Members axepilot Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 What peeves you bar bangers? I'll start. You play to a packed house, hold the crowd until closing, and everyone has a good time - the owner whines about the draw while you're loading out. You drive 45 miles to a gig on a rainy, miserable night - the owner tells you you'll be shut down early and paid half price if the draw isn't good. Gotta be some good rants here. Let's hear them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GCDEF Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Bars that double book. You know, you get there and some other band is already there setting up. Owners that never seem to have the time to talk and want you to call 20 times and kiss their butt to get a gig in their dump. Bars that play a completely different style of music than you're playing between sets. Bars that pile all their crap on the stage, so that when you get there, you need to clear off all their spare tables and chairs. Bars that turn off the stage lights when you're trying to tear down or set up. Bars with big screen TVs that schedule bands while major sporting events are on the TV. Bars that don't comp or at least discount drinks. Bars that collect tax information and file a 1099. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Gary in NJ Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Dude, not to sound like a jerk, but that has never happened. In fact, the opposite is the rule for my band. We recently had a bar owner that wanted to tip us after the show. We just raised our price by 25% and no one complained. What do we do that's different? We promote and always bring the crowd. Just because you play music doesn't mean people will come out to listen. Get your fans involved and make them feel as though they are part of the whole thing. Give 'em the band experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BlueStrat Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Dude, not to sound like a jerk, Too late! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kurtisqpublic Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Depends on the owner. We have a place in the milwaukee area that is in a rough part of the city, smaller venue too. I played with a songwriters group there and we pulled in about 75 people for the show, the room was packed pretty good tho not maxed out. The fella from our songwriter's group that booked the show was pulled into the back room after his set and reemed by the owner for 20 minutes regarding the bad draw. After we were done, a band mate and I stayed late and the bar cleared out to one patron!!! I'd say we were the reason for the folks that were there!Some bar owners are great, others can be kinda nasty... I know I won't book a show there again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Singin' Dave Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 One of my bigger pet peeves is when you hustle your butt off to get 100+ people to a show and get rooked on the door % by the bar because they don't start charging a cover until 80% of the people have already entered the place. Learned my lesson that you gotta basically hire a friend to work the door with the bar and make sure they are 1) starting to charge a cover early and 2) are charging everyone who comes in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BlueStrat Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Having the bar owner or manager keep telling us to turn down while the customers are telling us to turn it up. Having to ask the management repeatedly over the PA to turn the house music off so you can play, but of course, they can't hear you because they made you turn it down. The bar having sloppy, lazy or incompetent wait staff so that people can't get their drinks, causing them to leave but you get blamed for not holding the crowd. Showing up to the gig to find one 15 amp outlet on the stage that is on the same circuit as the neon lights, the pizza oven and the ice maker. Being told there are house lights, only to find out that 3/4 of them are burned out or not working. Being told that there is a house PA, only to find out the speaker on one side is blown, the power amp is a 300 watt stereo amp, and the 'board' is an 8 channel Behringer with three channels duct taped off because they don't work. Beig told that we get food with the gig, only to find out it's frozen pizza or....well, that's it. Sending a contract to the bar to have them sign it, and not getting it back, and when you call the week before the gig, they tell you they don't work with contracts and they've gone ahead and hired so and so's band, who doesn't use contracts and offered to play for 100 dollars less anyway. Showing up to the gig to find out there's a special event going on right up until the time you play, which leaves you no time to set up or even bring in you gear, but they expect downbeat to be immediately after they're finished. Playing a multi-band gig where the booker is new and forgot to allow time between bands to set up and tear down. Bars that don't charge regulars or pool players and/or don't start charging until the band starts playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cherri Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 More a booker than bar rant ... the booker promised us dinner, but did not communicate that to the night manager. Luckily I had the contract on me. I wouldn't have pigged out on that $6 bowl of soup had I known it would cause the manager such anguish. Bars that hire you for a cut of the door, and don't tell you they let the regs in free, they don't start charging the door until you start, and that it's ladies night, so all the women get in free. The bar having sloppy, lazy or incompetent wait staff so that people can't get their drinks, causing them to leave but you get blamed for not holding the crowd. +1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Singin' Dave Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 KIller list from BlueStrat there....been in all of those situations Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members axepilot Posted September 28, 2007 Author Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 BlueStrat has a good compilation here...................I'll add to his: Bars that rely heavily on live music - with a postage stamp 6' square "stage" and one or two outlets. (somehow, we've always made this work). "I want you guys to use the house PA" - a ragged Sparkomatic powered mixer and two blown monitor cabs. "Joe, the barback, will mix for you". