Unorganized Rehearsals

[glocke]

Im slowly getting back into playing after taking a 6 month+ hiatus...Im pleased to say that Im practicing on my own for several hours a day, and back to enjoying it after a couple of bands that crashed and burned left me hating on music for a little bit.  
 
I've re-connected with musicians from a band I was in 2-3 years ago.  I knew going into it sort of what to expect, these guys are all excellent players but have their own way of doing things (this is a nice way of saying they are really kind of burned out ).  Its been 2-3 months of 6 hour rehearsals every other week, and we don't even have what I would consider to be one solid sets worth of material.    This past week the drummer (who hosts rehearsals at his house), sent a list of 20 tunes out that seem to be surfacing from practice to practice, and suggested that we focus on these...I show up this week with my parts learned to almost off the tunes, but the lead guitar player apparently had other ideas as he started calling out tunes that I had never heard or played before and writing what he thought were the correct changes on a white board (turns out the changes were not correct for alot of them).
 
End result is that we spent 6 hours playing 5 tunes that no except the lead guitar player was familiar with, and there is still not a set goal as to ultimately what songs to work on..To top it off even tunes that they should know by now they are making mistakes on (missing cues, repeating verses, etc).
 
In most bands in the past that I've been in during the past ten years there was some consistency from week to week as to what is being worked on, and also communication by phone or email prior to rehearsal day as to what we should work on..but in this case there isn't anything.  
 
I'm really just venting more than anything....but is what am I looking for (organization, consistency, etc) really that much to ask for

[richbass939]

Sorry that your current band isn't turning out better.  The straight answer to your question is, No. That's not too much to ask.  Also, vent away.  The club is a safe place to do it.
I guess I've been lucky in that my band experiences have never been such a waste of time.  Sometimes things haven't worked out well but it was always for other reasons.  Rehearsals were usually fairly productive.  
Sorry you're going through this.  I hate to see people get inspired about playing again and then have such a sour experience with it.
Rich

[glocke]

I hate to see people get inspired about playing again and then have such a sour experience with it
 
Well, I learned alot over the past year....The most important thing being to play for yourself first...As much as I would like to once again be a part of cohesive band that plays out, haves fun, and makes progress, Id be just as happy staying home and playing for myself.

[richbass939]

To me the having fun part is critical.  The money isn't bad when we play a gig but this isn't about the money anymore.  There isn't any amount of money (that's likely to happen)that would make up for a really bad band experience.  Once again, I'm having a good time playing.  
I've gone through the great hobby - awful job - great hobby cycle and I love it this way.
I have thought about what I said about the productive rehearsals.  A recent band broke up with some bad feelings between a couple of the members.  One thing that came out was that the drummer spent a lot of down time waiting for us to work out parts.  Guitar complained that the drummer was usually late for practice.  Drummer replied that he spent a lot of time sitting there.  Wake me up when you guys have figured out whether it goes from E to A or goes from E to B then to A.  It was mainly one guy who didn't really know the changes.  I never noticed because I was getting something out of the discussion.  However, I wasn't very aware of what was going on with the drummer.  This isn't what broke us up but I'm sure it was a contributing factor.  Once again, I need to look outside the little circle around me.
Rich

[bsee]

I'm not there, but I would think you're worrying in the wrong direction. Members of a band need to start with the same goal to move in the same direction. What's your band goal? Is it to just get together and have some fun, or are you hoping to gig? If other members just want to jam for fun, then this isn't too far from normal. I would definitely expect communication to know the plan for the following week.
 
If you're hoping to gig, one of the best ways to get a slow-moving band to gel is to get a booking. Even if you start with an hour at a friend's party, it can be enough to create some focus. Usually, people in the band have some connections to people in other local working bands. Sometimes that can create an opportunity to play an opening set somewhere.
 
It sounds like maybe you and the drummer are on the same page. With a six hour rehearsal, I would think you could have some agreement on classifying songs. Some songs are in, and you can start the week by running through a set of them. If we're talking about 20, that's something around two hours? After that, go into free-form to work on new stuff. Also, with sessions that long, you should be able to give everyone a chance to call tunes for a part of the day.  
 
