ASK WEEGE - Can't We All Just Get Along?

5 September 07

Welcome to The Pier's 'Ask Weege' column. Every week the 880 South's front man and music scene veteran will be answering questions and providing tips for up-and-coming bands and musicians.

This week's question is from Steve, 'I'm in a band and I find that while some other bands are cool to play with and they help each other out, there is also lot of other bands that see it as a competition and they start inter-band politics bullshit. Is there a way to minimize this and have everyone get along? How do you handle that with 880 South? Thanks Weege.'

Weege: This is not an easy subject. In the past I have spoken about bands who we were tight with and when my first band the Floppy Rods broke up I realized which of them were really our friends. The reality is, this is a business.That was hard for me to accept. It doesn’t mean you can’t make friends in the music business. I’ve said in the past, you have to learn to deal with rejection, criticism, and I of course left out drama. That was until now. As much as you want music to be your life, and you want it to be your social epicenter. It’s business, and with business comes competition. When it comes to performance. A lot of times, you’re going to deal with egos.

One thing I notice the most, is either the band you’re playing with that night is totally professional or they are completely inexperienced and don’t know there earholes from their culos. I don’t personally look down on inexperienced bands. I also don’t think we’re the most professional band in the world, but we aim to be. I personally remember how shitty it was to get dogged on and looked down on. I remember how tough it was to sound check for the first time. Nowadays I try my best to accommodate bands we play with, experienced or not. HOWEVER this is not a band’s responsibility. It’s the venues responsibility to make sure the show is going according to plan. Even if you play at some dive bar in your hometown that has no stage you have to make sure someone is there to handle the event entirely. This should never be the bartender, he/she has enough to do.

Inter-band politics - I’m assuming you mean bandmates talking shit to other bands or getting caught doing so? If so, you have yourself a MOLE. Meaning someone in your band who either drinks/does drugs too much and is never satisfied with anything and has a REALLY big mouth. Usually just stirring up shit cause they like the attention. It’s hard to mix alcohol and have clear conversations. A rule 880 South has is when we play shows, we don’t talk shop in front of others, or with each other. Mainly because we forget what was said, and also because we should never air out dirty laundry in front of innocent bystanders. We don’t have to deal with this anymore though because we are grown ups. At least we try to be in between doo doo jokes and porn discussion.

Quite possibly a lot of the times you might have a BRAGGER. I deal with this constantly. It’s the ‘my dick is bigger than yours complex.’ You’ll hear a lot of ‘Hey, my band played here, we were on this show, we get airplay! We rule!’ Or my personal favorite, ‘I know Billy Boy from the band Fuckface, they are taking us on tour!’ Most people in the biz are full of shit. I hate braggers, I think most of the time, anybody can sniff out a bullshitter. If you have to deal with it, just ignore it. Don’t buy into it, don’t be tricked into drama, and don’t be nobodies fool. You have the power to choose. If a bragger confronts/annoys you, congratulate them on their success. Tell them they rule, then turn around and go mack on some young hunnies. There is no need to get sucked in and if the bragger is bright enough, he’ll feel kinda foolish.

I’m not 100% sure what kind of politics you were referring to, but I will say this. CONTRACTS! CONTRACTS! CONTRACTS! Don’t take anyone’s word on anything. Especially in the music business you should not trust a soul. A binding contract doesn’t have to be too complicated. It can say what you want, and what you want the other party to adhere to. Even if you have some kind of email confirmation, that is a legal binding contract. Just make sure the wording is accurate and not wishy-washy. If you fax or mail contracts, make sure everything is signed and dated. If you know a lawyer, have them look over it. Like I said, email works too. If you’re not a acute (no I don’t mean ‘Cute’ as in good looking) or an analytical person then I suggest having someone proofread your contract/email.

