I need to start a band

[hrodbert696]

Yes, I put my email in my description. There are a lot of musicians and bands that I would love to contact, but can't because they didn't put any contact info in their description.

And I wouldn't move to music city. I want to form a band, but I'm not making it my career. Not enough for me to move to a big city (I hate the city).

IMO smaller cities and suburbs can actually be easier to make a band work in. In a big city everything is more cramped, more expensive, people often don't have cars. Schlepping gear around and finding a rehearsal space where you won't bother the neighbors is more of a headache than if you can jam in a garage. When I lived in NYC my apartment was five miles from work, as the crow flies. Getting there by public transportation took 45 minutes. Of course the small towns don't have the market to hit it big in, but that isn't what you want anyway.

I don't know what the law is in Canada, but at 18 you should be able to go to a bar, though not order alcohol. 18 year-olds are allowed to serve alcohol in the US, certainly, though they can't drink it. Also, the way things work where I am, if a venue serves food, it's a restaurant and all ages can be patrons. A bar area has to be distinct from the general tables, but doesn't have to be a whole separate room. My under-21 kids have attended some of my gigs with no problem, and I've been to open mics with younger players. Heck, there was an EIGHT year-old on drums with one group Wednesday night (he was the guitarist's son. Good, too). He just couldn't sit at the bar. The point being, don't let your age stop you from hitting the open mic/jam circuit and meeting people.

The other thing is being broke, which sucks. It's a good reason to start by looking for an existing group that needs a bassist, which would hopefully have those essentials like rehearsal space and a PA. But again, don't let being broke stop you, find a way. I remember a thread where @jive1 was sharing stories of where he grew up. They would cannibalize abandoned stereos out of dumpsters to cobble together a "PA" system to sing through.

 

[Felken]

IMO smaller cities and suburbs can actually be easier to make a band work in. In a big city everything is more cramped, more expensive, people often don't have cars. Schlepping gear around and finding a rehearsal space where you won't bother the neighbors is more of a headache than if you can jam in a garage. When I lived in NYC my apartment was five miles from work, as the crow flies. Getting there by public transportation took 45 minutes. Of course the small towns don't have the market to hit it big in, but that isn't what you want anyway.

I don't know what the law is in Canada, but at 18 you should be able to go to a bar, though not order alcohol. 18 year-olds are allowed to serve alcohol in the US, certainly, though they can't drink it. Also, the way things work where I am, if a venue serves food, it's a restaurant and all ages can be patrons. A bar area has to be distinct from the general tables, but doesn't have to be a whole separate room. My under-21 kids have attended some of my gigs with no problem, and I've been to open mics with younger players. Heck, there was an EIGHT year-old on drums with one group Wednesday night (he was the guitarist's son. Good, too). He just couldn't sit at the bar. The point being, don't let your age stop you from hitting the open mic/jam circuit and meeting people.

The other thing is being broke, which sucks. It's a good reason to start by looking for an existing group that needs a bassist, which would hopefully have those essentials like rehearsal space and a PA. But again, don't let being broke stop you, find a way. I remember a thread where @jive1 was sharing stories of where he grew up. They would cannibalize abandoned stereos out of dumpsters to cobble together a "PA" system to sing through.

I'm glad to hear that you can enter bars at 18. That's just another two months. In terms of sound, I have a markbass amp that's capable of handling any bar gig or small concert I could ever obtain. I'm well equipped gear-wise.

 

[Felken]

I've done everything you have all proposed to me. Still no results. I'm hoping that'll change soon.

 

[Space Pickle]

Try posting flyers. I recommend this:

 

[jive1]

In order to achieve your goals in terms of a band is to identify what you're looking for. Sometimes when someone says they want to join or start a band, they are mainly looking for friends to jam with. There's nothing wrong with that, but forming an informal, casual group of friends making music is not the same as starting a serious band that performs in public for profit. The goals and means to achieve them are different.

If you're just looking for folks to jam with, you just need to spend time in the woods (online and real world) and be social. That is pretty much how most folks meet other musicians.

But if you're looking to create a band, then you must have vision. Bands without vision die quickly, and often before they even get off the ground. If you don't have a vision, you don't have anything to sell or have people join. It's just a group of friends jamming, and there's nothing wrong with that. But, if you want more than that, a detailed vision will help and guide you along. When forming a band, I work backwards. I pretend that the band already exists and come up with the details for the band. Details include stuff like genre, style, sound, image, etc. I wouldn't skimp on the details either, I'd envision as many of them as possible. That's why it's helpful to imagine that the band already exists. From there, since I know what I'm looking to create, I can identify the means to get there. Sure, I need some flexibility since the world unfortunately isn't full of automatons willing to do my bidding, but I at least have a baseline of what I'm trying to do.

The key for any successful band is vision. You won't get anywhere without it.

 

[pomegranesis]

And I wouldn't move to music city. I want to form a band, but I'm not making it my career. Not enough for me to move to a big city (I hate the city)

Ottawa... isn't exactly a small city. There's all sorts of music stuff happening in Centretown and neighbouring areas (Hintonburg, Wellington West, the Glebe, etc.). A guy I sold a bass to the other day said there's a dearth of jazz bassists, if that's your thing.

I found people to play with by typing "bassist" into the search field on Kijiji and replying to ads that piqued my interest.

The lady at my rehearsal studio mentioned that bands are primarily looking for bassists and drummers, so the opportunities are out there.

 

[Felken]

Ottawa... isn't exactly a small city. There's all sorts of music stuff happening in Centretown and neighbouring areas (Hintonburg, Wellington West, the Glebe, etc.). A guy I sold a bass to the other day said there's a dearth of jazz bassists, if that's your thing.

I found people to play with by typing "bassist" into the search field on Kijiji and replying to ads that piqued my interest.

The lady at my rehearsal studio mentioned that bands are primarily looking for bassists and drummers, so the opportunities are out there.

I just posted a kijiji ad yesterday as well as answering to all that interested me. So far, one guy contacted me. We're discussing our options, I hope it turns out well.