostrich Hat"... especially if you're planning on doing different variations in clubs. With Broke By Sunday, we've done that.. and it can create confusion, as people come out expecting to see the full band on an acoustic duo gig. If your focus is in private events.. I suppose it wouldn't matter much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jeff42 Posted September 15, 2014 Author Members Share Posted September 15, 2014 Right now going forward the trio is going to be called The Ostrich Hat Trio and the 4 piece will be "Ostrich Hat" We will be playing as a 4 man "full band" at most shows starting Sept 27th. The few very small rooms we have still on our schedule will still have the trio but that is mostly because of space not $$$. as far as the 5 piece aimed at weddings, privates and so on we are still not sure. Honestly that is going to be on the back burner for at least the next month or so. We hit a few snags and havent been able to get the promo stuff done yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jeff42 Posted September 25, 2014 Author Members Share Posted September 25, 2014 Well our new 4th member did two shows with us recently (local bars), playing about 80% the first gig and 95% of the material the 2nd gig. The feedback has been nothing but awesome! Our singer is now able to bounce around all night and it really adds to the energy level because he isn't stuck behind his bass. As of practice last night the new guy is all caught up for what he needs to know for the next two shows this weekend.Tomorrow we are at a nearby casino and saturday we are doing a Frat party (parents weekend) at a university about an hour away. Again the wedding band is on hold as we have yet another delay with the video shoot because of the venue we supposed to be shooting at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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