Phil Woodney
Member
The past few months, the band I'm in has begun fragmenting, mostly due to issues with our singer. In an effort to hold us together (if that's even possible) I want to describe the situation as I see it and ask for some input from the forum.
We started about three years ago by renting a rehearsal room after talking about music at work for awhile. The bass and guitar players, along with me, have many years of experience playing live. The singer was a neophyte but talented. Bass, guitar and drums clicked immediately and we all became enthusiastic about gigging from time to time. After a year we began playing out occasionally and have been asked to return to every venue we've played. Then comes the bombshell: the singer has decided he doesn't want to do it anymore. Or maybe he does. Or maybe no gigging and just playing for fun. Or maybe spend a few months working on his stage presence before booking a gig. Or maybe, etc. The guitar and bass players are well and truly pissed. I am not angry, but I am frustrated because all of the band members (and their friends) are coming to me to discuss what to do and the guys are not talking straight to each other. Last week the singer told me he wanted to stop. Evidently he thought that meant the band would stop. Yesterday I mentioned to him that the rest of us are rehearsing tonight. Now he feels as if he has been thrown out of the band. I found that odd, but after talking with him a bit, I begin to understand that his inexperience is perhaps the root of the problem (aside from the mixed messags he sends) and I hope there may be a way out of this that keeps the band together yet allows him time to learn stagecraft. But I would like to have your take and input. The bottom line is that we want the singer to stay, but we want to gig. Ideas?
Phil
We started about three years ago by renting a rehearsal room after talking about music at work for awhile. The bass and guitar players, along with me, have many years of experience playing live. The singer was a neophyte but talented. Bass, guitar and drums clicked immediately and we all became enthusiastic about gigging from time to time. After a year we began playing out occasionally and have been asked to return to every venue we've played. Then comes the bombshell: the singer has decided he doesn't want to do it anymore. Or maybe he does. Or maybe no gigging and just playing for fun. Or maybe spend a few months working on his stage presence before booking a gig. Or maybe, etc. The guitar and bass players are well and truly pissed. I am not angry, but I am frustrated because all of the band members (and their friends) are coming to me to discuss what to do and the guys are not talking straight to each other. Last week the singer told me he wanted to stop. Evidently he thought that meant the band would stop. Yesterday I mentioned to him that the rest of us are rehearsing tonight. Now he feels as if he has been thrown out of the band. I found that odd, but after talking with him a bit, I begin to understand that his inexperience is perhaps the root of the problem (aside from the mixed messags he sends) and I hope there may be a way out of this that keeps the band together yet allows him time to learn stagecraft. But I would like to have your take and input. The bottom line is that we want the singer to stay, but we want to gig. Ideas?
Phil