Gig Gab - The Working Musician's Podcast

Need advice on using in-ears? Check! Want to learn how to play with a click? Check! How about managing all those wireless channels? Check! Paul and Dave have have all sorts of tips for you… and then a discussion (also tip-filled!) about requests and how to handle them. Don’t miss this one, folks. You’re gonna love it. Chapters/Timestamps: Gig Gab 217 – July 1, 2019 00:01:30...

Play long enough and you’ll lose a booking, it’s just how it goes. The questions are: how do you handle it? And what can you do to help keep it from happening in the first place? (Psst: sometimes you can’t!). That’s not all, though. Listener Kevin has some ideas about portable staging, and Paul and Dave talk about tempos and how to manage them in your band. Have an idea abo...

Where can you hear about Sweet Home Alabama, Sample In a Jar, Tower of Power and, yes, Teen Town in the same place? This week’s Gig Gab Podcast, of course! Plus, for those of you who aren’t coiling cables correctly – and that includes pretty much every one of you if you haven’t played in a band with Dave – you can hear about Dave’s crazy way of doing this, too. It’s c...

Your listener feedback this week brings Paul and Dave to some interesting places, first talking about the shortage of keyboard players, and wrapping up with a conversation about the glass ceiling for cover bands. But first, your two favorite weekend warriors got a chance to play together last week, so there’s a lot to talk about there, too, including the concept of who is “right”...

Do you analyze your performances after the fact? If so… how long do you wait? Paul and Dave discuss the relative merits of when this is helpful, and how. But first, a fight! Well, not really, but there’s a sternly-worded discussion to be had about sitting vs. standing at your gigs. Paul and Dave will be playing together again next week, too, so they talk a little about that, as well&#8...

Real estate agents and musicians share a common truth: location matters. What’s your location like? What’s your scene like? Has it changed? Have you stopped recently and really evaluated what you’ve got around you? That’s what Paul and Dave do to start today’s show. Then it’s on to listener feedback, where Dan shares some great advice for insuring your instrumen...

Is it a jam session if no music is played? What if music is discussed? Your two favorite weekend warriors say, “yes!” to these questions, and start off the episode with a jam session about setlists. Listen as Paul and Dave talk through a few of their recent setlist choices and how they worked out. During this, of course, you’ll learn about the beauty of shared guilty pleasures. W...

When you find an episode that has great catchphrases like “Woodshedding The Breaks”, “Stay Humble and Hungry”, “One Note per Word”, and “The Martini Metric”, you know it’s gonna be good. Listen as Paul and Dave, your two favorite weekend warriors, have a verbal jam session in which they not only discuss these things but relate them all together...

Today, your feedback and emails send Paul and Dave down the musical wormhole to explore topics like reading music, dealing with sound reflections, and reacting to a crowd that’s not reacting to you. Listen to your two favorite weekend warriors discuss all this and more. Press play, listen, learn a little, and enjoy the ride! Then send in your own thoughts to feedback@giggabpodcast.com ! Chap...

This week finds your two favorite weekend warriors doing something they love: Digging into the mailbag! Listener Matt asks about using iPads on stage, which seems is always a hot-button topic. Eric’s curious about guitar amp simulators, Chris has a question about managing two guitars in a band, and Peter has a question Paul and Dave never thought they’d have to answer! All this, and al...

When things are good you don’t think about it, but when the feel of your instrument in your hands changes… nothing else matters. That goes for what you hear in your ears, too. So much of playing music is a visceral experience, and any distractions there can really take you off your game. Listen to your two favorite (and geeky!) musicians talk through some of their specifics in this regard, i...

Your instruments are important to you, so you’ve got to take care of them – and that includes your voice. Paul and Dave talk through some recent troubles Dave’s been having, and then move on to properly caring for your audiences, too. It’s important to understand who your audience is at each gig, and what their expectations are. Sometimes it’s not about you… or your desired...

Dave’s back from SXSW and has a few stories to share about bands he saw. First, though, he and Paul talk through expanding your setlist, specifically from the angle of purpose. Why are you adding the songs you’re adding? Are they the best way to serve your band’s show? Lastly, a tip from listener Michael about creatively using wireless transmitters for on-stage submixes. All of t...