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wades_keys Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Bars that don't charge regulars or pool players and/or don't start charging until the band starts playing. That pool player exemption really pisses me off Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SpaceNorman Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Bars that double book. You know, you get there and some other band is already there setting up. I'm with you 100% on this one. I've only have that (two bands showing up to set up at the same time) happen to me once - and fortunately we were the band that was there first. Years ago when we were booked into bars by an agent - we had a handful of last minute cancellations that the agent blamed on the bar owner - but always a day or two before the gig. (Personally, I suspect that was the agent's doing - NOT the bar owners.) Owners that never seem to have the time to talk and want you to call 20 times and kiss their butt to get a gig in their dump. I wish it were different - but the fact of the matter is that you're selling something - so unless you've got a product that they're lining up at the door to buy, it's on YOU to figure out how to connect with your customer. That's just how the game is played. Bitching about it is simply whining. Bars that play a completely different style of music than you're playing between sets. Personally - I LIKE when the bar plays stuff that is completely different than what we do. I HATE finding myself going "head to head" with a DJ or jukebox. I'm happiest when we control the break music through our PA. I've got specific "walk-in" and break playlists on the iPod of obscure but catchy material, specificially selected to NOT compete with the band. I've got bunch of 'em - timed for 15 or 20 minute breaks. Each one uses one of the half dozen tunes we've designated as "next to last" songs - so all the band members know that when they hear the "next to last" song, they've got roughly 3 minutes before we start. I always offer and "suggest" that they let us handle the walk-in and break music! Bars that pile all their crap on the stage, so that when you get there, you need to clear off all their spare tables and chairs. I'm not crazy about having to move their stuff - but assume that comes with the territory. I'm there to provide a service - and do everything that I reasonably can to make thier life easy in terms of dealing with my band. If that means I've got to spend 3-4 minutes moving a handful of tables and chairs - so be it. Bars that turn off the stage lights when you're trying to tear down or set up. I've never had issues with the lights being turned off. When they have been off - a quick conversation with the bartender has always brought them back. Bars with big screen TVs that schedule bands while major sporting events are on the TV. I can understand your frustration with big screens and sporting events. I simply check with the whoever is in charge and see how they want it played. Keeping the "boss" happy is the name of the game - so if he wants us to squash the TV - squash it we will. If he wants us to sit till the game is done - we've done that too. I ain't a rock star - I'm there to provide a service - and have no problems being as flexible as I can if it keeps the boss happy. Personally, I've found that being booked in conjunction with a Big Screen sports event can often have a silver lining - especially if the local favorite wins. Winning over a crowd of 3/4's drunk sports fan who are pumped up after a big win is like taking candy from a baby! Bars that don't comp or at least discount drinks. I've always been a fan of free drinks - but can readily understand why bar owners may not provide them. They don't encourage anybody else on staff to drink while they're working - why would they want to encourage the band? Providing the bullets for band to shoot themselves in the foot with simply isn't in the bar owners best interest. Free drinks often mean drunk bands - and drunk bands usually suck. I figure that having the band pay for drinks is roughly akin to putting speed bumps in the parking lot - it just helps keep things from getting out of control and crashing. Bars that collect tax information and file a 1099. I'm a HUGE fan of cash - and I really HATE paying taxes. Nonetheless I can't really blame a bar owner who's 100% legit about running his business - it's too big of an investment to jeopardize by taking part in what could arguably be construed as felony tax evasion. It's sorta hard to get mad at a guy just because he refuses to aid and abet - you know what I mean? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TeleKitty Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 I hope I never play another bar gig again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fastplant Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Bars that don't realize that saving money by hiring a cheap, inexperienced sound guy means that ALL of your bands will sound horrible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members axepilot Posted September 28, 2007 Author Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Bars that don't realize that saving money by hiring a cheap, inexperienced sound guy means that ALL of your bands will sound horrible. Besides playing in bars, I worked at a bar / liquor store for 4 years doing everything from barbacking to night manager. I have not met a single bar owner that doesn't cry poor to all who will listen. *******To all bar owners here - still love you! Please book my band! ******* I fully understand that they are in it to make money, but some of them have an entirely different outlook on bands than the bands do about themselves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Kevin T Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 You have house sound and a sound guy? we never do in NW NJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members newmaxnew Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Bars that can't attract customers when they have no music and expect the bands to magically fill the place. Here is a clue for those owners, if you have no customers there is something wrong with your establishment and a band will not save your business. Max Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JacieFB Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 How about bars that insist on music until 1 or 2 am when 99% of the crowd left at midnight. They should know when their peak