Gig Gab - The Working Musicians' Podcast

How competitive are you when it comes to booking gigs? When another band gets a gig you want (or used to have), how does that land for you? Listen as Paul and Dave talk through their thoughts on this. Traveling around the country (and the world) as your two favorite […] The post No Drama The Day of The Gig — Gig Gab 371 appeared first on Gig Gab.

If you could go back in time and give advice to your band, what would it be? Listen as your two favorite weekend warriors talk through a lot of your thoughts and answers to this question, and they share some of their own, too. But first, Dave saw a band […] The post Play Dive Bars! — Gig Gab 370 appeared first on Gig Gab.

It’s winter…how is your band’s momentum doing? Are you making yourself seem active even if you aren’t? Listen as Paul and Dave talk through this concept and share some ideas they have about keeping your band active even if you aren’t playing quite as many gigs as usual. Then your […] The post Don’t Be That Guy — Gig Gab 369 appeared first on Gig Gab.

How do you figure out what each harmony line (or guitar line, or drum part) is in songs you’re learning? Listen as Paul and Dave share their processes — and a new app! — for doing exactly this. First, though, your two favorite weekend warriors go through their recent gigs — and cancelations […] The post Dissecting Songs — Gig Gab 368 appeared first on Gig Gab.

“If you’re going to do something that affects other people, be a good dude and talk to them about it.” These wise words from Paul Kent shape today’s discussion. Listen as he and Dave talk through various forms of musician etiquette, both on-stage and off. Plus, some tips about both […] The post The Etiquette of Music — Gig Gab 367 appeared first on Gig Gab.

It turns out it might be worth taking a minute to stop and think about how you discover new music (and new shows) to gain some insight into how your fans might do the same. Paul and Dave go through this exercise together and share some of the revelations they’ve […] The post Discovering Music In Today’s World — Gig Gab 366 appeared first on Gig Gab.

You know how there’s that difference between knowing a song on paper and knowing it in your lizard brain? That can make a big difference in terms of how things go in the mayhem that we call gigs! Listen as Dave and Paul talk through this from a few different […] The post Barn Burners, Door Splits, and Sunday Gigs — Gig Gab 365 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Triple threat sound, video, and lighting engineer Davis Thurston joins your two favorite weekend warriors this week to discuss tips, techniques, and overall vision for how he does what he does. Listen as Davis, Paul, and Dave chat through that which it takes in Front Of House to make your […] The post Every Band Needs a Davis — Gig Gab 364 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Ain’t it great when you’re on stage and you just know everything’s going right? Your two favorite weekend warriors do after this weekend. They both had some stellar shows…and believe it or not Paul refrained from saying, “butter.” (sorry Gig Gab Bingo players!). Listen as he and Dave share their […] The post Playing In Tune (With The Universe) — Gig Gab Podcast 363 appeared first on Gig Gab.

How did you find your current band(s)? What advice would you give to someone looking to find a new band? Listen as Paul and Dave answer that question for listener Russ…and then send in your own thoughts to feedback@giggabpodcast.com. That’s not all, though…listen as your two favorite weekend warriors discuss […] The post Sorting Your Musical Life — Gig Gab 362 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Ever found yourself being asked to agree to a pay-to-play scenario? Ever wondered what to do next with your band? Your two favorite weekend warriors sure have! Listen as Paul and Dave share their experiences of learning these lessons as well as their advice for how to deal with them. […] The post Lessons Learned — Gig Gab 361 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Another Gig Gab, another rant about Facebook. But you’ll have to listen for a bit to hear which one of your two favorite weekend warriors rants the most! Mostly this episode is about communication. How do you communicate with booking agents? How do you communicate with your bandmates? And while […] The post Compromise, Collaboration, and Communication — Gig Gab 360 appeared first on Gig Gab.

If you play covers, what songs have you found don’t work at all for your band? Is there anything they share in common? This week, Paul and Dave talk through some of their “favorites” in this regard and dissect why this might be the case. First, though, it’s Gig Gab […] The post First You Applaud, *Then* We Play The Next Song — Gig Gab 359 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Some gigs are totally relaxing…and others you can feel the high stakes before you even arrive. Interesting thing: the definition of a high-stakes gig can mean different things to different people, and your two favorite weekend warriors have completely different approaches here. Listen as Paul and Dave share their thoughts […] The post High-Stakes Stage Roulette — Gig Gab 358 appeared first on Gig Gab.

When forming your band, how picky are you? What criteria do you use to select bandmates? Do you prioritize talent or convenience? Listen as Dave and Paul dig in and share their thoughts about all this…with some select stories to highlight the realities of it all. Then…a Gig Gab challenge: […] The post Wait ‘Til You Hear OUR Version of The Chicken Dance! — Gig Gab 357 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Quiet crowds can be intimidating AF! How do you navigate that? How do you perform? Paul and Dave talk through some of their strategies when faced with this. Then listen as your two favorite weekend warriors talk about bands navigating members who are in multiple projects. There’s no one right […] The post Overcoming the First-Set Blues — Gig Gab 356 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Every musician is a small business owner, and this week we have Shannon Jean from Business Brain join us for a crossover episode to dive into how we can better use our business brains in our musical endeavors! Press play to learn…and always be performing! 00:00:00 Business Brain – The […] The post The Business of Music — Gig Gab 355 appeared first on Gig Gab.

We’ve talked about collaboration on the show before, but the question remains: how collaborative is your band? If someone has an idea for a part for you to play, how does that land? How does it work in reverse? Listen as Paul and Dave talk through the various ways that […] The post Beware Backline Roulette — Gig Gab 354 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Have you ever stopped to think about what it would take to put together a Tribute band? Bruce Hilton of “Being Petty” did, and with the right people, the right ideas, and a lot of intention it can work out amazingly well. Listen as Bruce shares his ideas and gives […] The post Beyond The Music with Tribute Band “Tom Petty” Bruce Hilton – Gig Gab 353 appeared first on Gig Gab.

It’s not always easy to Always Be Performing, and yet that’s exactly our job as performers, isn’t it? Listen as Paul and Dave each share some recent lessons—from both sides of the stage—about how to best ensure you keep that performance going. Also this week is finding your bands own […] The post The Jeanine Syndrome — Gig Gab 352 appeared first on Gig Gab.