So you want to start a new band... but where to start?
It can seem a challenging process, but it doesn't have to be, here's some great tips to start!
1. Find The Right People
This is arguably the most important step to making a band! Either you'll have friends you can start with, or there's a myriad of places online to meet people. Don't worry if all your musical tastes don't line up- that's good! It will allow you to forge a different sound to other groups!
2. Rehearse (And Write... a lot!)
To start with, find a time to regularly rehearse. Each of you pick some songs to learn and cover, this will make your initial practice or two productive, and give you some good covers to put in your back pocket to bring out at gigs.
Writing is a complex and often challenging thing to do, so I won't say much. You'll very quickly discover together if you have a musical leader, or if you have a more collaborative approach. Don't forget even if you didn't write a song, every member can bring their own flourishes and ideas to the table to further the song.
3. Record Some Music
To my mind in this day and age before your first gig you need something for people to hear online. In the modern world of discovering music, many more people find music online rather than at gigs. If you want to grow your audience this is vital.
Pick your best 2 tracks to put out as singles. How you choose to do this (recording yourself or going to a studio) depends on how you want to do it, but either is valid.
For anyone who is at this stage, I'm offering a reduced mixing and mastering rate - 20% off for your first release. Fill in my contact form and quote 'FIRSTRELEASE' for a quote with this offer!
4. Release Your Music
Put it out! There's many services such as Distrokid where your music will end up on Spotify, Itunes etc very simply. You can use this to launch your Facebook page and social media presence.
5. Find Gigs
Start small to begin, look for 20-30min support slots, this will build confidence and your name. You probably won't have much music at this stage so the shorter time will help you out as you write. Friends bands can be a great source of gigs, alternatively contact venues to see what opportunities are going, venues are always looking for quality support slots!
6. Go Forth
From here, you can build up your presence (both at gigs physically and online). You can then look to recording more music and increasing your fans that way!
It's often a drawn out process, but starting a band can be very exciting. As you can see, it does require a strategy, but once you start gigging you're off!
What are your thoughts? Is there anything I missed you consider essential? Comment below to let me know!