Band Etiquette - Guitarists

Folks,
Lets share some manners that EVERY guitarist in a band, should take note of... and some manners on how every guitar should be handled.

Share your experieneces too, your horror stories of the usually egotistical and (most) showy member of your band!

Lemme start first...

GUITARISTS
1) WATCH the volume - I believe its in the best interest of the band when
a) Soundman asks the guitarist to raise his vol (never piss the sound man off)
b) Band mates don't glare at guitarist when he goes wild with his riffs
c) Solo/Vol boosts should not be OVER THE TOP.
( Of course, the converse is true, the rest of the band has to watch their volume, always better to lower than to raise, and raise and raise; treasure your ears!)

2) MUST know how & when to HOLD BACK
When the singer sings, you don't "sing"! Use your tone control to achieve this... thats what its for! Works wonders when you are playing clean. Or drop your volume a notch... works wonders with a tube amp or pedals that manifest excellent touch responsiveness. (Trying doing that with a metalzone)

Of course, if you are in a metal band, the effect is much less pronounced, might not be so feasible, hence the need to know how to control your volume even more.



Well... I dunno... its late, tired... share some know-how lah hor?

Don't add in too many guitar fills! :lolunless u really know what you are doing)

Try not to play lengthy solos that goes on and on and on.

keep them short and sweet. Yes, sometimes less is more.

Hmm.

Volume is definitely a major gripe for me and my previous experiences.

Another thing is 'solo courtesy', especially when a band has 2 guitarist who are equally able to wing out a solo. Kindly have solo courtesy and give way when the other party wishes to have a solo.

I also find that some guitarists have a lack of knowing what kind of efx to use, and as such use stuff which might not be suitable to that song. SOme people tend to overload their sound with excessive compression, chorus, delay etc.

just my 2 c.

lol im gonna sound like a manual but anyway here goes nothing...

adjust gain and distortion levels before performance to prevent excessive volume depth.

in other words, standardise your setup and make sure everythings in place before going live/jamming/wherever to prevent any screw-ups (it still happens once in a while to me)

try not to lay your cables all over the stage. its best laying them to the side prefably near your amp and effects to prevent any tripping over. i almost did at a school gig.

be aware of your surroundings and those performing with you. IMHO timing and coordination is important so pay close attention to your drummer, bassist and vocalist always.

and lastly....be yourself and have a good time!

Number One.

Practice your pitching.

Nothing turns me off more than a crappy half-assed bend and vibratos. Everyone in the band is in tune and you'll ruin the whole balance by bending or doing a vibrato out of key. If you can't do it, practice until you get it. The guitar is probably one of the few instruments out there on which you can bend notes. It's to me what makes the guitar so special.

Honestly to me the most important thing for a guitarist is his/her vibrato/bending technique. No one is gonna remember your shredding/"million" notes per second solo. Although sometimes it's nice But most folks, the laymen out there, remember melodies, soul/spirit and the overall tightness of the band and feeling they get walking away from a performance.

Number Two.

If you're gonna solo, do so tastefully. Remember that as a guitarist, you're role is a supportive one. Backing up the band is important. When you're soloing its your turn to shine. And do so tastefully, plan your solos before hand if you're not much of an improviser. It doesn't have to be technical, or fast or whatever. Sometimes playing slowly and soulfully is the best way to win your audience or compliment a song.

Number Three.

Don't kid yourself. If you suck, you suck. Big deal it's not the end of the world, there will always be another tomorrow to prove yourself So be it, everyone has their bad days. Take these experiences and work on your playing. It'll only work out good for you in the end. Practice practice practice. And more practice. Work on your weaknesses, don't try to run before you can even walk.

Number Four.

Practice on your own is important, but more important is getting things tight with your band. Work together as a team. Don't just think of your own parts per se, contribute to the rest of the workings of the band. Also it's very important to get the feel of handling an amp at gig levels. I've seen guys on stage who hesistate while playing because they are not used to the amp's volume. A result of playing way too much in the comfort of the bedroom.

Number Five.

This is what IMHO I feel is the most important facet of band manners. Watch your volume. Like I mentioned before...nobody is there to see you, unless of course you're a solo artist. Or your girlfriend is out in the audience. 8)

People are there to see the band. And most importantly the layman out there wants to hear the singer. I've been to gigs and seen singers screaming at the top of their lungs to compete for volume with the guitarist. Very sad.

Folks I hope I didn't sound harsh.

If anyone's interested my band Crossover will be playing at Orchard Cineliesure on Saturday at 12 noon. I do hope I examplify what I just mentioned as to what are the prerequisites for an well mannered guitarist

Excellent sharing going on... I hope this thread will become a reference point for budding guitarists out there. Its most often the guitarist who is the LOUDEST and most OVER THE TOP.

