Another night with teen bands
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Posted on Oct 12, 2009 10:28 pm
Doug Babbitt
Sound as good as you play
Member Since: Dec 23, 2008
Two weeks ago I posted about doing sound for my son's first gig in the lobby of a skate park. Three bands and lots of thanks from the kids helped make it a great experience.
This past Saturday evening one of the kids rented the Bomoseen Grange Hall for $100, brought in 4 teen bands (unpaid), charged $2 admission, and sold cans of Mountain Dew out of a cooler. As far as I can tell, he made the $100 back, plus enough of a profit to offer me $20 for doing the sound. I told him to invest it in the next show in 2 weeks. The dozens of "thank you's" are worth more than the money.
Things I like about these shows compared to the bar gigs I've been doing the last year:
1 - Bands play 6 to 9, home by 10:30 (v. 3 A.M. for a local bar gig).
2 - Everyone is sober. These kids are serious about playing. I haven't even noticed any problems in the audience .... and at this age they usually don't hide it very well.
3 - They're playing all original music and it's really pretty good stuff.
Supporting my son was the biggest reason I got into doing sound last year. Until that first teen show two weeks ago, I'd worked exclusively with a classic rock cover band on bar gigs. Those guys recently dropped their drummer and are going "all acoustic," so it's looking like a nice transition.
Has anyone else been involved with this type of situation?
I've never been in it for the money, so that's really not a concern. So far, I've been treading lightly in terms of giving advice. Microphone technique is the main thing that I've harped on. The hall that we played in this weekend was pretty big and running instruments through the PA would have helped a lot. On the other hand, I'm hesitant to step on their toes, when overall they're doing such a great job.
If you've been in these situations, or just have thoughts, please comment.
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Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Oct 12, 2009 11:01 pm Welcome to the club.
For me it wasn't so much for my sons as for their friends or pretty much anyone who couldn't afford to go somewhere else.
I just started adding up the paying hours verse the free hours from this year.
Funny thing is they are about dead even. But to me its the paying clients that make it possible for me to give time away to the music I think is worth putting the time into.
Big props to you for doing this for your son and his cronies.
There is nothing like the feeling you get when you get to see something come together from their hard work. And knowiong that you helped them in a small or big way.
Oct 12, 2009 11:43 pm Kind of the situation that I have going on from time to time.
I don't have any kids. But, my wife is involved with many of the community programs here in Philly.
So, I have done my fair share of the freebie gigs as well for the cause.
Fact of the matter is, that I will be doing the Dead Milkmen's Halloween show for free as well. It's just monitors, and I'm doing it just to make sure that there is no problems on stage.
If we were all obsessed with money for doing gigs, there would be no joy in doing it.
It would just be a 9 - 5 job and that's it. And if I wanted a 9 - 5 job, I would go work in an office somewhere. That's not me.
Kudos to you for helping out the way you do Doug! Doing your part to keep the music alive!
Doug BabbittSound as good as you playMember
Since: Dec 23, 2008
Oct 13, 2009 10:25 am The money I made working the bar gigs was never going to be enough to pay for my gear ..... never mind my time. In those cases I asked for money just to make sure that I wasn't being taken for granted. It also made the band think about whether I was adding value.
I'm fortunate to have a 20+ year career in commercial banking that allows me to do live sound as a hobby, without needing to take jobs that I don't want. These kids are putting on another show on the 24th and that's as far into the future as I'm looking. At this point, I think I'd take a pass on a paying bar gig if it were offered.
The more I try to do live sound, the more I realize how hard it is to do really well. Maybe in 10 or 15 years I can retire from banking and take the time to become more of a professional. For now, I've got a bunch of kids who think I'm a genius because the audience can hear their vocals.
Oct 13, 2009 10:29 am It seems to me live sound and other music support roles are much like being the musician, you really are lucky if you can make a good living at it and not have it control your life...I respect guys like Rob Stemple who have been able to make it work, it's cool. For some of us, the travel and stuff prevent it, or, make it a harder decision.
Quincysanhttp://www.unitedmusicians.infoContributor
Since: Nov 11, 2007
Oct 13, 2009 04:36 pm Keep it up! My friends had parents like you and we were really into "hardcore" music too; throughout most of high school. Strikingly similar situation.
I still appreciate those parents who would encourage and help us make music. I wouldn't be a musician without guys like you. Then again, I would also have a degree in finance and economics by the close of next semester...but hey, I'm happy. Which is more than I can say about the road I was headed down.
Quincysanhttp://www.unitedmusicians.infoContributor
Since: Nov 11, 2007
Oct 13, 2009 04:41 pm HA! You inspired me to Google the old band...came up with this. Too bad Purevolume deleted our account...it was only latent for 5 years!!! That music is now gone forever...not that it was anything different from what your kids are most likely playing.
"CHUG ON 1!!!!"
"USE MORE WEH CHORDS!!!"
"When we get to the third breakdown..."
www.heavyfrequency.com/ar...fotm.php?id=115
And another old band...
www.stereokiller.com/bands/bands.cfm?id=18952
Doug BabbittSound as good as you playMember
Since: Dec 23, 2008
Oct 13, 2009 06:49 pm Thanks for the comments Quincysan; it's good to hear a success story.
Maybe one of these kids will make music their profession, maybe not. My niece just started at Berkley, hoping to score features films someday. That may not be exactly where she lands, but I'll bet she makes it.
As far as my own kids go, I try to show them that no matter how they earn a living, music can still be something good in their lives. I have friends who are musicians on nights and weekends, but hold down real jobs like licensed engineer, corrections officer, physician, carpenter, accountant, etc., etc.
We're lucky to have a string orchestra program in our public schools, starting in 3rd grade, so they have a great foundation to build on.
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Oct 13, 2009 08:29 pm I'll second Rob on the 9 to 5 thing. I've been really lucky over the years to have been paid well enough to afford to put this little piece of musical heaven together. And I will always look back and the guys that offered their time to help me out. As they obviously saw something worth investing the time in.
For now doing what I do is enough, anymore and then the fun might not be there like it is now.
