How To Form A Band

Photo by John Matychuk on Unsplash

If you have been playing for a while, but you want to start playing with more people, then it might be time to form a band. But just like making friends, it can be a bit of a confusing process. Where do you start?

Find Musicians

Take time to find the right people, because the right people have fantastic chemistry. That chemistry will shine through if you decide to do live performances for friends, family or more. 

For this, it can be beneficial to hire a session room and invite a range of people over the course of the day to jam with you and see how it goes. There will be some people that just find the right chords and pay with your, and others that can’t. 

Jam Times

Now you have had the initial tests to see who you get on with, it is time to invite everyone to the same session to jam. Before you all turn up, send a few songs to learn, which can help people just do what they do best - play. 

This gives you a chance to get a coffee, play some music together and chat too. Everyone will get a feel for the personalities in the room, and if it is going to work out. 

Name it

Your band name is an official thing that might take a little bit of time to get perfect. You can use something fun like https://www.indiesound.com/band-name-generator to give you some ideas. 

Write

There is usually one person in the band that has the strongest skill in writing, but someone else might be very lyrical or come up with the beats quickly. Arrange some writing sessions to see what you come up with. You can pull inspiration from the songs that you all love, and use your own style to build it. For a gig, you will need about 30-45 minutes of music written and well-rehearsed. So that could be quite a lot of songs you’ll need to write. 

Image

Bands have a cohesive look and style. Most musicians are happy in a t-shirt and jeans, but if you want to get band photos and promotional materials made, it makes sense to look at your overall image. You don’t have to try too hard, you should still be you. But the image is incredibly important. 

Online Presence 

Your online presence will be one of the biggest things you can create. You can share your music, interact with other bands, and live venues. Growing your fan base will bring in listeners, and you will find it easier to sell tickets too. Make sure that you engage with your audience, share what you are up to, talk about new music and behind the scenes stuff. 

Sometimes it can feel like a long slog creating a band and trying to get some success, but the most important thing is that you enjoy it. 

It is essential that you have an idea of the style of music that you want to play, as this will make it easier to advertise your band spots to people.