McVie is a baddass and can do what he wants, but he also helped inspire the ‘Craigslist Bassist’ look..sorry dude.

Don’t click on that craigslist post just yet.

Unless, you want roll up to the “try out”, an hour away from home, to meet up with a grip of guys who look like John McVie circa The Dance. Exaggeration? Kinda, but not really. With all the craigslist band horror stories it makes you wonder what happened to old school networking, word of mouth and building a reputation when looking to get in a band.

An advantage “word of mouth” has over responding to random internet posts is that your name will be passed around a certain group or circle. From the fringes of that group starts another circle and so on and so forth. You can get ten Craigslist gigs from here to Albany but they’re not connected, there isn’t a solid foundation or scene who knows what you’re capable of. With all the craigslist band horror stories, it makes you wonder what happened to old school networking

Having your name passed around by just playing out and showcasing your ability is the best way to find a group of musicians you want to work with.

So, if you’re new to a city, looking to start a band, or just want to play around, here are a few tips on rebuilding or expanding your musician network:

Make Friends With Jazz Musicians
You might not play jazz, you might not even like it, but Jazz players are the whores of the musician world. Most of these guys, especially the poor souls who went to school for Jazz Composition, play in at least half a dozen ‘projects’ or bands. Most of the time you will find that the guitarists and bassists play in a few pop/rock bands, basically for either paying gigs or potentially paying gigs. There is always at least one who wants to start a full on, straight up rock n’ roll band. Not only will they have plenty of musicians to pick from, their compositional skills are awesome when writing as a group.

Pick Up Overflow
When I first moved to New York a friend of mine put me in contact with his bass player. This guy was a really good bassist and consequently had too many projects. He started passing me the gigs he couldn’t take that he thought were up my alley. I took every one of them, and yes, some where complete crap, some were slightly embarrassing, but with each project I met a few more musicians and played a few more shows. See what happens when you rely on Craigslist? Possibly the worst music ever… by planet_oleary via Flickr

Call Up Musicians You Have A History With
If you’ve been playing for awhile you have probably worked with plenty of musicians. Call these people up, and see if they have any friends in your immediate area. All you need is one reference to say, “Give this guy a try, he’s good”.

If you live in a music hub like New York, Chicago, New Orleans, L.A., etc. you’ll find you already have few people from your past you can touch base with. All you’re basically looking for is one connection that can start passing your name around.

Not Your Cup of Tea? Play It Anyways
That’s all I got on that.

Get Out, Go To Shows, Talk To People
Get a feel for the clubs, bars, and venues of your city. If a band catches your ear, talk to them after the show. They’re easy enough to find, just walk outside and most of them will be smoking. Tell them you’re new in the city and looking to play out, I’d be surprised if you didn’t get a few numbers going immediately.

Patience
It can take awhile. For me it took more than a year, 6 projects, a few dozen gigs and one foot-controlled lightshow (while playing… horrible, horrible show) before I started working with a band of proper villains.

Oh yeah, last but not least:

Pick Up A Bass
Having no luck at all, pick up a bass! You’ll have a gig in no time.