I just remembered.

If possible. No. Actually, ALL THE TIME.

TUNE IN SILENCE.

It is extremely amature, unprofessional, irritating to have guitar sounding off open strings and keyboards helping, or guitar & bass tuning up together. Its an instant turn off, for me at least.

Tune BEFORE going up.

Tune WHEN up there.

Oh yeah, intonate your guitar too... SoulJah has a point with vibrato + bending, but nothing much will help you if you are not intonated properly, especially bassists.

cut off the bloody excess strings behind your tuners so the singer doesnt get speared in the eye when flailing about like a fool onstage.

and when you do see the moron flailing around keep your headstock out of the way.

personal experience *ahem*

Haha Shredcow, it's not bad when they tune on stage.

Imagine when the band steps up the stage and starts setting up, the guitarist plugs in quickly and rushes to play all the solos and riffs and licks for his personal "soundcheck". And he keeps wanking and wanking even when the rest of the band is trying to find their own balance.

Tt's one major turn off for me, no matter how well u play.

Plug in, HELP the rest of the band to setup when ur done, and remain silent till everyone's finished, then do a soundcheck TOGETHER!

for me, keep the damned instruments in tune. i hate out of tune guitars and basses! :lol:

and another thing, is what chang said. when the singer is speaking or introducing, the other band members play their own stuff, LOUDLY, super irritating and annoying. cant hear the singer and wat he's saying. they should keep quiet first, then wait for a soundcheck.

Wear shirt!

I hate topless, let alone nude guitarist. Exception if you are Avril Lavigne :lol:

popeye said:

Wear shirt!

I hate topless, let alone nude guitarist. Exception if you are Avril Lavigne :lol:

Click to expand...

DUDE!
What a great start to the morning! :lol:

In SOT, it's considered good manners for both lead & bass guitarists not to FART while on stage - especially the silent killer types :evil:

nice tips souljah, i'll remember them for future reference.

Get ur gear serviceable... especially string players !!
Please learn to tune and do it fast ...and poorly set guitar will drive nuts!!
Get ur pedal set up (if any) serviceable ....
Learn to use your pedal ...especially modulation / pitch shifters. Its annoying and a major put-off ....shows your ignorance!!
Learn, practice your part and do it well...don't be half baked and expect some happy accidents :roll: .....remember its a great oppertuanity to play in band ....millions of kids don't !!!

If its a fun Jam, everything goes-Its a time to be creative but have some restraint for the other band members to be able to like-wise "let it out"

If its a Jam for a gig preparation, Hold back on your improvisation solos, just work on the band being tight.

If during a gig, especially a paid gig, leave the volume and EQing of the band mix to the trusted soundman-he can hear much better from where he is, and listen to his advice when he tells who to turn down, up, or whatever.Don't argue just do it.

Just make sure your amp volume is comfortable for yourself(as in you are able to hear yourself), and leave the rest to the monitor speakers on the floor for the drummer and bass and singer as their reference markers to hear the cues involved in the song.

Sometimes I even turn my amp away from the audience, so that I won't mess with the speakers volume mix...(my amps are always mic-ed by the way)

For me, the most important aspect of the band is the singer.Support him, not compete.Make sure he/she is comfortable.Some bands can have killer guitarists and instrumentalists but if the singer is struggling with diction and unable to convey the emotion or message of the song, its really pointless.

During fun jams at pubs, where there are impromtu jammers, its hard to be aware of how loud you really are.(its all heineken's fault lah )

Fun jams in pubs should be relaxed, and you should make sure that every jammer in the band is being showcased, not only your guitar skills and shred or whatever, even the 55 year old off-time bassist should be having his fun and deserves to be heard.Hold back and smile and have fun.

20 cent

bring your own basic accesories.

1. Picks... yes PICKS! if you play guitar, you don't own only ONE pick to display as your family heirloom at home.
2. Spare strings
3. String winder
4. String cutter
5. Tuner
6. Extra cables
7. Nail clipper

Never fails to make me boil each time my ex bandmates ask for the above.

Don't let your scrooging ways piss others off.

for me its a personal turn off, when the band not only starts talking about how they wrote and the song and how it means to them but also starts cracking stupid jokes that no one laughs at and only the guy who is trying to communicate is laughing.

on the other hand.

always have a back up plan if something should go wrong during the set.
example, during the set your guitarist's strings burst and he doesnt have a extra guitar so he has to borrow or worst still get in a new string,
the vocalist probably has to keep the audience 'into' the band and not allow them to turn off.

also for the vocalist, if you cant scream please dont.= instant shut down

JAMES!!!
We need to sticky this.

Snuff nice points man!