I'd say that's definitely not the norm most places - I would never assume there will be backline.
Sharing a bass cab and basic drum kit is pretty normal and is always coordinated beforehand (in my experience).
If your band has anything beyond pointing mics at guitar amps and maybe a DI on the bass going on (ie, synths/anything "weird" with the drums), ask the promoter to let the sound person know.
Bring your own vocal mics - that's one thing that's changed most places post-pando. It's not expected but it's generally encouraged.

mdc wrote: Thu Mar 02, 2023 2:34 pm I'd say that's definitely not the norm most places - I would never assume there will be backline.
Sharing a bass cab and basic drum kit is pretty normal and is always coordinated beforehand (in my experience).
If your band has anything beyond pointing mics at guitar amps and maybe a DI on the bass going on (ie, synths/anything "weird" with the drums), ask the promoter to let the sound person know.
Bring your own vocal mics - that's one thing that's changed most places post-pando. It's not expected but it's generally encouraged.

I would have never thought to bring my own vocal mics, great idea!

mdc wrote: Thu Mar 02, 2023 2:34 pm If your band has anything beyond pointing mics at guitar amps and maybe a DI on the bass going on (ie, synths/anything "weird" with the drums), ask the promoter to let the sound person know.

Yup - everyone in a band RN should google "what is a stage plot" and then put one together ESPECIALLY if you have any of the non-standards mentioned above. Get it to the promoter/sound guy as early as possible although offering it to the tech day-of isn't bad either. I think putting these together is actually kinda fun to do - similar to that thread a few years back where folks were drawing/illustrating their guitar signal path in a rig rundown sort of way. Bands that I work with that are more profesh also will have an input list etc but these are more for when they bring their own FOH engineer.

But yeah the more complicated/weirdo your band's deal is, the better it is to take the time to try to communicate your needs in an easily understandable way. Working with a sound tech should never be a battle as the end goal is always the same.*

*that being said, I know there's a lot of shitty/burned out techs out there too. Even then it might be helpful to get the communications going and be as helpful as possible so they don't end up fucking you over accidentally/intentionally.

The shared club backline thing definitely just seems like an NYC thing, but that makes sense w/ so many fewer people having cars. The one time I played in NYC on tour, the local band actually ended up using our gear (which of course they didn't ask us about until after we'd finished playing and we were starting to tear down our stuff).

I'm almost always cool if someone wants to use my bass cabs, and I've got a minivan and would rather play through my stuff, so no harm there. The last two bands I've been in the drummers have been left handed, and set up opposite, so using a backline kit is kinda more a pain in the ass then them just using their own kit and quickly pulling if off stage.

COMPRESSOR PEDALS

Buying a new 12-string, seems like a compressor pedal would be nice to have.

Janglebox? Analogman CompRossor? Xotic SP? Does Dr. Balls make a compressor?


GIMME THOUGHTS!

Dr Tony Balls wrote: Thu Mar 02, 2023 1:43 pm

Owen wrote: Thu Mar 02, 2023 10:47 am Is sharing a kit (bring your snare, cymbals, kick pedal) and cabs the norm now?

Not sure your locale but at least here (NYC) sharing is not usually the norm, but a venue-provided partial backline definitely is the norm. Almost everything i've played in recent history (bar/venue type places) has drums, hardware, and a bass amp. Drummers bring snare, cymbals, kick pedal, clutch, usually. Sometimes they have a guitar cab or two as well, but not always. Sometimes they'll even have guitar amps, but that's not very common.

There is one notable exception (Union Pool) which specifically suggests band coordination and sharing because they dont have much in terms of backline, and they have limited storage space.

I was blown away by that in NYC - I wish that had been the case in Toronto where there was enough backlines around that it trained people to bring nothing, but wasn't consistent enough to count on. Seemingly if you're an out of town band, all the in-town bands expected to use your gear because they all took the subway to the show.

four_oclocker_2.2 wrote: COMPRESSOR PEDALS

Buying a new 12-string, seems like a compressor pedal would be nice to have.

Janglebox? Analogman CompRossor? Xotic SP? Does Dr. Balls make a compressor?


GIMME THOUGHTS!

I like the Xotic SP, which is capable of doing subtle well. And honestly after the first hour subtle is probably all you will use.

Favorite compressors by a guy who hates compression -

barber tone press
Union tube and transistor lab
$40 dynacomp for weird lead sounds

I have owned Janglebox, Keeley compressors and didn’t keep them

penningtron wrote: Fri Mar 03, 2023 9:56 am

four_oclocker_2.2 wrote: COMPRESSOR PEDALS

Buying a new 12-string, seems like a compressor pedal would be nice to have.

Janglebox? Analogman CompRossor? Xotic SP? Does Dr. Balls make a compressor?


GIMME THOUGHTS!

I like the Xotic SP, which is capable of doing subtle well. And honestly after the first hour subtle is probably all you will use.

I second the Xotic SP. Also the 4-knob Keeley with the blend is a good inexpensive option.

penningtron wrote: Fri Mar 03, 2023 9:56 am And honestly after the first hour subtle is probably all you will use.

I got a Keeley Compressor+ a little bit ago, and kind of quickly came to the conclusion that most of the time I really don't like compression on guitar. Obviously it works great for some things, but for me it felt like there was a governor on my right hand. Do Not Like. I turned the blend all the way down and just use it as a boost.