Mastermind Drummer
Newsletter #39
Sep 16th, 2024
The Choices We Have To Make…
Welcome,
I hope all is going well at your end!
So, before we kick off, here are a couple of things you may have missed recently…
A couple of weeks back, I had the pleasure of going on the 80/20 Drummer podcast, with Nate Smith (lol).
This was a fantastic chat, and one I highly recommend listening to, as we dove deep into a lot of the topics I like to discuss here at MasterMind – mindset, health, wellbeing etc.
You can listen HERE
And then, on the flip side, last week I interviewed Josh Devine for my channel. Josh was the touring drummer for the entirety of One Directions touring career. A MASSIVE gig.
The scale of this gig is something that not many will ever experience, so it was interesting to discuss everything that comes along with a gig of that level.
You can listen HERE
Also, if you missed it, I put up a couple of videos breaking down some interesting grooves from the legends Vinne Paul and Danny Carey.
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What I wanted to touch on today was a common problem we face as drummers – the balancing act of playing for multiple artists, and the choices we have to make.
As some of you know, I have my project Black Comet, but I also play for Georgia Lines.
These gigs are important to me; I enjoy them both thoroughly, but recently I had a scheduling conflict and had to make a hard but necessary decision.
So, a little while back, when we were booking the Black Comet tour, Georgia was booking some dates too.
She had been invited to perform at Big Sound, which is Australia’s version of SXSW. Essentially an industry trade show based in Brisbane.
I’ve done it before. It’s fun, and a great opportunity for any up-and-coming artist.
Alongside that, and on the back of her ‘Best Pop Artist’ award win from this year’s NZ music awards, she also booked a headline gig at the PowerStation, in Auckland.
A massive gig for her.
As all this was being confirmed, I was getting CC’d in to availability emails, and everything was lining up fine.
Over a short period of time, there would be some rehearsals in NZ, 3 shows in Brisbane, a radio promo spot back here in NZ, and finishing up with the PowerStation gig.
A great run, and to be honest, some sweeeeet coin too!
And even though it was over the same period, nothing was clashing with the upcoming 10-date Black Comet tour. Phew!
This was an ideal situation, as being able to play for both groups is always the perfect case scenario for me. Creatively, they are both very different, but both very fulfilling. The shows are ALWAYS fun.
So, to bring you into the fold a little more, with Black Comet, we reinvest everything. The band covers all expenses, which is amazing, and although we do pay ourselves when we can, it’s much more of an investment of time from our end. Like any band.
Touring means giving up our weekends to get out there, so we can build up the profile and reputation of being an absolutely formidable force live.
Whereas with Georgia, it’s a session gig. So every element is paid – rehearsals, gigs, travel, per-diems etc.
Anyway, everything was locked in, and I had quite a nice and full calendar for a couple of months there. Some paid. Some not. But ALL awesome. Great!
It’s such a secure feeling knowing you have a bunch of great work booked in. As I’m sure you all know.
Then… updates…
So, basically, what happened was this. To maximize their time in Australia, Georgia’s camp decided to add a Sydney and Melbourne show to the run, which, I’ll say, made absolute perfect sense for them.
The problem was, one of these additions now clashed with one of our Black Comet dates. Just one! Dam. Here we go.
Now, the conundrum….
Because all of Georgia’s dates were in close succession, and involved band rehearsals and crossing the ditch over to Australia etc, they could only use one drummer for everything, as it wouldn’t be financially viable to do otherwise.
So, in short, was I going to let this one Black Comet date cost me a bunch of dates with Georgia? (and a fat stack of cash, too!)
In short… Yes.
I knew this could potentially compromise future shows with Georgia too, as they would be putting in a lot of work/expense getting another drummer up to scratch. It’s just the nature of these things.
But Black Comet has been working really hard, so I didn’t want that to come at the expense of our forward momentum.
So, although it was tough, there was only ever one answer to this problem, and I knew it immediately as soon as it popped up.
Black Comet will always take priority over these things, as we all made a commitment here. We are on a mission to take this thing as far as we possibly can.
It’s not just about me. I am 1 of 5 in this band, with a unified vision, and decisions like this impact everyone.
Session work is great, especially when you find a gig you connect with and enjoy, but it can’t be at the expense of projects you are investing in, and when others are counting on you, too.
And look, it’s not all bad, as they’ve actually already reached out asking if I can jump back in, in January, for a festival that the new drummer can’t do. Haha. Sweet.
But yeah, I just wanted to share this little anecdote around something that we all face, when it comes to playing for multiple artists, and the reality of…
The Choices We Have To Make.
Let’s leave it there for this week.
As always, thanks for taking the time, and thanks for all your feedback, too. I really appreciate it.
I read them all. So please, if you have any thoughts, send them through, and let’s get a dialogue happening.
Don’t forget… Stay hungry (and stay healthy!)
See you next week.
Stan