Posted on Oct 09 2009 05:31 PM
I'm in three bands right now, and I'm really digging it.
I used to be in one band only, a surf band, we'd try to rehearse once a week, we'd maybe play one or two shows a month. I'd get frustrated if we weren't playing enough, or if we weren't playing a particular song, and then things got wacky over a recording...
In the meantime, I was invited to join another band, which was great, but we play maybe 10 to 12 shows a year.
Then some people I was jamming with became a third band, and we played an initial flurry of shows before settling down to now playing maybe 6 shows a year, largely 'cause of the amount of time one of our bandmates can devote to it-- both of them are also in other bands (more than one, even).
Meanwhile, I quit the first band, largely because it stopped being fun any more-- the fact I had other projects on-the-go made it easier to understand that it was time to move on. At that point, it was back to two bands, playing maybe 1 or 2 shows a month.
A few months later, the drummer in one of the bands asked me if I was interested in joining another band that he was starting (he's in at least three bands, two of them with me), which was not surf but a garage band, more music I love to play, so I'm back to being in three bands.
The garage band is the most rehearsed and gig-ready at any give time, because we try to get together once a week to work on material, but as far as the other two bands go, we have a couple of sets worked up and it takes no more than one or two rehearsals (on top of individual homework) to get the songs gig-ready again.
Anyway, this keeps me busy enough either learning new material, writing new tunes, playing shows, and recording. Every now & again it gets a bit tight, timewise (I've also got a family and a responsible day job, and also take lessons every two weeks), but most of the time, it all works out and it's great fun.
As far as loyalty issues go, everybody is in other bands so nobody can get too jealous or possessive or anything like that. We get together when we want to get get together, and everybody seems reasonably happy about it. Similarly, songs get written or shows come up, and who-gets-it depends on all sorts of things, from the style of the song or type of show, to who had the last money gig, etc. It seems to work out and nobody gets their noses out of joint.
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