I find trading with bands is more stressful than anything else. When you trade with 880 South, what you get is a band that loads in fast, sound checks fast, you can drink a beer with us, talk about gear, ask us questions, and we will rock the shit out of a crowd whether it’s 1,000 people or 100. It don’t matter. That’s what we believe to be professionalism. Still, that should never get to one’s head. We love helping other bands out. I think it’s important to educate less experienced musicians. That’s why I chose to do this column. That and my belief that thepier.org is daring and cutting edge journalism.

What we hate in particular when we play with other bands is this - we hate when bands that show up, the day of, and ask if they can backline (share equipment) with us. Why is that? One it’s totally disrespectful. Two, it’s totally half assed and lazy. It’s disrespectful because they don’t tell us in advance, they expect us to hang around their sound check, and most of the time you get a less experienced band beating the crap out of your equipment. Which in reality is why it’s a half assed effort. That doesn’t mean we don’t backline, we will gladly do it, if it’s been noted to us in advance. We know how crappy lugging heavy gear around is and if we can make it easier for a touring band in our hometown. No problem. Just be courteous enough to tell us in advance so we can prepare for it.

This might come off to most people as ‘Man those guys from 880 South are uptight.' Well? Maybe, but I would say, the reason we’ve lasted as long as we have is because we get our respect. We handle our shit, and we put on a hell of a show. Look my friends, this is not acoustic open mic jam night at the local coffee shop. You’re talking about fans/friends spending their hard earned cash to see your band perform. Not just your band, but usually 2-4 bands in one night. Don’t hog it up, don’t whine, don’t complain, and don’t be a diva. Do your job, put in your time, and you’ll get your due respect. You are the epicenter, how you behave and reflect yourselves on the people you work with will prolong your careers. Don’t piss off the club you’re playing at, don’t rag on the bands you play with, and most of all, don’t be a dick to the soundman. If anything buy him a beer for sitting through your band he probably won’t dig. This isn’t ass-kissing, it’s just a nice gesture. If you’re a drunk ass and you have no regard for other people, you’re not gonna have much of a career in music. Though it has worked for some bands in the past. So what do I know?

I’ll break it down for bands that are inexperienced with Do’s & Don’ts. This will make your performance & night more drama-free.

Do's

Do - show up at the time you are asked to arrive.

Do - double check you have all your gear before you load your van.

Do - have a contract or email ready for the stage manager, soundman & other bands to see.

Do - mention all the bands playing that night when you perform.

Don'ts

Don't - show up late for sound check.

Don't - ask to backline at the last minute, unless you have no other choice (equipment failure).

Don't - play over your set time. It’s disrespectful and upsets other fans wanting to see the next band.

Don't - talk shit about the band you’re trading shows with unless they deserve it. (haha!)

Don't - pop off on the soundman. If you have tech issues, ask questions.

Don't - make demands. Talk to the management if you can’t get it resolved.

One more thing on band drama, politics, and overall live performance issues in general. I think at this point, it’s important to have a manager. Someone who can step up and speak for the band. It never looks good when a band member has to tell another band that they need to get off stage. That’s the job of your tour manager and the venue. Don’t make an effort to be a dick, just cause you can. That’s why you pay your manager 10-20% of your income. They get to be the upfront, cold-blooded, ruthless pricks. They don’t have to be, but it’s funny to say that. If you’re manager isn’t there for that show, then simply whip out that contract or email that says, ‘We go on at 10PM, support act is done playing at 9:45.’ Plain and simple. Don’t argue with them, or insult them, just make your point to the band and the venue. The venue will take note of who fucked up and you probably won’t see that band back in your area anytime soon.

Ok I gotta wrap this up. The baby is crying and I can’t think no more. So I will close with this. This is a tough business. I urge you to take it serious, but remember to have fun. That is why you get into this trade to begin with. It’s funner when everyone gets along, but not everyone is going to be your friend. Do your best, don’t let nobody bring your self-esteem down, and when all else fails, put on a kickass performance to shut up the critics. So from here on out - keep it steady.

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