One thing I can almost guarantee is that things won't get better without action. There's risk in acting, but it sounds like you need something to change.
 
-bob

[terryc]

Rehearsals...this is the way we handle it, songs are chosen, learn them at home in the agreed key, the internet just about has every midi file/chord chart. Go to rehearsal(max three hours, after that I get p****d off). Do the songs at the next gig. End.
If the band members haven't done their homework BEFORE getting to the rehearsal then it is just a waste of time for everyone. Six hours to play five tunes is overkill, if we don't get it right in three goes then there is something wrong.
I have been in bands like that and in the end I leave as I cannot be bothered with that mentality anymore as we all put up with it in the early days of our 'musical career' 'cos we were excited and naive but not as your experience progresses, it is a waste of personal time which we seem to have very little these days.

[glocke]

Since I started playing with these guys I dont think we ever discussed what the overall goal of the band is...It could very well be that these guys just want to meet up for fun and to make some noise, but I just assumed it was a step above that, and that at the very least we would work on getting a couple of sets of material together to nail and go out and get some gigs...
 
Terry, what you described is the situation I am used to the most.  People doing homework at HOME, showing up at rehearsal (2-3 hours max) to run through the tunes and than play out.
 
These guys are cool guys to hang out with, but as Im coming to discover (or rediscover) they are not the best people to be in a band with.  
 
Unfortunately where I am located there just are not that many opportunities to play music unless I want to do an even further drive, which I may have to end up doing.
 
As much as I want to play some tunes with others, not being organized at all and having my time wasted by learning tunes that wont get played again is something that just really drives me up a wall....

[pauldo]

Gregory -
I recall you posting awhile back with your frustrations - I believe I sent an 'off-line' e-mail to you about it. I TOTALLY feel your pain - in fact reading your original post is like reading a chapter out of my life from a year and a half ago.
 
You are not alone in your frustrations.
 
For fun, For money, both require a level of professionalism of the groups individual members. Sorry that you are not finding that now.

[lbpesq]

If we're talking about 20 [songs], that's something around two hours?
 
Bob:  You've obviously never been in a Grateful Dead band!  hehehehe
 
Personally, I think it would be quite difficult to get serious when the band only rehearses twice a month.  In my experience, the band needs to play together at least once a week to make any real progress.  In my band, (which tries to play weekly but life does seem to get in the way sometimes), we have found the internet to be very helpful, as much of the necessary discussion can be done via email prior to rehearsal.
 
Remember, of course, we are all dealing with musicians!
 
Bill, tgo

[terryc]

Bill..oh damn I forgot that we are musicians...the worst people on the planet to get on with LOL.
I still think 6 hours is a bloody long time..what are they doing?,Jaco/Weather Report/Return To Forever stuff??

[glocke]

Bill..oh damn I forgot that we are musicians...the worst people on the planet to get on with LOL.  
I still think 6 hours is a bloody long time..what are they doing?,Jaco/Weather Report/Return To Forever stuff??
 
6 hours is an ungodly amount of time for me to spend rehearsing,add on a 1 hour drive and thats 8 hours out my day.   That is one reason why I did not agree to weekly rehearsals with these guys.  Id say out of those six hours there is really only three hours of playing, the rest of the time is those guys hanging out and BSing.   Im not opposed to the odd 20-30 minute break, but the routine these guys have is to play for an hour, BS for an hour, play for an hour, BS for an hour, etc..
 
Now, if these were focused, organized rehearsals that consisted of three hours straight of playing, I would not mind at all doing weekly rehearsals.
 
As for the material, its a mix of Grateful Dead songs, classic rock and some originals.  The part that is scary is that alot of these tunes are really pretty basic no brainers, and I know they have played them before so should know them inside and out, yet they don't.  
 
