Am I now "the bad guy," or did I stand up for professionalism?

[FitchFY]

About the author: I know I'm idealistic, and sometimes my posts come across as high and mighty because I try to always do the right thing, based on having done the right thing before. My bands are always low-stress, low-drama, and high-fun. I work a corporate day job and gig with varying bands -- I like my +/-$100 and free beer nights whacking drums with friends while putting on a great show. It's always worked well for me.

The set up : Band I've known for awhile reaches out in mid-August about taking a gig in mid-October. They play to sequencers and do LOTS of medleys and mash-ups. I say okay, but stress I need a set list and files.

We get to the last two weeks... still nothing. I have a set list from August "but we'll change a bunch," and no new set list. No audio files, and no practices lined up. This band operates to a very high standard, but after consistently asking my contact for info, dates, and sound clips so I can prepare... I'm sending this tomorrow morning.

Listen, man, I

[RoadRanger]

Dunno what's with all the "X"s - you did mention their full name once in there and the gig is on their front page .

[nchangin]

Drummer woes brother man, have felt your pain been in your shoes. We like the red headed step child last to know anything.

I don' t know $100.00 no prep required? I'd tell em tough ****ski like my mama used to say, I asked you for material to be prepared and you didn't give it up. I'd be more worried about totally bombing this gig and not getting paid at all, now then you got a real problem, headache and more heartburn.

Remember that $100 aint ever guranteed, you always asume that risk going into the deal without a contract.

If you have tracks why have a drummer? I guess I'd like to know details of the show but if it's hard stuff on drums I'd want at least a month to prep, ESPECIALLY if it's medley's.

Or maybe it's going to be really basic cover show and you may be over thinking it and not know it yet?

[Potts]

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RoadRanger wrote:

Dunno what's with all the "X"s - you did mention their full name once in there and the gig is on their front page 

.

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Isn't it safe to assume that he didn't mean to mention their name? Doesn't it go without saying it was an error?

[GmanJeff]

I'd say you are making the right call, on several levels: you don't have sufficient time to prepare, so your performance won't be up to your (and their) standards; the limited time left for preparation is stressing you and converting a gig from something fun to something more like work; and they have been unresponsive to you, a trait which if continuing can lead to other frustrations in interacting with them going forward. 

That said, your contact may characterize things differently to his/her bandmates once you pull out, which may reflect on your reputation, unfairly or not.  That may or may not matter to you, but it is a risk. 

[sventvkg]

It's a punk move emailing them..The professional will call or meet face to face to discuss it. I'm curious why they would expect someone to learn their whole show like that for $100 and why would anyone want to put in that kind of work for a one off? Was the gig going to lead to something steady that you might be interested in? If so, you should talk to them for about that but again, pick the phone up and talk. It's a HIGHLY underrated endeavourer in business:)

[TIMKEYS]

 

To the OP ,,, how are they handling drums now? They using a drum machine? It sounds like you have the choice between saying fk it ,, if they don't care anymore about it than that ,,I will wing it and get the benji and pulling the plug.

 

Tell us little more about the show.   How much time you gotta fill ,, how tricky is the music?  

 

[n9ne]

 

For what it's worth....a couple months ago, my buddy and I were in a situation not unlike the OP.   Gig was booked for several weeks, but the organizer never got us any prep material, and we only got one rehearsal together, about 2 months before the gig. 

 

However,  rather than bowing out, we went against our gut feelings and played the date.....and it was the worst pile of crap gig either of us has ever done.  In a nutshell, the bandleader had bitten off way more than he could chew:  the whole thing was totally unorganized, sounded awful, PA problems all night....just a complete train wreck from start to finish. 

 

My buddy and i have a pretty good reputation in town, and after the first set, we were literally apologizing to our friends and to the club owner (who we've known for years) for taking part in such a steamilng pile of ****.   Even with our misgivings beforehand, it was worse than either of us had envisioned....a complete embarrassment.

 

I very much wish I had gone with my gut and backed out of that date.   Gut instinct is rarely wrong.

 

[FitchFY]

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RoadRanger wrote:

Dunno what's with all the "X"s - you did mention their full name once in there and the gig is on their front page 

.

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RIGHT. Thanks.

I appreciate the feedback, y'all. Still no word back from the band, so I sent the e-mail. The band communicates solely via e-mail and text, so though I'd love to go face-to-face or have a phone call... well, if that would've happened in the first place, I wouldn't be making this post, right?

Every band, every gig, and every musician is different, and part of what's made me succesful as a local drummer is reading people and situations and knowing how all the pieces work. I make sure I understand the band's drive and motive, work ethic, what kind of show they want to put on, as well as the personal factors -- enjoyment, time, pay, and benefit (either professional or "just fun"). Take our pal,  Potts - I'm sure he makes his good money, but would he play a two hour gig for $50? Probably not. Okay, but let's say it was at the Playboy Mansion, sponsored by 10 craft microbrewerys, and they'd film him a professional DVD for his own future use? That's worth $50.

So with that in mind, I know this band well and have always wanted to sub for them. Very nice guys, great players, and a fun crowd. They pride themselves on customizing the songs and doing the medleys/ mashups, and being super tight. Unfortunately, communication isn't their strong point.

For me, $100 and beer would've been worth this show, because it's fun. But, as mentioned in my OP, I offered up my professoinalism and it hasn't been met, and we've reached the time where the fun is gone. And for me, it has to be fun. Music is my passion, not my job. Sure, I get paid to do something I love, but  I'm blessed to have the musical experiences I have, and I work my tail off for them.

Anywho, thanks for letting me rant and sharing your opinions, all. We all come at this band business stuff from a different angle, and I appreciate the support. I feel better already having just clicked "send."

[FitchFY]

I'd be more worried about totally bombing this gig and not getting paid at all, now then you got a real problem, headache and more heartburn.

...

If you have tracks why have a drummer? I guess I'd like to know details of the show but if it's hard stuff on drums I'd want at least a month to prep, ESPECIALLY if it's medley's.

Or maybe it's going to be really basic cover show and you may be over thinking it and not know it yet?

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Right on - I want to nail it and not embarass myself... or get "the look" from a band that didn't give me a chance to prepare.

The "tracks" are sequencers with pianos, horns, percussion takes, etc. Not full drum tracks - they always have a drummer. It sounds great when they do it!

And yes, it's LOTS of medleys and mashups. I mean, the set list said "Last Night/ Faith/ Sloop John B" and "Adele/ Crazy Train/ Roxanne." I'm pretty sure they should give a sub a head's up there.

[MusicalSchizo]

Fitch: I know you took the band's name off your post, but I saw it before that and I went and checked out their site. I can't imagine just subbing in for a band with that many medleys and mashups. It did look like they had two full sets of recorded stuff on their page - perhaps some of the weirder stuff was in there and you might have been able to get most of what you needed from those recordings. I guess it doesn't matter now...

One time I filled in regularly with a band that did a lot of medleys - and they didn't always do them the same way. It trained me to listen and adjust really quickly...it became second nature after a while, and made me a much better player and bandmate in the long run because of how intently I learned to listen and anticipate.

But I think the fact that NO ONE wrote you back is just ****. I had an experience like that recently (took FOREVER to get them to send me a song list - I had two days to learn 35 songs) and it really sort of pissed me off because I felt really unprepared for my fill-in job. And I HATE feeling unprepared. 

Brian V.