Dave’s at SXSW 2019, and he has seen more than a few things worthy of a Gig Gab discussion. First he and Paul talk through the overall vibe of SXSW, and then it’s time to get into some specifics! Amanda Palmer, Redd Volkaert, and Nashville all make cameos, but the big dissection this week stems from Mr. Jimmy, a Japanese guitarist, method actor, and historian who has dedicated his life...

What do you do when you’re approached by someone at a gig who wants more than just a friendly hello? How about dealing with a booking agent who makes promises they won’t keep? Do you sell merchandise (versus just having merchandise you can’t sell)? And… what do you do to keep yourself inspired as a player? Listen as Paul Kent and Dave Hamilton, your two favorite weekend warriors,...

Music is about emotion, and passion, and expression, and so many other intangible things. But how do you get there? What are the mechanics that it takes to make this happen? This is where Paul and Dave’s inspiration comes from for today’s episode. How do you deal with playing with musicians for the first time? How do you deal with playing withOUT musicians for the first time? Are you p...

Sometimes the topics just flow. Of course, you folks do help with that… and today it’s all over the place. Paul and Dave take you on a journey that starts with revamping the airline industry, touches on the beauty of Alex Chilton’s blue-eyed-soul-inspired power pop, mentions Rick Nielsen more than once, and digs into the money conversation. It’s true, your two favorite weekend wa...

Some of the greatest art comes from an artist who trusts themselves, regardless of what others are saying, and just puts it out there. This, of course, can happen in many different forms. In music, it can be the guy who came up with an infectious piano groove to change a hit song to his liking, a songwriter who hones his tunes to perfection, a songwriter who took what she liked to hear and morphed...

How many ways do you communicate your identity or that of your band? Is it in your performance? Is it in your merchandise? Is it in your stage banter? Is it on your kick drum head? Is it in your name? The answer is yes! And, of course, Paul and Dave have some things to add to this conversation. Even better, you folks have a bunch to add to this, too, and your two favorite weekend warriors are happ...

This week, your two favorite working musicians dig into the now-overflowing mailbag and share your thoughts and questions with the audience. Hear Kevin’s thoughts about having your own, band-specific, portable monitor rack, DK’s thoughts about the Soundcraft Ui24R, and Martin’s question about mixing politics and music. Paul and Dave talk through all of these with you, of course,...

Dan Meblin, leader of San Francisco Bay Area band “ Pop Fiction ” joins Paul and Dave this week to talk through running a successful cover/party/function band. Dan and his bandmates created Pop Fiction after playing together in a band catering to a similar market, and Dan’s history includes both playing in original bands and working in the Silicon Valley technology world. Dan tal...

We often talk about stage presence, but what about off-stage presence? And how much is too much? And what happens when a fan reads more into your vibe than you intended? How do you remain appropriately distant without appearing to be aloof? Then it’s on to some Cool Stuff Found that Dave encountered at CES. Definitely something here you’ll want to learn about. Finally, Paul and Dave ta...

It’s been 195 episodes and almost four years. Paul Kent and Dave Hamilton take you through some lessons they’ve learned this year. What lessons have you learned? Send ’em in to feedback@giggabpodcast.com . Chapters/Timestamps: 00:00:00 Songs, Lessons, Resolutions, and Synchronicity – Gig Gab 195 – Monday, December 31, 2018 00:01:10 What does New Years Eve mean? 00:04:41 Hedwig an...

Your weekend warriors love gear as much as the next musician, so they each take some time to talk through a few things on their Gigging Christmas Wishlists. But first, it’s time for a few discussions. Do you have trouble memorizing your lyrics? The guys talk through their tips and strategies for that… as well as commiserating about how difficult some tunes can be to internalize! Paul t...

Does multitasking work? Wait, what were you doing? You were listening to Gig Gab. Press play to resume hearing Paul and Dave talk through how to know – and respect – your place amongst your fellow musicians. Lots to sort through here, folks, and your two favorite weekend warriors get the job done! 00:00:00 Gig Gab 193 – Monday, December 10, 2018 00:01:10 Multitasking doesn’t work 00:03:53 Giving Y...