How do I start a metal band? 10 points for best answer!!?

Question

I'm 17 and I'm a girl. Ive been playing guitar for 9 years. I'm pretty good. I want to start a metal band but I want to get serious with it, like get noticed. A few questions though...do people still even like metal though? And I actually want all my members to be male though..so do u think its weird for a female to be the only girl in a band? And how do I get members in my band? What's it like being in a band? Have you ever been in one? I know you have to be considerate of others and think about them too but I have my personal style, kinda like nirvana or a metallica sound. Where can I find members to be in my band in Kansas city? It's actually kinda easy for me to get in the music industry because my step dad works at a radio station but he does all kinds of stuff when it comes to demos and interviewing celebrities and being security at concerts and stuff.

Answer 1

Step 1: Get some friends. Or if you already have friends, ask them to join your band (if they play any instruments.)

Step 2: Write some songs. They could be about anything, but since this is a Metal band, you might wanna write something aggressive and angry.

Step 3: Learn to scream without hurting your vocal cords. There are special techniques on YouTube, and MANY of them, that sound awesome. (My favorite scream comes from Marilyn Manson. Listen to The Fight Song or I Don't Like The Drugs (But the Drugs Like Me) or Long Hard Road Out Of Hell.)

Step 4: Schedule some appearances in places like open houses (make sure it's a place where the audience would actually like your music.)

Step 5: Record some stuff. It's real easy to set up a recording studio in your bedroom or basement.

Step 6, and this is the hardest: Look for a nice label. Try to get signed, and try HARD. If one label rejects you, keep trying with different labels. OR OR OR OR you could try and go independent. You'll have to sell your EPs/singles/albums online as digital downloads. But that's MUCH harder, since labels have all the resources for things you'll need, like directors for music videos and ad creators. But if you go indie, keep reading. I mean, Matt & Kim did it and look where they are now!

Step 7: Create your own website or hire someone to create a website for you. I would much recommend that you hire a programmer, lest you want your site to be crappy.



Oh, I forgot, if you don't have (m)any friends who are willing to join your band, you could always hold an audition. Just saying. But get to know people first.



Step 8: Hire some lawyers. Better safe than sorry.

Step 9: Hire some stage designers. They're the guys who make the props and costumes and lights and screens and stuff for your stage and live performances.

Step 10: DEFINITELY post some music videos. Make a bunch of social media accounts (like Twitter, email, BandCamp, stuff like that.)

Step 11: Create a bank account for the band if you decide to go indie, since technically, having a band is considered a business. Then you can wire the bank account to your band mates, and it's easier to pay them.

Step 12: Try and open for other acts before you have your own concerts, just so you'll gather a following and gain some fans so people will know who you are.

Step 13: Start a tour. Your label/manager will take care of that for you, but if you're indie, you'll have to represent yourself and schedule for yourself. Yeah, hard work. But start off small, though.

Step 14: Put out an album. Make talk show appearances, really try as hard as you can to really get out there!



Notes: You can't afford to be picky and choosy about whether the people in your band are male or female, now can you?

Nirvana isn't metal, they're grunge. I'll let it slide this time because you didn't know. :)

Remember, the more theatrical your live performances are, the more expensive they'll be, meaning the more expensive the tickets will have to be, and no one will come.

Make sure your lawyers are good, and budget correctly. Actually, you might wanna hire an accountant for you. Or get a manager. S/he'll do all that crap for you.

Hmmm...What else?

It's not so bad. It is really damn hard work, though. Busy all the time. All. The. Time. You'll have to get up at like 5 AM to catch a plane to tour, plus you have to move all your heavy equipment by yourself into the places you'll be performing, which isn't fun.

Don't let your band mates change your music, but also consider their ideas.

I guess that's it. Good luck! :D

Answer 2

The best way to get a band going is to find like-minded individuals with similar goals. Or get involved and make friends with your local music scene. Sometimes the best way to get a band going is to join one that already exists. A lot of times that is actually easier.

Once in a band the best way to get noticed isn't youtube, or recordings. It is now and always has been live performance. Play for 50 people the same way you'd play for 500, or 5000. It's all about passion and what you put into it. A big problem I see with a lot of younger bands (and older guys who wonder why they never made it big) is that there is no stage presence. Watch guys like Freddie Mercury, Bruce Dickinson, or Steve Vai...you'll see definite stage presence. It doesn't matter how good the music is, if you're standing still and looking bored, the audience will feel the same way. In other words..."If you're not feeling your music, why should we?". To quote Skwissgaar Skwigelf..."The audience ams a fickle mistress".





As for your other questions...Being in a band is both fun and a pain in the *** at the same time. I love it. Being able to see something you heard in your head made into a real song is awesome...however, you still have to rely on other people and not everybody is as reliable as you'd like. I've played in bands for the last 15 years and I still have issues with people not showing up for rehearsal, not putting in effort to contribute, or screwing around when things are just starting to flow nicely. It is also very easy to become a musical dictator, but there are times when having a completed song before submitting it to your band is necessary. Especially in the beginning when you're trying to get things going. Collaboration is better though once you've played together for a couple weeks and get a feel for how everybody works best. Don't be surprised if your songs take a long time to "finish" being written. Some songs just never get to that point and are destined for the land of B-sides. Then, some of the best songs are written off the cuff. Dimebag Darrell used to say that most of Pantera's good songs were written in about 20 minutes. Hell, "Paranoid" by Black Sabbath was written in about 5 minutes off the cuff to fill up extra space on the album. Then you get things from bands like Dream Theater and guys like Steve Vai, that have obviously taken a while to compose. It just depends on how complex the music in your head is.



I don't know how effective it is, but you could try meeting other musicians in your area through a website like http://www.bandmix.com/

I've never used it, but a buddy of mine met his current singer through there and likes to talk it up, so give that a shot.

Answer 3

I feel a band that begins with the "letter" Asterisk can be pretty lame. However bands that begin with the pound signal - oh man. They are hardcore. And through hardcore, i do not mean this new style that got here along and ruined real rock. Together with screamo. Screamo makes me wish to in no way hearken to any new track once more. But steel... Oh man.. Supply me classic 80s metallic...