The ins and outs of getting your new band a gig at a local venue
By Nicholas La Torre
Athens NEWS Campus Reporter
September 27, 2007
Have you been wondering why your four-piece band still can't get a gig at any decent venue in Athens? You've dropped off your badly recorded cassette tape at every uptown bar but still no one calls. There is a reason and a solution. To separate your band from the rest, here's a few things you can do.
The Venue:
One of the most important things to consider is which venue to book. Chances are a coffee shop is not going to hire a heavy-metal band to do a show. They have paying customers, and they want a band that is going to fit the style of their patrons. The house of choice for today will be the Blue Gator. There are two areas in the Gator for bands to play, a downstairs stage that offers acoustic open mic nights and other low-key shows, and an upstairs stage and room that holds 300 people. This room has enough musical equipment to rival a Kiss concert.
The Gator management asks bands to send their press kits through the mail. Don't expect to hear back immediately. After two weeks, e-mail again to make sure your kit was received. According to Laurel Wakeley, general manager, the Blue Gator receives 15-30 press kits a week, and the management cannot possibly listen to that many demos and still run a business. This press kit is the most important part of this process.
The Press Kit:
Any band with hopes of playing any decent venues should put together a professional press kit. Include anything and everything that will sell your band. This is the resume for your group. There needs to be a demo recording, good contact information, Myspace information (if any), and a list of other places your band has played in Athens. For the demo, promoters are looking for a unique sound. They don't want just any set of guys who can't keep a beat or tune a guitar on their stage making them and their whole staff look bad. This isn't personal; it's business. Even the cheapest recordings can prove a band is talented and practiced. Wakeley said that when she's listening to a demo, she wants to hear a tight sound.
The Gig:
So now Wakeley is convinced that your band is good enough to play at her place. She wants you to bring some fans, as well as hopefully gain some more in the process. Most likely you will be playing on a Wednesday. This is a day for relatively low-profile bands to take the stage, as there aren't as many people out drinking during the middle of the week. If you can bring a decent crowd and wow the whole joint, most likely your next show is going to be on a Friday.
At the Gator, bands play for the amount of money charged at the door minus 10 percent and the cost to use the P.A. system. These fees are used to pay the professional sound technician. Trust me, it's for the better. Sound levels are one of the hardest things to judge for an amateur musician.
Try to find other bands to play with you. Other local bands shouldn't be considered as competition. They can be very helpful. Also, opening for a band that is more known that yours is not degrading. They were opening for someone once.
If you are really trying to make it in the music business, Wakeley suggests being persistent. Don't just drop a couple of e-mails and give up. Stop in and talk to the owners; visit during a time when they can sit down and have a conversation with you. If it's a restaurant or a bar, do not show up right at dinner time and expect the manager to have time to discuss your band. Give the owner a reason to remember your face.
"As much as technical merit is so important to success, what really seems to separate are people who are willing to go after it," Wakeley said. "If you believe in it and you are willing to work for it and you're practicing a lot and you're doing what you need to do and you get out there and you really sell yourself to people, someone is going to buy."
Places like the Blue Gator are a great way to get your band name out and get people to want to listen to you. The promoters want you to succeed as much as you do, because this is how they make their living. Get off the couch and get to work because not everyone in the music industry is going to work this hard, and this is how you set yourself apart.??
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