Gig Gab - The Working Musicians' Podcast

Have you ever had it where all the clubs you’re playing suddenly no longer want bands anymore? If you haven’t, you will. Thankfully, Paul and Dave have each been through it, and have some words of wisdom to share on the subject. First though, let’s talk about a few scenarios […] The post (Re-)Creating Your Base of Club Gigs – Gig Gab 226 appeared first on Gig Gab.

When someone brings a new song in for your band to learn, what’s the process? What does it take for it to be a success? What does it take for your whole band to buy-in to the process? Listen as Paul and Dave share their successes–and failures–in this regard. They’ll […] The post Does Your Band Have Buy-In? – Gig Gab Podcast 225 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Contract riders have the stigma of being reserved for only the über-elite – and über-pompous – bands. The reality is, though, that riders can be very useful and helpful devices in ensuring not only a great performance, but a smoother gig-day experience for everyone. Listen as Paul and Dave talk through their favorite […] The post What’s in Your Rider? – Gig Gab 224 appeared first on Gig Gab.

If you were starting all over again with your band, what would you do and how would you do it? That’s the question Paul poses to Dave – and, by proxy, all of us – today. Listen as your two favorite weekend warriors talk through all of this and a […] The post What is Your Band’s Purpose? – Gig Gab Podcast 223 appeared first on Gig Gab.

How do you introduce new songs to your band’s setlist? This is a pretty loaded question, it turns out, and your two favorite weekend warriors chat through this. Seems it might even need some kind of intentional process, especially if you want new songs to enter your band’s top 10. […] The post The Final 45 – Gig Gab Podcast 222 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Are you in for a rollicking good time? Enjoying your summer, either playing in the streets or watching bands playing in the streets? That’s fun! Got a player who can’t stay in the pocket? What about when the bandleader isn’t up to snuff? How about when a festival doesn’t wanna […] The post Eff That – Gig Gab Podcast 221 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Sometimes you get to go on stage with a band of musicians with whom you’ve played many times before. Sometimes you get to go on stage with musicians you’ve never met! Both can be rewarding – and a little scary! – and it seems Paul and Dave’s bicoastal synchronicity has struck once […] The post Trusting Your Fellow Musicians – Gig Gab Podcast 220 appeared first on Gig Gab.

How do you define “great”? More importantly: do you and your bandmates share that definition? If not, is there someone in your band to whom you all defer on that topic? How do you make sure your band comes across “great” all the time? Paul and Dave think there’s another […] The post The Definition of Great – Gig Gab Podcast 219 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Wanna hear about some cool, new gear? Wanna learn a new twist on how to have your band wish someone a happy birthday? Wanna hear some geeky stuff about how Phish appears to time their sets? How about some ideas for new venues to ply your craft? Well, Paul and […] The post I Really Wanted “Tiny Dancer” – Gig Gab Podcast 218 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Need advice on using in-ears? Check! Want to learn how to play with a click? Check! How about managing all those wireless channels? Check! Paul and Dave have have all sorts of tips for you… and then a discussion (also tip-filled!) about requests and how to handle them. Don’t miss […] The post Request-O-Rama – Gig Gab Podcast 217 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Play long enough and you’ll lose a booking, it’s just how it goes. The questions are: how do you handle it? And what can you do to help keep it from happening in the first place? (Psst: sometimes you can’t!). That’s not all, though. Listener Kevin has some ideas about […] The post Lost a Gig? You’re Not The First – Gig Gab Podcast 216 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Where can you hear about Sweet Home Alabama, Sample In a Jar, Tower of Power and, yes, Teen Town in the same place? This week’s Gig Gab Podcast, of course! Plus, for those of you who aren’t coiling cables correctly – and that includes pretty much every one of you […] The post The Teen Town Edition – Gig Gab Podcast 215 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Your listener feedback this week brings Paul and Dave to some interesting places, first talking about the shortage of keyboard players, and wrapping up with a conversation about the glass ceiling for cover bands. But first, your two favorite weekend warriors got a chance to play together last week, so […] The post The Glass Ceiling for Cover Bands? – Gig Gab Podcast 214 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Do you analyze your performances after the fact? If so… how long do you wait? Paul and Dave discuss the relative merits of when this is helpful, and how. But first, a fight! Well, not really, but there’s a sternly-worded discussion to be had about sitting vs. standing at your […] The post Analyzing Your Performances – Gig Gab Podcast 213 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Real estate agents and musicians share a common truth: location matters. What’s your location like? What’s your scene like? Has it changed? Have you stopped recently and really evaluated what you’ve got around you? That’s what Paul and Dave do to start today’s show. Then it’s on to listener feedback, […] The post What’s Your Scene? – Gig Gab Podcast 212 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Is it a jam session if no music is played? What if music is discussed? Your two favorite weekend warriors say, “yes!” to these questions, and start off the episode with a jam session about setlists. Listen as Paul and Dave talk through a few of their recent setlist choices […] The post Shared Guilty Pleasures – Gig Gab Podcast 211 appeared first on Gig Gab.

When you find an episode that has great catchphrases like “Woodshedding The Breaks”, “Stay Humble and Hungry”, “One Note per Word”, and “The Martini Metric”, you know it’s gonna be good. Listen as Paul and Dave, your two favorite weekend warriors, have a verbal jam session in which they not […] The post The Martini Metric – Gig Gab Podcast 210 appeared first on Gig Gab.

Today, your feedback and emails send Paul and Dave down the musical wormhole to explore topics like reading music, dealing with sound reflections, and reacting to a crowd that’s not reacting to you. Listen to your two favorite weekend warriors discuss all this and more. Press play, listen, learn a […] The post Down the Musical Wormhole: Reflecting, Reacting, and Reading – Gig Gab Podcast 209 appeared first on Gig Gab.

This week finds your two favorite weekend warriors doing something they love: Digging into the mailbag! Listener Matt asks about using iPads on stage, which seems is always a hot-button topic. Eric’s curious about guitar amp simulators, Chris has a question about managing two guitars in a band, and Peter […] The post Gig Gab MailBag: Get Your Eyes off Your Pad – Gig Gab Podcast 208 appeared first on Gig Gab.

When things are good you don’t think about it, but when the feel of your instrument in your hands changes… nothing else matters. That goes for what you hear in your ears, too. So much of playing music is a visceral experience, and any distractions there can really take you […] The post The Value of The Singalong – Gig Gab Podcast 207 appeared first on Gig Gab.