Another (not so great) 4th of July gig

[mrfingers]

We were to be the opening band followed by two paid bands at an outdoor b-day/ BBQ neighborhood, central PA party. Temps topped 90 degrees by noon when we were to show for sound check. Drums were to be provided as well as cymbal stands and throne...on a flatbed trailer. Hah! I brought a cymbal stand, HH stand, throne, snare, snare stand and hats and 2 cymbals and a trusty Sonor pedal. Well, no cymbal stands were provided, throne seat cushion only! FT had no reso. So we waited 2 hrs for sound check which started off with no sound from the monitors, another hour and that was fixed. So we started and the vocals cut out. Finally another 1/2 hr. And we started again... first two songs ended suddenly about 1/2 way thru: power went out! 1/2 hr later we had power for half the equipment. The sound man moved his canopy to shield the boards from the sun, by now boiling us at 90+ degrees! The audience on a hill couldn’t see us because our canopies cut off the view. We played 4 songs and the sound man said wrap it up, the other bands were getting anxious!
No worries about masking or social distance: the audience was so far away, not believing there is a corona virus, anyway. We figured the heat and uv sunlight Would spare us infection. ?
I hope to never do this again!

 

[No Way Jose]

I think we've all had gigs like that. Stuff happens. Live shows are unpredictable. You could have had a storm blow in.

 

[PorkPieGuy]

I played during the day of July 4th in the armpit of NC. A 3-hour show in 91-degree heat and humidity. We had to not only play but we hauled in PA gear too. I've been playing for a long time, and this was the hottest gig I've ever had. I had to take a few breaks during the tear-down period or I'm pretty sure I would have hit the ground and puked on the way down. It was miserable.

Oh...they want us to come back.

 

[rebonn]

I played during the day of July 4th in the armpit of NC. A 3-hour show in 91-degree heat and humidity. We had to not only play but we hauled in PA gear too. I've been playing for a long time, and this was the hottest gig I've ever had. I had to take a few breaks during the tear-down period or I'm pretty sure I would have hit the ground and puked on the way down. It was miserable.

Oh...they want us to come back.

I hear you. We played a huge party on the river in North Georgia and after the gig, I felt like I'd been hit by a bus. Tearing down after the gig was the nail in the coffin. Waking up the next day was just as bad, just not as tired. After the fact, I feel it was good for me. No pain, no gain.

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

 

[jaykaydrums]

yep i know that feeling well!! heres a pic of a gig i did last year for my towns first local pride event. the truck moved every time someone took a step anywhere, no shade, temps were in the high 20s/low 30s (celcius, dont know what that is in farenheit), we had two monitors, one either side of the truck so nobody could hear anything, my drum seat was on the edge of the bed. and i had to provide ALL the drum gear, didnt even get the agreed hire fee as we ended up the only full band that played, the rest had all pulled out or never turned up. was a complete s**tshow!!

and i ended up staying to pull double duty as assistant soundtech as i knew the guy doing sound and he was struggling due to no shade whatsoever and being stood in the middle of the field in front of us in the blaring sun for close to 13 hours (me and him both turned up at the same time so i ended up with he same amount of sun exposure)

 

[johnwesley]

Sorry to all above that you didn't have tour buses, green rooms with catering, topless groupies, and picture on the cover of the Rolling Stone.

 

[jaykaydrums]

Sorry to all above that you didn't have tour buses, green rooms with catering, topless groupies, and picture on the cover of the Rolling Stone.

im not in this game for that, i was happy when playing, but my main gripe was when the organisers said there was going to be covered area for bands with some provided drinks as it was a scorching hot day and then to be told on arrival that none of that was provided because "other entertainers needed it more" AKA the organisers wanted to be kept cool on the far side of the field and then proceeded to try and haggle over the bands fee because they didnt like the agreed pricing, then its bound to irk you a little bit.

 

[johnwesley]

im not in this game for that, i was happy when playing, but my main gripe was when the organisers said there was going to be covered area for bands with some provided drinks as it was a scorching hot day and then to be told on arrival that none of that was provided because "other entertainers needed it more" AKA the organisers wanted to be kept cool on the far side of the field and then proceeded to try and haggle over the bands fee because they didnt like the agreed pricing, then its bound to irk you a little bit.

I understand completely. Welcome to the world of gigging musicians. I did it for 10 years and the stories I could tell. It however is all part of "climbing the ladder" to "instant success".

 

[Stickman]

Reading this reminded me of one thing to watch out for in outdoor gigs (even indoor gigs) - bouncy stages! Sometimes on a trailer or a makeshift stage that isin't solid.. you think you're okay.. the band starts playing and the bounce of the shoddy floor can make your cymbals stands build momentum until they become projectiles! I played this club a year ago (never again) that had a homemade drum riser.. a bit bouncy but it didn't register. First song and halfway through my crash cymbal suddenly bounces up and flys forward onto to the floor below - cleanly slicing the bass players XLR vocal mic cord in half. I was furious.. I risked a $400+ Paiste cymbal for a lousy $100 gig.. fortunately the cymbal landed on it's edge and being Paiste quality - you can barely see a tiny tiny dent on the rim.. but not noticeable without a magnifying glass. Still kicking myself for not tying down my stands.. I was lucky.. only cost me an XLR cable.

Outdoor gigs are always a crapshoot.. can be a blast.. but can also be a weather disaster.. like the time I had to play under a canopy that started funneling water down my back and then pouring off my nose until we pulled the plug.

 

[cbphoto]

I read the title and thought you’d seen my gig. ?

We were supposed to be set up for sound check by 2pm, start @ 4pm. Sound guy (boyfriend of the bassist) didn’t arrive until 4pm. He set up his gear but the signal kept dropping out. He shrugged and said, “Sorry fellas, I have another FOH gig elsewhere. Gotta go!” Whereupon we called a friend who came in to fix the problem. But, no monitors! The singers couldn’t hear themselves, and the guys on the left couldn’t hear the guys on the right, and vice versa.

Fortunately we were under a nice tent. But this made my drums more contained in the tent. FOH says, “play harder” cuz only the bass drum was mic’d. This meant the singers really struggled to hear themselves. Plus, we were on a slope so my kit was all caterwonky.

By the end of the show (midnight) one of the singers was in tears and the bandleader was furious at the original FOH guy. I packed ASAP and went home for a cool shower.

On the positive side, there was about 500 people, most black Americans, who had nothing but love and smiles for God & country. No nasty hate-vibes anywhere.?? The hosts checked everyone’s temperature at the gate and everyone filled out a form with name & phone so they could call if ‘Rona showed up. There were hand cleaning/sanitizing stations all around the 10 acre property, and outside the porta-potties.

 

[johnwesley]

On the positive side, there was about 500 people, most black Americans, who had nothing but love and smiles for God & country. No nasty hate-vibes anywhere.?? The hosts checked everyone’s temperature at the gate and everyone filled out a form with name & phone so they could call if ‘Rona showed up. There were hand cleaning/sanitizing stations all around the 10 acre property, and outside the porta-potties.

Goes to show that skin color has nothing to do with being American. No matter what your heritage, ancestry etc., you are American first. Glad to hear some positive news for a change. ALL lives matter!