Giving Your Band Some Uniqueness

It's important to know how to identify certain music genres, especially if you're the leader of your group. This helps you to be able to get songs to sound right; and for the creative band, it's a good way to get away from typical material and give way to experimentation. Knowing what the bass and drums are doing in a certain piece of music and being able to do it yourself will open a lot of doors for you. Too many guitarists and keyboard players pay too much attention to what THEY are playing to be able to see the group as a whole and realize that the way THEY are going to sound in the band largely depends on the fundamental roles of these two members of your group.

A good bass player is one of the most important members of the band. I'm sure that those who have played with a good one agree. What's a good bass player? A good bass player is not a 'slap monster' or someone able to play 32nd note scales at 180 bpm in double 4 time. I have nothing against a person like that, but what they need to have first is a good musical ear to make this instrument sound right and to choose the right groove and play with the proper feel. Then, and only then, can they venture out and do any fancy stuff.

Are the bass and drums working together, or is the drummer playing one thing and the bass player doing something radically different? Are they paying attention to each other? Are YOU paying attention to what they're doing to be able to compliment it; or are you more worried about how you are going to look on stage? Remember that if everyone in the group gets into the habit of really listening to each other, your group has better chances of sounding good and tight, and I guarantee you'll notice it when you're on stage with that same tightness playing through a 5000 Watt system. You'll feel a sense of power and control over the pieces you play and I'm sure you'll end up doing stage antics naturally and effortlessly.

How many different musical genres can you think of? How can you identify that this song is Classic R & R and this song is Reggae or Blues, etc.? The more musical genres you're able to identify and play, the better you're chances are of really being effective and in control of the sound of your band. This is one of the best ways to make your band sound unique and stand out from all the other bands around you. Your chances of getting anywhere in the music business will definitely increase! People will either speak fondly of you orcriticize you. This is excellent! People talking about you, whether good or bad, sows the seeds of popularity! why are the Sex Pistols still being talked about even up to this day? Is it because they took drugs? No! Simply because they made people talk about them and this awakened curiosity in the minds of those who knew nothing about Punk Rock. They were different and very controversial. I'm not saying that being controversial is a must, but it definitely helps.

Final Note
Don't waste your time trying to get your band to play songs that you can't get to sound right. Focus on things that do sound right, it's more rewarding. As your band matures and gets up confidence, you'll find less and less problems getting any song to sound right.