Two friends at work and I have been jamming at my house for a few weeks. It’s going well - they haven’t suggested I become the sound man instead, yet. It’s fun but they have both played real gigs before, while I bought an electronic drum kit because I didn’t want to disturb the neighbors while learning the basics. It looks like they want to get back on stage at some point, while I’m not sure if I’m ready. I’m a perfectionist / OCD so maybe I just need to loosen up. When does one know you’re ready to leave the rec room and play in front of strangers? I guess my biggest fear is being pelted with beer bottles like in the Blues Brothers movie. Stories and advice appreciated.
Before you want to start playing before an audience, you’d want enough material for at least two 45 minute sets. And stretching out a number with long guitar and drum solos doesn’t count. I don’t think you’re Ginger Baker and you’re not in the Grateful Dead.
Groupies. You’re not in a band until you have groupies.
Work on it.
The most basic thing I can say is: never, ever stop playing the song until you’ve come to the end. Too many people don’t learn this before their first performance, and when they make their first inevitable mistake they panic and stop. Usually it’s on a mistake that no-one else but your band members will notice, if that. If you’re a drummer, you’re really going to bring everyone to a halt. Make sure you do this when you’re practicing, too. If someone makes a mistake, you can talk about it and work it out after you’ve finished the song. Keep going, and try to get back on beat. DO NOT STOP. No one dies if you stop, but it’s the most definitive way to say “that song does not sound like we intended it to sound”.
How do you know when you’re ready to perform? You’ll never really know until you’ve done some performing. As soon as you have a set where you can get through all of the songs*, get a gig opening for someone somewhere and find out - there is no substitute. Some people are comfortable right away, some people never get comfortable. Even if it’s a bad show, it’s only one night.
I’ve been in some awful bands, and never had bottles thrown at me. The worst that’s happened is people don’t stay. Getting heckled is better than playing to an empty room. It’s when you’re popular that things seem to get out of hand. Fireworks, people jumping on stage and touching you inappropriately - a good problem to have, but it can get loony.
*On preview: Not to start an argument, but I think getting one set together and getting an opening slot is a good way to see if a band works. If that seems to come off well, then start working on more songs.
I agree with all of this. NEVER stop the groove - it is what you use to cover up your mistakes! “Just get back to bobbing your head and dancing; nothing to see here.”
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Work on how you guys start songs and stop songs. Your Mount and your Dismount, if you will.
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Figure out who you are looking at to cue changes. Things can get dicey in the middle of a song - one of you blows a change; someone in the crowd does something distracting (ah yes, sorority girls flashing me back in my college bands; fun ti…wait, what was I saying?) - anyway, which of you guys do you look at so that person can make the obvious “execute the change…NOW!” sign?
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Practice in the same spots you plan to perform in - if your bassist sets up to the right of the drummer in practice, that is where they should be on stage.
Perhaps the most important thing, Mr. OCD - don’t be hard on yourself or your band. You WILL make mistakes - and what’s worse, is that if you are NOT making mistakes, the actual performance will be such a blur that you will remember, oh, about 3% of it. You can’t win, especially at the beginning of trying this stuff. People will come up to you and say “that was cool; you guys were great!” and you will be totally flummoxed, and even angry, because your experience playing will feel SO different.
Just remember - you are figuring this stuff out; they are just looking for a good time. What they are telling they saw and heard may actually be true 
Good luck and keep us posted.
(oh, and getting 10 songs down is a totally reasonable starting place - and yes, don’t focus on noodly/jammy breaks - play your freakin’ material cleanly and be done with it…)
Just to add
Book a gig. Really just book it and put it on the calendar. This gives you a goal and a deadline.
My band did this, we are playing Dec 21. I have not played onstage in 10+ years. I am a bit nervous ? Yes but we will be fine and so will you.
Good luck and good gigging
Cheers
Capt
This is all true, but…but…you’re a Sound Guy ;). Don’t you have any pet peeves about set up that just drive you crazy? I woulda thought you’d suggest things like:
- Always make sure you do a sound check IN THAT ROOM.
- Always assume that volumes will go up - that can be okay; the room sounds different with bodies to absorb the sound. But set your phasers on Stun at first; don’t go straight to Kill volume-wise.
- Decide who you are going to true to stand out in the crowd space and assess your levels. Some mouth-breather saying “yeah, sounds cool” does not count.
- Figure out how you are going to hear yourselves - do you have a set of monitors? Turn your amps in a bit so your drummer can hear you?
- Make sure your PA is loud enough - this is the classic mistake by most bands and the vocals always suffer on a bunch of levels - can’t hear them, strained vocal chords, etc…
Oh, and back to a basic band piece of advice that a Sound Guy will have a strong opinion about: figure out how you are going to use dynamics. One standard is - really quiet down during verses and explode during choruses. Nirvana is an obvious example, but you don’t even have to do that; just really play more quietly during verses. Agree on your approach as a band and make sure you all do it together…
Decide what your goals are with the band. You don’t have to be really exact, but have a loose idea of what you want to do with your music, like cover band or originals? how often do you gig? are you looking to do this a lot or just a few times a year? how often do you want to rehearse?
My husband has been in several bands over the years (sometimes in more than one at the same time) and the times it has been less than fulfilling for him is when the members of the band have different goals.
Like right now he’s playing regularly with two bands and a duo. He loves the duo, but it’s once a month. They play a lot of original pieces and harmonies are a big part of their sound. The bands are both very cover heavy and weaker on harmonies. He’s not as happy with the bands and would really prefer to have a band that’s all originals (mostly his of course.) Luckily his commitment to the one that is the biggest time suck is ending soon. The other band only gigs a few times a year.
Anyway, if you want this to be fun, make sure you know what you want out of it and be in a band that wants roughly the same thing.
