I was the lead singer, and later lead singer/rhythm guitarist of a punk covers band called The Valves. I was in the band for roughly four years until we separated due to band members leaving the country and in that time I went from a cocky kid with a bit of talent to a functioning, engaging front-man. I was not born excellent (although I was pretty close to be fair) and there were certain hard lessons I had to learn. These I learnt through jeers and shitty feedback and the odd damning conversation with bandmates who did not want my actions to ruin the reasonably large amount of money we pulled in for playing to loud drunk people for 2 hours a go. It is my wish to impart this knowledge in written form so as to benefit all humanity and those few who may nor may not care what it takes to hold a stage.
1. You suck dick under the influence
It's the rock and roll mantra that you need to be twatted when you're on stage. The coolest, greatest most legendary players/singers of all time were totally off the planet when they played. Right? No. The fact is that the legends were legends first and could then be forgiven for being fucked a couple of times until people got sick of them puking on stage and forgetting what was happening. Jimmy Hendrix was awful once the acid kicked in and people eventually just went to see him smash another guitar because it wouldn't make the correct noises. Shane McGowan gets towed off stage at pogues concerts and replaced because he can't stand up and no body gives two shits that Shane isn't singing anymore. You may find that alcohol or your good times of choice help you write great music but when you're standing on stage slurring into the mike and forgetting what song you're playing it gets old real quick.
2. You need the rhythm
If you are a lead singer then chances are the majority of the eyes in the room are on you. Sure there's the odd muso checking out the guitarist, and other bass players and drummers maybe checking out their respective counterparts but for those people who don't really care about music you are the centre of attention. That means that the flow and vision of the song needs to be found in the way you move and act on stage. You need to know the momentum of every song and your actions need to convey that to an audience. Simple things like punching the beats or a jump to denote a breakdown/double time event are like an orchestral conductors motions to the people you hope are dancing in front of you. If they can't follow the music then you aren't doing enough to spell it out to them. your third ear should always be with the bass and drums and you should be a conduit for them to let people know what's happening. Standing stock still or being out of time will confuse the people staring at you and they will disengage from all the hard work you and your bandmates have gone through to hold their attention.
3. You need to know what you're saying
A lot of people seem to think brilliance will spill out their mouth in between songs, or that because they are so awesome at doing the vocal bit in songs that they don't really need to care about the stuff outside of songs. That isn't how the audience see it though. They have come to be entertained for the full thirty/fourty five minutes/two hours you are up on that stage and that means every second that you're stood there not engaging them is a second they don't care about you being there. Some bands will default to another member talking instead of the singer which is totally fine as long as one person is keeping everyones attention, but on the whole that will fall to the front-man. We are not the cream of stand up comedians, we cannot all perfectly read a situation and come out with something funny or astute or deep. Instead preparing what you are going to talk about beforehand is the simple, obvious and most effective solution. Depending on how bad you are with public speaking (and to be fair if the answer is "horrific" then you may want to rethink being the central focus of a band) then you can spend time a few days before going over relevant things to say that will flow well between the songs you are performing. You need to consider the style of your band, the political and/or religious stances you collectively wish to portray as a band and also take into account the likely reactions of the audience to your statements. It's best to work these out along with your band as they can let you know how long it will take to prep for the next song (tuning etc) and also arrange to take a turn at the mic if you yourself need to prepare/take a drink. For audience members who have never seen your band before they will likely remember the words you choose between songs far better than any lyric you utter.
4. You need to cultivate your image
Did you get dressed in the dark before coming on stage? Do you want people to think you got dressed in the dark before coming on stage? Exactly what snap judgement do you want people to make of you based on the t shirt you're wearing? Are you mirroring the people that are watching you? These questions and more are honestly important ones when you are asking a group of people who haven't met you before to like and associate with you and your bandmates. The tshirt (or other top/no top) you choose alone will convey a thousand messages to the people watching. If you happen to endorse a band or label that they too think of as something linked to their own personality then you instantly have 80% of a fan. If the way you look is the same as the people in the crowd then you are letting people know that you are part of the scene that they have chosen. All of this may sound shallow and superficial - and it is - but expecting a stranger to take the time to get to know you and your stance on life and the messages you wish your band to convey is selfish and egotistical. If you only have half an hour of distorted noise to show the audience who you are why not put the effort into giving them as many visual clues beforehand as possible. The quicker someone decides they like you the quicker they can start appreciating your music.
5. You are not the band, but you are their monkey
God I love the gig nutter. That one guy who was in a band/roadied/babysat Sid Vicious who now spends his time hanging out proving to people that he is indeed the drunkest person in the bar. He(she) probably fell over your monitor or into your mic stand and likely spilled beer on something expensive. Well guess what it that guy/girl wants to be your bestest friend in the whole world and as the front-man it is your job to be that friend/son to them. The guitarist and bassist will be busy talking to real musicians and the drummer will be busy with merch and the promoter so that leaves you as the spokes person to all the very drunk people who want a signed copy of the album they just bought. They will have advice for you and tales a plenty and your reputation as a band all rests on your reaction to them. If they find your endearing then you will have one of the staunchest supporters of your band around, if you piss them off or act like a douche then you may as well forget playing that venue again because your name will be shit to all within that guys exceedingly loud vocal range. Remember that to others you are the poster boy for why people should give a shit about your band over every other million bands out there and it's your job post show to persuade people to your cause. I can't tell you the amount of times I'd had the same goddamned conversation about what a 20 something kid was doing playing punk music with a bunch of 40 something original punkers but by the end of every conversation I was slapped on the back given all the anecdotes and demanded to return as soon as possible.
p.s. A couple of pre-emptive apologies here:
- I realise I have written this article mainly in the masculine but that's because I'm talking from specific examples in my own experience. Please feel free to swap the word front-man with whichever gender neutral term who wish.
- I make a few casual joke about drummers and bass players in this article. I would like to assure you that I am not prejudiced towards bass players and drummers and fully appreciate them as the foundations of any group without whom everything would sound terrible.
- Whenever I have made light of the weight lead persons within a band hold I am speaking of my experience as someone who auditioned to join a group where my only creative input to start with was to stand on stage and sing. If you write the music and lyrics and the band was yours to start with of course all these things make your role within the group more important, but no less replaceable.
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