I take sh*t from bands.......

[logic]

Ok, I’m so ****ing mad…@!!!


So I meet this band in the studio, I help them record and make them sound good ect….
Then the lead singer/songwriter and me become friends, so I end up agreeing to run sound for them on a few club dates. OOPS!!! Ever since I started the bass player who owns the P.A has been up my ass, he treats me like a moron and talks down to me over the mic. I have been dealing with it, but I told the singer and he has been in between trying to keep the peace.

Well tonight we are playing a gig in a very shitty sounding room, but every thing was going smooth, good monitor mix, good sound from the mains ect…People are loving the show, no complaints.

Well at the intermission the Keyboard player (who also sings) stepped off the stage and proceeded to look at his vocal channel on the board and freak out about the eq settings. Quote:” What the hell kind of settings are those, **** it I’m not singing” What???

So I spend five minuets explaing my reason for setting the eq the way I did and saying It sounds good out front. Then he proceeded to get the lead singer and the bass player to look at my “settings” oohh!!! So I am, taking mass shit at this point for some reason??? Did I forget to mention that the band is not paying me directly, I usually get paid out of the lead singers share of the cash. I did the most un professional thing I have ever done I told them to **** OFF and left the gig.
fuuck fuuck fuuck fuuck fuuck fuuck

[ProFool]

Don't let them dfegad on you, if they do show them a smile.
You are the one who is saving there ass right?
Making them sound good so that the audience is happy?

Iv been doing this for years as an extra income mostly for bands with there own set-up.
If they giving me a hard time about what they want to pay me I don't take the gig.
I ask them what they want and that is mostly a good sounding gig and mix, then Ill ask if they know something about mixing !!! Most cases they don't, so if they want me to go ahead with them they have to see me as there extra band member & pay me the same as each member get.
So a 5 piece band becomes a 6 piece band & tell em to charge that extra to the client who is booking the band, let them bring up there rate.
In no time they will accept you as member of the group & treat you fair.
But remember you still have a delicate job to do, if the sound suck its you're ass.
So work out a cue list, go a couple times to their rehearsals, take note's. calculate the tempo's and be creatif with the delay's youre using.
Bring with you some outboard if the band is missing some, or if they have enough still take some of you're favourite own fx - comp - limit -verb with you.
Amaze them with what you can, show them your magic.
I always try to make it as much interesting sounding for myself as for the audience. See them as you're audience, watch there reactions when you tease the fx, play with it, giving them an illusion, Mix like mixing a record, do it for yourself to employ your technique and experience.
Since the day iv began working that way the bands I hook up with don't ask me anything anymore about what they want or how it should sound & etc. except the usual monitor up & down.
They have to trust you blindly & concentrate on there own job, playing a good gig.

Have fun,

[shineboxNJ]

i feel your pain....
I had a singer kick over a mic stand and crack a 414's casing basically in half.... who did he blame it on, the poor old assistant engineer.... me! Now this was after hours of listening to him talk to me like i was an idiot. For example, we had a dead input on the mic board in the live room. As i was troubleshooting he was calling out ridiculous sarcastic suggestions on how to fix it (did you plug it in, why dont you try to turn it on)... very sarcastic tone.

I didnt get fired for the mic breaking, but they had to let me go after i threatened to shove an sm-57 up his ass.

hell, the studio blew anyways... and the singer... last i heard he was in rehab fighting a nasty heroine addiction.

oh well, sh*t happens