Last Night's Gig, the best/worst ever

[bitflipper]

2 hours ago, Grem said:

Our next motto was don't play overly loud.

Such an overlooked strategy! Many musicians lack the self-confidence to play quietly, assuming that they can only win over the audience by beating them over the head.

Plus, lowering the volume is the quickest way to tighten up a band. When you can clearly hear one another, you're naturally going to sync up better. Vocals work better, especially getting a proper balance between harmonies.

As a piano player, it means my amplification runs cleaner and what comes out actually sounds like a piano. Everybody tends to put more subtleties into their playing, and natural dynamics just happen without having to be scripted.

And as everyone has noted, your final assessment comes at the end of the night when the till is counted. If staff can't hear to take orders, that's not good for the bottom line. 

Finally, let's not forget one important reason that people go to bars: to hook up and to socialize. The band shouldn't be like "I don't care if it's your anniversary/birthday/office outing, just sit there and listen to US!". Those who are actually there to listen will sit up front or dance. The couple in the back with their hands all over each other don't care what you're doing anyway.