5 things I've learned about musicians

Since last February, BAMM.tv has invited over 30 bands to our San Francisco studio to perform short sets. These performances are live-streamed over the old internet. Following the show the team at BAMM.tv mixes the audio and edits the video, and in a few weeks the entire performance is polished and adorned with some serious bells and whistles. Our basic belief is there are a ton of incredible bands and artists out there that you don't know about, that you ought to know about, and if we can help you find them then everybody wins.

In most cases, we include a short interview with the bands following their performance. I have conducted most of these interviews, for better or worse. Here are 5 things I've learned about musicians, based on my conversations over the past 8 months.

1. 98 percent of all the musicians that have come through BAMM.tv are polite, intelligent, regular folk. Granted, we aren't scheduling U2 here, but musicians--regardless of their status--oftentimes carry the following labels: prima donna, self-absorbed, melodramatic, unreliable, etc. I don't know about you, but I find it a lot easier to get behind a band that is made up of people who work hard and who aren't dicks.

2. Musicians are savvy, and the successful ones know how to hustle (I mean this in the best possible way). Most of the bands that come through BAMM.tv are on their own, and the ones that are signed to labels aren't exactly rolling up in a Porche with a model in the passenger seat (old Volvos, Subarus, and Econoline vans are more popular choices). The musicians we've worked with oftentimes approach their music as any founder of a start-up would. They are their own manager, their own booker, driver, guitar tech, roadie, website admin, album artist, and accountant. They are a study in multitasking, because they have to be if they want to play anywhere other than the corner bar.

It's impressive to be sure, but I often wonder when they find time to be creative. I was talking to Ben Morrison of The Brothers Comatose about this just the other night. He had spent the past 8 hours working on the website, updating Facebook, posting tweets (how I hate this term, but I need to get over it already), and so on. I thought, "That's awesome, Ben. But I like you in the songwriter role more than I like you for your social media skills." I worry that the folks that are really making a run at a music career don't spend enough time on what ultimately matters--writing better and better songs. It felt good to hear Matt Adams of The Blanks Tapes tell us that he usually writes anywhere from 30-50 songs for an album. He's managed to keep his focus on his most important asset. This isn't as common as you would hope.

3. Band back-stories are boring. In many of the earlier interviews I would start with the stock question--"How did you all come to be in this band?" Turns out--and I know this will come as a shocker--most bands are formed by...wait for it...a group of "friends." These "friends" usually "hang out" together, and oftentimes they share interests, like music. Sometimes they even meet at concerts, and, being fellow music-lovers, they bond over music. Bands come from all different places, like Oakland, Sacramento, Lodi, a small town called Los Angeles, or even places not in California. They spend some time "jamming," and perform for the first time at an open mic or a shitty bar. They stick with it, realize they really do get along, and then they get better at writing songs. I know there were a lot of mind-blowing realizations in that paragraph. Take a minute if need be.

4. Drummers are second-class citizens. I don't know how this started, but drummers get no love. If a band messes up during one of their songs, all looks go to the drummer. The tempo was all wrong. Too fast. Too slow. Wrong fill. I should know, because I'm guilty of this many times over. You might as well lump bassist in this category as well. Guitarists and singers better recognize. The best part is, the drummer and bassist are usually the most educated musicians in the band. They are the glue, and without them these bands would be just another folk duo in the coffee shop singing cringe-worthy knock offs of one of following three songwriters--Bob Dylan, Jeff Tweedy, or John Mayer/Dave Matthews.

5. I have a renewed faith in music. There really are so many incredible bands out there that stand up to just about anything we have on our iPods. Great songs--not good, but great songs--surround us and we don't know about them. We just need to look a little harder, look in different places, and most importantly go to local shows. Don't just show up for your friend's set, see the opener. My hope is that BAMM.tv can expose you to as much of this great music as possible. And with that in mind, I should probably get back to some booking.

Phil