Playing in a band for a long period can sometimes feel like you get stuck in a loop of routine and repetition without really feeling any real progress. This may lead to the loss of passion and boredom. Today we will look at the key elements to have in place so that all members feel valued, challenged, socially integrated and goal driven to make your band experience unique.
Bring in a New Member
Sometimes the right thing a band needs to spice things up is to bring in a unique talent to add another level of musicality to the sound. This will bring a different level of harmonising and extra creativity helps to produce a better and improved sound quality.
This is also a nice idea if you are just keen to feature another musician on one of your songs. The variety is interesting to the audience and working together as musicians to make better music for our bands is what we aspire to do.
This would also change the social constellation of the band once the new member is integrated. That means that cliques could change and there are new people to get to know and stories to tell. Experience is created by learning from one another.
Suggest an Interesting Cover Outside of Your Genre
Performing music that your audience might feel is unexpected would awaken a feeling of unpredictability in the setlist. We sometimes get stuck in the same genre of motion. We are careful about the covers we play just so that they fit into our genre of music.
I would definitely motivate you to practice and perform tracks also outside of your genre. In your audience, there will be fans of cross-genre music and the element of surprise will elevate your sound to the next level. Using this tactic will increase your audience size as well.
If you are currently shaking up your setlist, don’t miss the article I wrote about How to Make a Good Setlist. It helps you to choose the right songs at the right time during your set.
Search for a Second Musical Project
I would not suggest quitting and moving on from an established band, but you should definitely make sure that you as a musician get stimulated and developed holistically. That would mean that a side project could help you to balance it out.
Remember to discuss this with your bandmates and let them know where your priorities lie.
If you are keen on a second project, it could also be to just expand your own skills like doing a course in sound engineering, graphic designing or networking with other like-minded people.
This post was written and published by De Wet from startingmyband.com on 25.06.2023. The content was stolen from me if this blog post is seen anywhere else.
Organise a Get Together Outside of Music
Gelling in the band room and having a good social relationship is just as important. That’s why I would always suggest having some time together outside of music as well.
Spend a day just hanging out together without instruments. If this is something that you might be looking for, then don’t miss the article that I wrote about 4 Ways to Build Chemistry With Your Bandmates. It might help to guide you to think with an open mind about it, and hopefully have the solutions that you seek.
Take a Break as a Band
When things get too stuck in the same routine, suggest for the band take a short break from music. This could be just for 2 weeks to 2 months. It’s just really important to get some air and space between you and the band so that you can come back feeling ready and refreshed.
By taking a break, we allow ourselves to regenerate our creative side again. You can see it as “taking a step back, helps to excel many more steps forward”.
Venture out of Your Comfort Zone
Feeling bored means that you are stuck in a comfort zone and perhaps struggling to get out of it. Making different choices and getting out of this comfort zone takes guts and confidence. But I would really recommend that you try to do things differently than usual.
Try to arrange gigs at different venues, try out a new instrument or a new routine of band practice. Try to organise a tour together and do something outside of the norm.
One thing that worked well for me was to perform with different bands. This way you network constantly and build contacts in the industry. It’s like your band makes its own colleagues along the way. If this is you currently, then have a look at the article I wrote about Landing an Opening Gig for a Successful Band. This might just be the change you need.
Work on Having a Unique Image
If you feel bored with yourself, you will look bored to others and definitely also on stage. Therefore it is ideal to have an image that suits you, your band and your music. Brainstorm about what type of image suits you and what changes you can implement as a band to stand out above the rest.
Having a cool image is a key component to becoming successful. You stay stuck in the minds of the public and that makes them curious to listen to your music. It’s like a self-selling promotion. If you would be looking for some tips about Your Image as an Artist, look no further. I have an interesting point of view that you definitely will benefit from.
The key takeaway here is that boredom is created by repeating a practised action without challenging yourself to get out of your comfort zone. Dare yourself to step over the line and do things a bit differently next time. You can’t fail if you don’t try. And if you fail to try, you can learn from it and do things better afterwards. No preaching, just motivating 😉
On to the next one champ!