It's all very irritating for me as when it comes to music and rehearsals I do like to have some organization, structure and game plan...Im not even opposed to people introducing a tune that I have never played or never heard once in awhile at rehearsal, but to introduce 5-6 songs that I have never heard before, they were unable to provide copies of, and were not even sure of the changes themselves is just utter nonsense.
 
I guess the bottom line is that they look at this as more of a bowling night/get away from the wife/party night than anything....kind of a bummer..

[lbpesq]

If they are doing Dead music, six hours might be just enough time for three sets and one good Dark  Star!  lol   Otherwise, I agree that around 2.5 - 3 hours seems to be a good window.  I think the more important thing is the regularity as opposed to the length of rehearsals, though.  When I give advise to people just learning an instrument, I always stress that the key is to play every day.  Pick up a guitar for 20-30 every single day and you'll get further faster than if you play for two hours, take three days off, play for three hours, take two days off, etc.
 
And I wouldn't necessarily characterize us musicians as the worst people to get along with.  It's just that, as a group, we do tend to reside on the flaky side.  I once heard someone define a professional musician as someone who couldn't get their s**t together enough to find another way to make a living!  (All apologies to the pros on this forum who, obviously, represent the exception that proves the rule!)  
 
Bill, tgo

[bsee]

Odd double post with mega delay removed...
 
Bill, I have done the Dead thing, but I figured the need for long rehearsals ruled that out. The Dead thing always seemed to me more to involve a bunch of capable musicians working inside a loose framework, listening to what was going on, and reacting accordingly. That can take a lot of time playing together, but I wouldn't be too worried about learning parts.
 
Yes, 20 Dead-style tunes can easily make a gig. My current band can do 12-13 tunes in a tight 45 minute set with maybe 3-4 breaks of under a minute each and the rest of the tunes transitioning into each other. Sort of the opposite end of the spectrum. I may have forgotten what it was like to play a four minute song for fifteen minutes before turning it into something else.
 
(Message edited by bsee on February 20, 2011)

[bigredbass]

I think 'organized rehearsals' are as big an oxymoron as 'jumbo shrimp'.  Though now that I think about it, I CAN find jumbo shrimp anytime I wish . . . .
 
This is the type of thing that ended up on the Why I will Never Play Gigs Again list.  Back when I did subject myself to playing in public with a revolving list of druggies, alcoholics, no-talent dead-eared egomaniacs, and other assorted hunman anomalies not yet sorted out by Darwinian procession (not that I'm bitter about any of this, mind you . . . . !), I always preferred to replace someone in an existing, gigging band.  That way, I didn't have to sit thru the endless rehearsals that went nowhere more often than not.  I'd generally already know the tunes, then I'd only have to learn the particular band's idiosyncracies (which often took way longer than learning the tunes).  
 
I will never play out again, and I can't imagine I've just run out of inspiration and/or patience, but I just have.  I used to say that 'if you were reasonably well adjusted, happily married or monogamous, and chemically free, just go do something else, you just won't fit in' when asked about playing out.  I've yet to find a reason to go against my own advice for me.  
 
For those of you where this DOESN'T apply, thank your lucky stars, and my hat's off to you.  
 
J o e y

[slawie]

It is unfortunate to hear of your dilemna. I found that I am a little to dominating when it comes to rehearsals so tend to call the shots. My time is too precious to waste not getting the job done so at rehearsals I take charge. It is after all the bass players job of setting the rhythm.
 
Most times I have found that the other players in the band appreciate a set routine when it comes to rehearsing and we follow that routine to the letter.
1. Rehearse the songs that were posted the week before individually until it is played the whole way through.
2. Rehearse the song transitions i.e. end of a song then count into or start the next with no breaks (unless the lead singer wants to do his pick-up lines).
3. Finally play a whole set from start to finish as would be played on the night.
 
Formalising a rehearsal structure is all about time management and becoming effective performers so that the punters are happy with what they hear and see.
 
I believe that if you lay down the law and demand a proper rehearsal more often than not you will weed out the wankers.
 
slawie