We've had a bit of a thing going on lately where we don't turn down a gig or an opportunity to play, simply because our main motivation in moving to Edinburgh was to do more music, to play as much as we possibly can in live venues, and it's only right that we hold ourselves to that commitment. Also, we aren't in a place to turn down live gigs yet. - Our band calendar still has plenty of space to breathe. So, saying 'yes', combined with churning out countless emails, has got us a few gigs over the last wee while. (If you fancy seeing us at said gigs, you can find them at the top left of the blog homepage.)
Saying yes isn't always easy. It means going along to the open mic night when you're just too tired after work. It means taking the only slot at the rehearsal room even though it's 10 -11 and you want to settle. It means playing venues that make you feel apprehensive. It means carting your lovable, temperamental amp and two guitars from train station to venue, venue to train station and some times up testing hills. It also means playing for free.
We recently said yes to a gig that we weren't too sure about. As the night unfolded, it would have been easier for us to leave quietly out the back just before our set time. The sound was bad, the night was unorganised and the line up clashed. Just as it was easy to go, it was a challenge to stay. And a split-second challenge we vowed to take. It was a bad gig in the sense that everything beyond our control was going wrong. But this made us all the more determined to do our best. And then to get the heck out of there.
If you're a musician, I've no doubt you've played a gig (or several) like this one. The best thing to do is put it behind you. If the odds were against you, and you know you did your best regardless, then be proud that you held it together. Just as there are bad gigs, there are good gigs and this is a story of our last gig which is probably our favourite gig so far:
We played the Tolbooth on Saturday, one of the biggest venues we'll have played since going electric; a little nerve-inducing, of course. The Tolbooth is Stirling's leading venue and is a wonder with a fantastic sound and light team. We knew that we were in safe hands so had no anxiety about sound or the monitor mix. Oddly enough, we've played the Tolbooth three times, each time with a different band name! Does anybody know them all? (I think my parents may be the only ones.) Thank you, Tolbooth, for your support over the last few years!
Saturday was a lot of fun. And isn't that the most important thing? To enjoy it? I'm slowly attempting to adjust my post-gig mindset. I have the tendency to become anxious about lyrics, timing, staying in tune; everything. How will I manage to do all of these things at once? How will I be able to be perfect at all of them? But, Saturday, marked a change because I didn't allow myself to be consumed by nerves. Instead of thinking about all the things I should be doing and how I should be doing them and all the people looking at me...Instead of thinking all these thoughts, I'm now focusing on enjoying the experiencing, connecting to the songs and also engaging with the audience. And I'm realising that that's when I play best, and that's the gigs that we get the best responses from.
We headed home, filled with adrenaline and a gin and tonic. On the train, a man asked us to play a song. Of course, we couldn't say no. We played Not a Dollar and then had some brilliant music chat. It had been a wonderful night with wonderful people.
The gig was on Saturday. It's now Monday afternoon and I can still feel the buzz since coming off the stage; the buzz which fuelled this blogpost. If you take anything from it, let it be:
Say yes more
&
Just enjoy it
&
After every bad gig, a good gig is just around the corner.
