How I Dealt With a Really Rough Night On a Gig...
Back in February I was on a gig that I was really excited about. This was basically a weekend event gig where we played a few different sessions throughout the weekend, pulling from a master setlist of 10-15 songs. Everything about this gig was perfect, and I knew everything was going to be great. The bandleader was a good friend I loved, and I was super excited about the keyboard player who would be joining us. He was one of those guys who just makes any group sound and groove better. That’s a rare thing with keys players, and this guy’s ability was definitely something to be excited about. This was shaping up to be a great gig, then something happened.
I got sick.
Now this was weeks before the COVID lockdowns began, so this took place in the “olden days” when we were still allowed to show up to work sick. ;) It’s interesting to think how this kind of thing will be forever different now! Anyways, I came down with a bad cold just two days before this gig was supposed to start. I lost a lot of energy, pretty much lost my voice, and I was blowing my nose constantly (the kinds of things you wouldn’t dare do in public now!).
But following the traditional rules of professionalism, I showed up prepared and ready to rock. I was ready to blast through my sickness and conjure up all the adrenaline I needed so I could nail everything and play the songs like nothing was wrong with me in the slightest bit.
So what happened that night? I had the weirdest mix of adrenaline and exhaustion, which caused my playing to feel frantic to me. I played a handful of mediocre fills, rushed some things I normally wouldn’t have rushed, and even started to make a couple of arrangement mistakes in songs. I felt like I wasn’t thinking clearly, and I just couldn’t physically execute things smoothly and naturally the way I normally would. No matter how hard I tried, my hands were a little shaky and I couldn’t relax. I think this was all the result of the near-deadly combination of excitement and physical weakness all at the same time. I was so excited to play, but my body couldn’t keep up. I had a pretty rough night, and nothing went nearly as well as I wanted it to. I drove home, thinking what was that?? - man I gotta get some sleep tonight. It’s like I’m forgetting how to play the drums. I got two more sessions to play tomorrow, and I’ve GOT to do better.
We all have off-nights like that, where nothing feels right, nothing sounds right, nothing “gels” like it ought to, and maybe we’re just low on energy. So what do you do about it?
Well first off, we want to avoid off-nights if at all possible. I remember in high school and college having plenty of rehearsals where I was feeling off, and it was literally just due to my lack of preparation. Maybe I’d been super busy, and I hadn’t really dedicated time to sit down and learn the songs really well. Or maybe I wasn’t on top of my time management, and I was rolling into the gig last minute feeling stressed from the traffic. From a fundamental standpoint, be as prepared as you can be for whatever the playing occasion. If you’re on time, setup with all the gear you need, and you know the songs front to back, you don’t really have anything to worry about. Be prepared! The old Boy Scout motto rings very true in the music world. But so does situational awareness, which was actually my Boy Scout troop’s annual theme one year. Situational awareness is something you don't want to fail at on a gig either...
In my case on my gig back in February, I was very consumed with how I was feeling - and I was worried about it. My focus that first night was completely on my physical state. I was worried I wouldn’t have enough energy, and I probably drank too much coffee that afternoon to try to compensate (hence the shaky hands!). My ear was stuck on how I was playing and how I sounded, which didn’t help with the worry about how my cold was negatively affecting me. All in all I was getting way into my head about everything, and I was overthinking my playing. I was trying so hard to play stuff right that I was rushing and playing sloppily, and even almost messing up the song.
I made some adjustments the next morning that made a world of difference. I’ll go ahead and tell you that the following two sessions of the gig went incredibly well, closing off with an awesome night. Looking back on this pre-COVID gig, I remember thinking that it was honestly the most fun I’d ever had playing music with people. How did the horribly “off” night redeem itself? I had to shift my mindset and re-think some things. Here’s what I did:
- First off, I went home that first night and got as much sleep as I could. I then ate a solid breakfast the next morning, which is always a good thing - especially before a gig.
- I admitted to myself that I wasn’t physically on top of my game, and I knew going into the morning that I needed to be careful to not overplay.
- Rather than worry about how I sounded or whether I was low on energy, I kept my focus (and therefore my ear) on the musicians around me. Remember the keys player? His musicianship was great motivation for increasing my listening!
That third point was really the big one. When my attention shifted from myself to what was going on around me, I relaxed more. When I become “situationally aware,” paying attention to the other players and listening to the song, I actually focused more and sounded better as a result. I had more fun, because I was enjoying the music rather than trying to figure out how to hit things. Don’t ever be just hitting things. Be playing music. But the only way to really play music on the drums is to listen. Listen, listen, listen.
This totally applies to a long, late night gig too! I’ve played plenty of those, where you’re creeping up on midnight or even 2am and you’re running low on energy. For one thing, always bring lots of snacks on gigs like that. Don’t get hungry. Eat protein bars, and keep your energy levels up. Also drink lots of water, and get as much sleep as you can the night before. But besides those physical preparations, you have to employ the mental ones too. Listen, listen, listen. Be situationally aware of everything around you. Be listening to the other players so that you can make music with them. When you do this, you don’t selfishly fret about yourself, your playing, and how you sound. When your focus is on the band and on the song, you naturally sound better.
You may be like “but Stephen - my playing still doesn’t sound great, and if I shift my ear to the other musicians I fall apart. So what now?”
That’s a valid point, and I can completely relate to that. When I was first playing in high school, I remember those terrifying moments where I would get slightly distracted and my playing would almost fall apart. When you haven’t yet solidified your coordination, things can get pretty fragile. In order to relax and make music, you do have to have your coordination together. Your brain needs to be able to dedicate some “CPU” to the music and not just to telling limbs what to do. If that’s you, dig into these limb independence e-guides I put out recently. They both accompanied video lessons targeting specific coordination challenges we all face. Check these out!
β"The Practicing Mindset that Will Blow Your Left Foot Coordination Wide Open"β
β(Accompanying PDF Guide with Notation)β
β"Ultimate Independence Exercise: How to Split Your Right Hand from Your Right Foot"β
β(Accompanying PDF Guide with Notation)β
And if you are ready to train your ear and listen better than you’ve ever listened before, check out my free guide on song-learning if you haven’t already. This method will have you hearing things in recordings that you’ve never heard before, and you’ll be picking up on details and nuances in realtime on a gig. This is how you transition from “drummer” to “musician.” That’s big, and I want every one of you to get there quickly.
βDownload the free Song-Learning Guide right here!β
Enjoy the free resources, and keep up the learning. Never stop growing!
Stay Non Glamorous.
God Bless,
Stephen
