To Tour Or Not To Tour- That Is The Question!

It's every musician's fantasy. the bus rolls up to the arena (full of groupies, beer and pizza). Fans are crowded out front hoping to catch a glimpse of America's hottest band. The group was accompanied by his dressing room (full of more groupies, beer and pizza). They enjoy the various pleasures of fame while roadies set up the stage. It's show time. artists on stage. The audience was screaming. The lights are glaring. amps are humming. drummer clicks off the first song and ...

You wake up in the back of the PT Cruiser. Your bass player's elbow in your ear and the drummer's asleep on your foot. You've eaten nothing for the last week, but the corn dogs and frozen burritos. This is not the tour you imagined. This is not your Lilith Fair. This is not your Lollapalooza. This is not your Warped Tour. That sucks ....

Every musician dreams of touring. Start from your same boring town. Trying his songs to new crowds, in new areas, for a fresh face. Connecting to the road, writing new songs in a motel room, free food, free drinks, getting paid, getting laid ... living life.

But the music biz is full of touring horror stories. Bands stuck on the road with no money to return home. Musicians not eating for days. Clubs canceling gigs the night without warning. Negative reactions from bar patrons and local bands. The list goes on.

So, how do you make sure that your touring experience is positive? What can you, as musicians do, to eliminate potentially negative experiences and create positive ones.

Here are some tips that add success to your touring experience:

1) does not plan to tour because youdissatisfied At Home --- Just as an affair will not solve problems in a marriage , not a cure for the tour : the problems within the band , the problems of the band members ' lives, orgeneral malaise in the local scene . tour of the strain and stress and work load. You should be excited and enthusiastic and positive when planning.

2) More to prepare before you leave --- You can never plan too much, or too much caution. At home it is time to rethink ever scenario and arrange accordingly. Get the van tuned up. Pack extra emergency money. Bring a list of additional clubs in the area in the event fall through. Pack extra strings and sticks. Bring a backup guitar. Pack extra merchandise. Bring emergency food / water. Pack extra batteries and power cords. Bring a cell phone.

3) to be humble and thankful --- You're in a strange city and a new club, act as a guest. Nothing ticks off a club owner / promoter who has taken a chance on an unknown band more than out-of-towners swaggering into a club like Paris Hilton in "The Simple Life. " No matter how cool you are in your town, this is unproven ground and your first impression is important. Ask, no demand. Set up quickly. Play in the appropriate volume. Clean up after yourself. Be friendly and courteous. Say "please" and "thank you". Unless you have booking Jerkville in the United States, this positive attitude could set you well on your way to repeat booking with better facilities and local support.

4) Take every opportunity --- If you're going to take time away from work, family, and rumors that you've built in your own music community to head out into a large and conquer unknown lands ... maybe come back with something other than lovely memories and out-of-state parking ticket. You are at the new location and the possibilities are endless. Sell ​​CDs. Sell ​​T-shirts. Get new names on your mailing list. Impose local reviews, interviews, and radio. Meet the other club owners for future bookings. Find out who books local festivals. Play impromptu house party after the concert. Make new friends who can street team for you next time. Think about something I have not written here and do it!

Do not expect to conquer the world in a single Tour --- Rome was not built in a day and neither will your touring empire be. Have fun. Enjoy each trip and using it as a block to make each tour to that particular place better and more elaborate. Play your cards right, and after a few trips you can be making incredible money, they have secured accommodation (either new friends you crash or a club pays for a motel), get food and drinks comped, and guaranteed press and radio coverage.

In short, touring can be the best thing that ever happened to your band if you work hard, to play smart, and follow through properly. But no matter how much you love to tour, always remember that foot in the door at the local level. It's a great job working at home that makes other clubs excited about you bringing your show to their city.