Gig Gab - The Working Musicians' Podcast

The rollover of the calendar is often a time where folks take stock of where they are and where they’re going. This year’s pull-back on gigs opens that opportunity up even more, and your two favorite weekend warriors talk through what it means to evolve your band. Listen as Paul […] The post Evolving Your Band – Gig Gab 331 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Your two favorite weekend warriors slip one last episode in before the ball drops to share their thoughts about gigs, the New Year, recordings, album releases, nazis, bass players, and pick-up gigs. Yep, you read that right. But you’ll have to listen to learn more. Press play and Always Be […] The post The Perspective of a Year — Gig Gab 330 appeared first on Gig Gab.

As musicians we need to learn how to play with clicks and cliques! Metronomes are super-helpful, especially in the studio, and even to help get your live playing together. Cliques of people, well, can be a double-edged sword, can’t they? Listen as Paul and Dave talk through their uses of […] The post Of Clicks and Cliques – Gig Gab 329 appeared first on Gig Gab.

One of the best parts about music is the non-verbal communication of it all. But there’s more mind-melding than just that, isn’t there? How about when you find yourself in lockstep with your band, with the groove, with the direction, with the harmonies, with the desires? Music can really make […] The post Musical Mind Melding — Gig Gab 328 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Have you ever written a song? Listen as your two favorite weekend warriors talk through the songwriting process, including the inspiration for getting involved in that scene in your local area. Of course, The Beatles are part of this conversation, especially with the peek into their songwriting process that the […] The post Songwriting, The Beatles, and You – Gig Gab Podcast 327 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Sometimes you slow down the music, and sometimes the music slows down. Listen as Paul and Dave muse upon both tempos and gig frequency, especially as we head into the colder, slower months here. How does your band manage tempo on stage? How does your band plan to manage the […] The post Slowing Down The Music — Gig Gab 326 appeared first on Gig Gab.

How would you rate your musical work ethic? How about your band’s? Are you all in sync? Listen as Paul and Dave tackle this question and more within the framework of their current projects…and some past ones! If there ever was an episode which epitomized your two favorite weekend warriors […] The post Musical Work Ethic — Gig Gab 325 appeared first on Gig Gab.

How does your band approach rehearsing difficult music? We all know the difference between practice and rehearsal, but some rehearsal is (way) harder than others. Listen as Paul and Dave talk through their thoughts — and examples — of getting through the tough stuff. That’s not all, though! Conversations around bookings, rate […] The post Dissecting Difficult Music — Gig Gab 324 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Recent years have brought about opportunities for reinvention in a lot of ways, including musical! Have you done anything different since you’ve been able to get back out there and start playing? Listen as Paul and Dave answer that question this week. Then listen as your two favorite weekend warriors […] The post Always Be Performing…Uniquely – Gig Gab 323 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Productivity is often the result of well-applied focus and discipline. How do you make this work for your band? And… what about a lack of either or both of those? Listen as Paul and Dave talk about — and show a shining example of — both of these things (or is […] The post Focus and Discipline — Gig Gab 322 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Much has been said over the years about keeping a band together, and this week your two favorite weekend warriors say even more. Is it helpful? Only you can decide! That’s not all, though, Dave played two gigs this weekend with some significant anomalies, and he talks through making this […] The post Band Leadership Styles — Gig Gab 321 appeared first on Gig Gab.

When your band rehearses, what’s the expectation of everyone coming in? Is there a minimum bar to hit, or a high bar to beat? Listen as Paul and Dave talk through their experiences with band rehearsals over the years. But that’s not all… Gear Gab is never far away, and […] The post Gear Gab, Rehearsal Structure, and More — Gig Gab 320 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Today your two favorite weekend warriors turn their attention to efficiency and how you can make your band’s setup process happen faster, and with more consistent results. Paul had a recent gig which highlighted this for him, but I’m sure we’ve all been there, right? Do you remember? Ba Dee […] The post Turning Up Your Band’s Efficiency — Gig Gab 319 appeared first on Gig Gab.

While you’re playing…how do you define success? Is it seeing people dancing? singing? paying you money? What are the metrics you use? Hear your two favorite weekend warriors share some of their own success stories from this weekend’s gigs. Then it’s time to talk about a few logistical issues with […] The post What is a Successful Gig? — Gig Gab 318 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Do you ever instruct your audience on how to enjoy your music? Do you instruct them to do anything else? The reality is that we all instruct our audiences in some ways, but the question is… how do we do it? Listen to Paul and Dave discuss a few scenarios, […] The post Do You Instruct Your Audience? — Gig Gab 317 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Working with different sound teams can always be a struggle, even when they’re the best in the business. How do you communicate with them? How do you know they’re listening? How do you convey your point without being annoying? These are just some of the questions that come up as […] The post Your Band Needs a Brown M&M Clause — Gig Gab 316 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Have you ever stopped to think about how “the crowd” perceives your band’s image vs. how you perceive yourselves? It’s an interesting exercise, and sometimes it’s thrust upon you. Listen as Paul and Dave talk through their experiences with this. Dave had to dig into the backup-bin while his IEMs […] The post What’s Your Band’s Image? – Gig Gab 315 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Let’s go back five years together, shall we? Gig Gab was just a year old, and we all were just finding our footing here together. We had the pleasure of having Jan Hammer join us for a conversation in Gig Gab 68, and with both Paul and Dave out for […] The post Jan Hammer Talks Mahavishnu, Emerson, Hendrix, Jaco … and Getting the JuJu Happening! — Gig Gab 68 Redux appeared first on Gig Gab.

One of the reasons we all take the stage is in search of those moments where the band is just firing on all cylinders and the energy is flowing perfectly. At least that’s what Paul tells Dave this week, and Dave agrees! Listen as your two favorite weekend warriors talk […] The post Firing On All Musical Cylinders — Gig Gab 314 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Being a performer often means you get to be an invisible spectator… of the crowd who is watching you! Listen as Paul and Dave share some stories (new and old!) about what they’ve watched people do from the Working Musicians’ side of the fourth wall. Then it’s time to negotiate. […] The post People Behaving Like People — Gig Gab 313 appeared first on Gig Gab.