How many here play live vs. do not play live?

How many here play live or used to play live regularly before the pandemic?

  • Yes.

    Votes: 71 63.4%

  • No, I use the Axe-Fx (or other gear) strictly for recording, home use, as a hobby, etc

    Votes: 41 36.6%
  • Total voters
    112
Jason Scott

Jason Scott

Fractal Fanatic
Do you play live / did you play live before the pandemic? Or do you strictly record, play at home, are a hobbyist, etc? By "play live", I'm referring to people who recently and regularly perform live or did so before the pandemic. I'm not referring to someone who's played live a couple of times or used to play live years ago.
 
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Pre-pandemic, I was playing live at least once or twice a month. Some months, I never even plugged in my guitars except at gigs. (I do a certain amount of practicing and learning with an unplugged guitar.) So for me, I've used the Axe-Fx live at least as much as I've used it at home. We're currently booked for one gig every month through the end of the year, starting back up in May. There will likely be other gigs added as things pick up here again.

Disclaimer: I used to play guitar for a living - 8 to 10 hours per day - either performing or teaching. I got burnt out on it and walked away for about 30 years. These days, I'm an old fart and not interested in spending all of my spare time playing, but I still get a thrill out of performing in front of people.
 
Jason Scott said:
Do you play live / did you play live before the pandemic? Or do you strictly record, play at home, are a hobbyist, etc? By "play live", I'm referring to people who recently and regularly perform live now vs. before the pandemic? I'm not referring to someone who's played live a couple of times or used to play live years ago.
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Before the pandemic, recording with an AxeFX was rarely a topic of discussion here. Even now, most of the rig pictures that are posted are of live rigs.
 
I was doing it a couple times a week usually, occasionally three times/week, sometimes once/week, depending on my level of being tired or fed-up. 1.5 years later, we're just starting to see things open up, and I'm going to be out there getting my "noisy therapy" on again soon. I got to play last Saturday and it was intimidating but fun except for my fingers having minds of their own.
 
I've been in about seven bands and never made it past the third show with any of them. Recorded a two song demo once. I'm pretty young so a lot of that has to do with immaturity / inexperience at the time.

Recently though (beginning of pandemic), I was invited to join a band, bought a guitar to specifically to play with these guys. We wrote 3 songs, the pandemic hit in full force and radio silence from anybody. I've tried reaching out to the guys and nada.

Maybe it's me, I don't know. But at the end of the day, I just like to make music. If that ends up being on my own so be it, I've gotten burned getting invested in "the band" a time too many. :astonished:
 
I have played many gigs in the last 40 years, but now:

Pandemic + old age and back pain + Bangkok heat, pollution and traffic jams + lack of good rock singers = Play from home 🏡
 
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Regular live gigs before the pandemic, some during, and recently things are coming back a bit.
 
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I'm not a big fan of being a bedroom player. IMHO its not the natural place to be for a musician. We need to be out there in the wild, with other people, feeding off each other's energy, and more importantly, off the energy of a crowd.

Having said that, I can totally 100% understand being burned out on playing with other people. There are so many different kinds of musicians and if the wrong ones get together, like in a bad marriage, they will destroy each other. Nothing will frustrate an ambitious musician with a pro attitude more then an amateur who only wants to play a couple of gigs a year and who barely even invests in their own gear. Meeting such people again and again in new bands will sour you on music, because sadly amateurs form the vast majority of musicians. And of course primadonnas can never stand for another primadonna. I was once in a band with two of them, the singer and the drummer, they were fighting so hard in rehearsal the band never got off the ground and it actually traumatized the lead guitarist to the point he wouldn't want to be in another band for decades. Funny thing was that outside of the band those two guys were best of friends. And god help the ambitious band that has no manager type among them, because they won't get anywhere except the odd local pub. Where they don't want to be.

Yeah, if you don't find the right people to be in a band with, chances are it will scar you for life to playing with other people.
 
I used to play live all the time, bare minimum once a week. But, haven't played a gig in a very long time and probably never will again. That ship has sailed. Now I just play for my own amusement, write songs, record them, try to improve my mixing skills and wish I could release my new stuff in 1989.... :lol:
 
Before the lockdown, gigged about 3-4 times a month. Last year we couldn't even get a rehearsal in with all the restrictions. Now lucky to get at least one practice a month. Was gigging every weekend a few years back.
 
I’m in a band that rehearsed regularly but giggled infrequently, maybe 3-4 times a year. We love getting together to play, write, and record music and if there’s a gig here and there, great. We last rehearsed in March 8 of 2020, but are hopeful by May we will all have had our second jab and been clear for two subsequent weeks.

Even though we mostly play in a basement once a week for a few hours, it’s striking how much I miss it. It is a creative and energetic release that I need in my life.
 
Play in bars and for other events once or twice each month, that's as much as my wife will let me. Rehearsals every week - always working on new cover tunes and song mash-ups.
 
I’ve been playing with the same drummer and guitarist coming up on 20 years. Used to DIY tour a few times a year playing basements and parties but now we all have wives and kids. Our local scene completely dried up (or we’re just too old now to be in the know) but we still play every week.
 
Was happily playing 3-4 times a month before the sniffle panic. Two unique, well rehearsed, bands that I was very proud of are now down the toilet. No place to play, so my bandmates threw in the towel. A third project that would have been my dream band: stillborn.

To say that I'm bitter would be vastly understating.
 
Regular gigs, open mic nights and jam sessions with others pre-covid, not so much now. I get together once a month or so with a couple of buddys in a 3 piece to try keep that 'live' playing up to speed vs always playing with jam tracks. The thrill and satisfaction of being able to play off of others to build the momentum, tension and release while playing live is something I seriously miss.
 
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