When preparing for a gig, we obviously all spend as much time getting our songs to be the best we can – so what about the gaps between the songs?
There’s the obvious ones that you can prepare for like swapping out or changing the tuning on your guitar for example. Some things you will do naturally like introduce each song, but there might be occasions where you want to fill a little more time up onstage, so here are a few examples;
- Introduce your band members
- Tell the audience about your latest single/ album
- Tell the audience about your social media / website
- Explain the story behind your next song
What happens when something goes wrong in the middle of your set?
Maybe a string breaks, a skin breaks or there is a technical problem that needs time to fix. It’s good to have a few pre-rehearsed ideas about what you can do to fill in the time between songs in addition to what you have planned for a normal gig. Some other examples to think about;
- Guitar or drum solo (etc)
- Tell some jokes
- Tell a story of how you all met
- Tell an entertaining story about something that happened to you as a band
It doesn’t have to be much, but having a plan can make all the difference. Its much better to interact with the audience in some way than to be all standing a bit clueless as to what to do. It will make you look more professional and keep you motivated and in the right head space. The last thing you want in times like these is to lose your confidence, or lose the confidence of your audience when everything gets a bit awkward.