hours are...if most of their people are getting there around 8 or 9 and leaving around midnight, why fight that, why not cater to that crowd rather than making people wait for the music? And why keep pounding it out late into the night for the bored bar tenders and that one drunk guy? I suppose the flip side is that they want the band to bring people that will drink until close. That's cool...it's really more about matching the band with the demographic, I suppose. Oh...and cigarette smoke. I am surprised that people still haven't written off that archaic practice for good. Over-priced drinks. I guess that's the nature of a bar, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MDLMUSIC Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 The bar having sloppy, lazy or incompetent wait staff so that people can't get their drinks, causing them to leave but you get blamed for not holding the crowd. This is my biggest pet peeve with playing at bars. I have one local watering hole that I play at on a regular basis. They change bartenders like I change underwear. Some of them are the biggest flakes you can imagine. I have watched from the bandstand a couple of times where a couple comes in, sits at the bar, listens to one or two songs, and then leaves because the bartender never came over to take their drink order because he or she was jabbering away with another customer or (even worse) playing the video poker game at the other end of the bar. Usually the bar owner is nowhere to be found, which probably explains the lackadaisical attitude. I'd probably quit playing there, except it's so convenient. The bar has it's own halfway-decent PA system, stage lights, drum kit, and guitar amp already set up. I basically just have to walk through the door, plug in my guitar and my mic and start performing. Plus it's less than a mile from my house, so I'm home 5 minutes after the gig is over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fastplant Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Besides playing in bars, I worked at a bar / liquor store for 4 years doing everything from barbacking to night manager. I have not met a single bar owner that doesn't cry poor to all who will listen. *******To all bar owners here - still love you! Please book my band! ******* I fully understand that they are in it to make money, but some of them have an entirely different outlook on bands than the bands do about themselves. I think if bar owners would take a night off now and again and go to their competition to see what they're doing right, they'd change alot of perspectives. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wagdog Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Showing up to the gig to find one 15 amp outlet on the stage that is on the same circuit as the neon lights, the pizza oven and the ice maker. That's the situation at one place we play, but we like the bar so much and do so well there that we just go with the 60 cycle hum and run with it. I do appreciate good, clean power though and make sure to let the bar owner know that we appreciate it when we get it. I will add that bars that don't comp drinks piss me off too. I guess I've been playing so long that I just expect it. Haven't run into too many of these. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members uitar9 Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 Played at a place on a sunday night, normally a dead night for this place. We brought about 70 people and they ended up with about 125. They had one girl serving and she was run off her feet. Patrons were spending and eating and dancing. Then the owner tried to renege on the bar and food tab which was part of the gig. He eventually relented. We'll never play there again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MDLMUSIC Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 I have one great bar owner story I like to tell. Back in the 1970's, I was playing in a top 40 cover band at a club in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and the crowd was really rocking. We were still rotating our song styles, playing about 5 fast songs to every slow one. The club owner came up and said we needed to play more slow songs. I told him that whenever we played a slow song, pretty much all of the dancers sat down and it took us one or two fast songs before they'd get out on the dance floor again. My comment to him was, "They don't really seem to like slow songs." His comment to me..."These people don't know what they like." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dogtownmax Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 That pool player exemption really pisses me off i understand that, i mean, i play in bands that play in bars, but i also play pool in bars that have bands. sometimes i just want to play pool. either they can let me in, and ill play pool there, and drink, or they can tell me to pay a cover. if i really just want to play pool, that would force me to go elsewhere. if im a regular pool player in a bar, the bar is not likely going to want me to do that. what if i get in the habit of going somewhere else? i also get pissed when im playing music in a band and the bar lets in a bunch of people for free when my pay is part of the door. no answers, just saying i see both side of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BlueStrat Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 I played a club twice that was owned by a crazy man. Literally, the guy was certifiable. He would turn on the disco lights while we were playing and just walk off and leave them on, regardless of the song we were playing. I'm talking lights that would give an epilleptic a seizure. Then he had us stop in the middle of a set. We though something was wrong. He went behind the DJ booth and put on "the Macarena" about 2-1/2 times louder than we were. Ands then proceeded to go out on the dance floor and dance by himself. During breaks, he would put on 50s and early 60s classics (This Magic Moment, etc) and again dance by himself, with the music so loud his huge 18" speakers were breaking up. Of course, people would leave because it was so god-awful painful and inappropriate to what we were playing, and then (you prolly guessed by now) he blamed us for 'running everyone off.' Twice was enough of that place. His club eventually burned down (I'm pretty sure he did it himself), and it's a parking lot for a high-rise condo now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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