Avoid mudsharks in Seattle. Or don’t. I guess first figure out how nutty you want to get with the groupies. And get groupies.
Word Man I was going to throw him to the Wolves and hope he got his “Virginity” popped by an Angry Old Road Dawg who, hates this gig, hates the venue, hates your band, hates every band, decides you don’t need a monitor, says you are too efing loud and spends your entire set outside smoking weed while your singers mic does nothing but feedback.
But, since you brought it up
Capt Kirk’s advice for gigging newbies from a Pro Soundguy
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Don’t be loud, really I am serious, we have microphones for this. I know you are excited but you do not need to fill the venue with your awesomeness. I have a PA, I can fill the room.
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Don’t be louder than your bandmates, except when taking a lead or solo, also see #1
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Mind the time, when you are told “one more song”, do not pull out your 9 minute “masterpiece” or “Freebird”. When you have a 45 minute slot, that is what you get even if you could not get your gear set up in time and are running late, that means 45 minutes of stage time playing or not.
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I am at work, this is a real job and that console is just like your desk at your job. Please remember this, I am working and treat me like I am.
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I can be your best friend or your worst enemy, cross me at your peril. I can shut off the power, lights and sound and have a million ways I can mess up your set. I am a person, not your servant.
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Practice setting up and tearing down your gear. You should be able to have everyone up and down in 5 minutes. If you need to, pre build your stuff and take it off whole and then tear it down. Many venues allow 15 minutes for stage change, in that time I have to get one band off, another up and soundchecked. I have a schedule to keep, meet your fans after you are off, not from the stage, I need the space.
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Have fun, I really want you to.
I am not trying to be an ass here, I am just giving advice form years of experience
Have fun gigging
Capt
As the drummer, your most important job is to keep the beat. Fundamentals are paramount; learning a lot of flashy breaks and rolls is worthless if you can’t keep a consistent beat.
I had a friend who was attempting to learn the drums by playing along to the Smashing Pumpkins, trying to emulate Jimmy Chamberlin. While that’s certainly a worthy goal, the problem is my friend was more interested in sounding like Jimmy Chamberlin than learning to how to play the drums. He failed to learn the fundamentals and to this day, nearly 20 years later, he still can’t keep a steady beat.
Now THAT’s what I’m talkin’ about! Well done, sir.
Two 45 minute sets my eye. In every band I’ve been in the normal gig was one 1 hour set followed by three 45 minute sets. I have an uncle who once did a 4 hour gig as a four hour medley. He and his band mates just wanted to see if they could do it. They decided once was enough.
Thank you Sir.
I have one more to add…
If your band is unique or large or weird, let us know before you walk on stage, we need to prepare.
“Oh Capt, praytell whatever do you mean by unique or large or weird ?”
Glad you asked
Drums downstage instead of upstage, drummer is lead singer, horn section, Hammond Organ and/or Leslie, more than two guitarists, acoustic instruments that do not plug in, random percussion, an Oud, Balilaika, Kora or Talking Drum, backup singers, dancers, more than two keyboards, more than 4 singers, sequencer/drummachine, banners, lights, stage decorations, pyrotechnics(if you do not have a license and insurance NO IS THE ANSWER, if you do the answer is still probably NO), confetti cannons, video…
IOW, if you do not fit the mold of a 4 or 5 piece band (think bar band in a movie where the band is not important to the story), you probably need to tell me.
One more thing, that vocal processor you bought at Guitar Center and sounds all cool at practice, I effing hate it and want to smash it into tiny bits. FYI I have real effects and I know how to make them sound great.
Thus endeth the rant 
Capt
I get the impression that the OP might get a gig at a small place that doesn’t normally host bands - or does so in a low-key way - or at the very beginning of a night. Brand-freakin’-new bands are usually fine with a few songs under their belt…
Actually there is another thing
If you are a vocalist, buy your own mic. Seriously club mics are nasty, nasty vectors of disease.
Until you are playing to more than 500 people a night, that microphone will be a Shure SM 58, there are exceptions but you haven’t earned any yet. I am deadly serious about this. It costs $100 just about everywhere, do not listen to the guy in the store when he tells you not to buy the 58, buy the whatever. He is trying to sell you something, I am trying to make your life easier. A 58, not a Beta 58(I can live with this, also a Beta 57, if you are over 45 years of age you can use a SM57 as well), not an 87, not a Sennheiser, not an EV, not a Blue buy nothing but a Shure SM 58. It is the industry standard for a reason.
I think I am done now:D
Capt
If you’re doing original stuff, especially just starting out, that’s fine. One 45-minute to an hour set is fine. If you’re doing covers, then, yeah, you probably want to know more than that.
Hopefully Arrendajo will chime in on this one. I think he could also give you some good advice.
If all you’ve got is one or two sets, you’re not getting booked. Not in any area I’ve ever played, anyway. Every bar, every club expects you to do 4 hours, usually 8-12 or 9-1, and if you’re not up to it there’s plenty of other bands that are. It used to be that doing Friday and Saturday was the norm, but most places around here have gone to only having bands on Saturday.
Also, nobody around here is going to have more than one band in a night unless it’s something like a battle of the bands, in which case no one gets paid except the winners.
One or two hour gigs are rare, and highly sought after, since they usually pay almost as much as a four hour gig.
Doug K while that may be true where you are, here in Houston it is definitely not. We often do local shows with up to 6 bands 45 minute sets and 15 for change over. Even big touring shows often have local support with similar set times.
Country Music is an exception, sometimes.
Worst gig ever? I ate at a Steakhouse in Dallas once, they had a band playing for 4 or 6 hours, 15 minutes on 15 minutes off. I still do not understand why.
Capt