I don’t have a lot of experience in playing in full bands at actual gigs. As a matter of fact, I have no experience at all in playing in a full band. I have more experience of playing solo acoustic gigs so I think that gives me the right to talk about how bands use gear at live shows. I have seen so many full band gigs and have been part of the music scene for years so I have the right to talk about this stuff all I want to.

You see… it is pretty amazing to me on how a lot of bands are pretty careless about their gear. Gear is probably the most important thing in your music career. You must take gear and equipment seriously. I have seen lots of bands that continuously have technical issues when playing on stage. Partly because a lot of musicians are pretty careless about their gear. If you want to prevent technical issues at your gigs… then you must take more responsibly and have more care for your gear.

Bands always make the mistake of bringing just one piece of instrument. They always bring one guitar, one amplifier, one bass and everything else. The key to preventing technical issues is that you must always bring spares. Bring spares of everything. Don’t always bring one instrument and one amp. Always have an extra one. Bring extra instrument cables, microphones, etc. That way if things go wrong and if your instrument/amp goes out… you can quickly replace it. Spares are pretty important. I see lots of bands that don’t bother bringing spares. When something goes out… another band will let them borrow their equipment. It’s always important to bring extra spares of everything ’cause there will be a point where other musicians won’t be able to borrow their stuff. There will also be times where you won’t get a hold of anyone to help give you a replacement… so keep things in mind.

Also before performing the gig… you must make sure everything’s working correctly. Take better care of your equipment. Don’t store your instruments in places where it has bad temperature. Instruments can go bad when you store them in very cold and very hot places. Don’t be rough on your gear… handle them with care especially the more expensive gear. It’s amazing to me that a lot of bands don’t take care of their equipment.

When you’re on stage and when you need to set your guitar down for something… set ’em on a guitar stand. Bring guitar stands. Don’t lay them on the floor or have the guitars or basses leaning against the wall. I see this stuff at band shows pretty often. Guitar stands shouldn’t cost that much.

Also, when you’re buying gear for your shows… don’t always buy cheap equipment ’cause they are bound to go bad quick. When you want to play in a band on a professional level… you have to look like pros and not amateurs. Buy good gear. The good stuff that sounds good. I’m not saying that you have to buy equipment around the $1,000 – $5,000 price range… all you need are guitars/amps that are around the $500 – $800 price range. Don’t always use the same guitar and amp all of the time ’cause the more you play on it the worse it gets.

Get yourself a good soundman who knows what he’s doing. If the venue you’re playing already provides a soundman then that should be good enough.

Another way to play a successful show smoothly with no problems is to never take a long time tuning between songs. I see bands do this and they really need to stop it. Take a long time tuning in between songs. Nobody wants to hear this. The audience is there to see you rock out… not to hear you waste time tuning. I understand certain songs are in different tunings but to avoid tuning for a long time in between songs then you must think about using more than one guitar. Tune the other guitar that the song is in and you can easily switch instruments without having to worry about tuning. Other options that you can do… there are all kinds of tuning equipment that will tune you automatically or even better you need to learn how to tune more quickly. You need to practice tuning quickly and silently at home. Learn to practice tuning by ear.

When I go see a live band show… I’m paying good money to see them and I expect them to run it smoothly but a lot of them are pretty lousy at running a show. They play the music good, indeed but they need to take more responsibility for the show itself.

If things go wrong and things don’t go smoothly… you will make the audience bored and disappointed. They could walk back to the bar or leave the show and the next thing you know… you’ll see the people talking all kinds of negative stuff about your band online ’cause you didn’t run it smoothly. You don’t want that would ya?

I have good enough equipment to form a band of my own. I have a few professional amplifiers and a few guitars actually so I’m all set. I can form a band or join a band anytime I want to now.

This post isn’t directed at any band in particular… I’m not calling any of them out. I just want to see them run their shows better.

Gear is pretty important, folks. Don’t always act like they’re nothing.

Kev