Sasha Brown of Sister Sparrow & the Dirty Birds had set an appointment to get music instrument insurance. Two days before the call, $11K worth of instruments were stolen out of the band’s van. Read more.
Most bands, when they rehearse, even for a big show, will rehearse for a couple of days, run through the songs to make sure they’re “tight,” work out the musical parts, and then go out onstage and hope something good will happen. They have no idea what they’re trying to accomplish. Read more.
In “Tales of the worst music gigs ever,” we shared a handful of on-the-gig horror stories and lessons learned from them. While those stories were all wrenching in their own rights, here is one from New York bassist Dmitry Ishenko that stands in a category of its own. Read more.
Every musician has stories of the best gig ever, that performances where the music, the crowd, and the stars aligned. Then there’s those other times when nothing goes right. Gear explodes, drunks attack, people vanish… But even the worst gigs can be valuable learning experiences. Read more.
Bassist Malcolm Gold’s story about the benefits of MusicPro instrument insurance doesn’t involve theft or damage. It was just a momentary lapse of focus on a long commute. “It was a very stressful time in my life. I was traveling on a train with a beautiful 1966 ice-blue metallic Fender Jazz bass. It’s a custom color, and worth a considerable amount of money, to say the least.” Read more.
Traveling to play music gigs is expensive. Being on the road also takes a lot of planning, time, energy, and day-of alertness for travel plans to be flawlessly executed. Whether touring around your favorite regions of the globe or traveling to a far off city for a music conference, there are a few tricks and tips that can help make your travels go smoothly, and keep your bank account afloat at the same time. Read more.
Nearly every touring musician has at least one story about load-in or breakdown gone awry — that emotionally scarring gig where the venue promised a full drum kit but only delivered a broken snare drum, the festival slot when you expected fifteen minutes to set up but only got fifteen seconds, or that sickening post-gig moment when you realized your vintage Les Paul had grown legs and walked out of the club, all by itself. Read more.
Are you in danger of playing too much in your chosen markets? We all want to gig more often, but have you really taken a look at how gigging too much in a given market might impact your ability to grow? Read more.
Touring as an indie doesn’t mean getting on a luxury bus and having a tour manager handling gigs, logistics, accommodations, and meals. Here’s some good advice on how to tour culled from loads of blog posts and articles we’ve published on touring. These highlights should get you thinking about the ins outs of how to get gigs, what an indie tour can be, and touring tips to take with you on the road. Read more and download your FREE guide.
Taking your music on the road is a great way to reach new audiences, see the world, and hopefully have a grand adventure — but any touring veteran will tell you that it’s not as easy as it looks. From maintaining peace amongst band members and staying healthy, to dealing with substandard accommodations and endless hours in transit, spending time on the road can present unique and unforeseen challenges.