Music Lessons: Band Development - Dealing With Members Who Are Holding You Back

by Leon

The path to success in the music industry is long and hard, requiring all of your blood, sweat and tears, 24 hours a day and seven days a week to even get a glimpse of the rewards you dream of. And as you progress along this path you will find it is strewn with casualties. Of course, no-one wants to end up as yet another band who failed to achieve their full potential – but this fate is delivered upon more and more of our less fortunate contemporaries every day.

In this article will highlight an issue that will doom your band to failure if not addressed – that of band members who are holding you back. Everyone has a story when it comes to this – from the guitarist who repeatedly fails to turn up to practices (or even gigs!), to the keys player who never touches his/her instrument outside of the band room (eventually being left behind while everyone else's ability reaches the next level and beyond), to the vocalist whose ego and bad attitude alienates fans and important industry members alike. Left unchecked these rogue members will be your downfall.

So you're in a band, and someone in that band is holding the rest of you back. What do you do? Well, the first course of action should be to attempt to discuss the issue in question in a band meeting, so that you can all have your say on the topic. Try to be civil about it. In these situations it is easy for feelings to be hurt. Reckless accusations, threats and physical violence are rarely the way forward! Aim to draw up a constructive and positive plan of action that effectively deals with the problem, make sure it is agreed upon, and arrange future meetings at which your progress can be discussed.

If the issue is resolved at this stage, great! Your band is now a more cohesive and functional unit, and your chances of success have been greatly increased. But suppose this course of action fails? Say the rogue member refuses to accept responsibility for their shortcomings, or repeatedly fails to even turn up to any meeting at all. Whatever the reason, you are still no closer to your goal of becoming a better band. At this point you should consider 'firing' the rogue member. I must stress that this should only be your last resort – while it may seem easier to cut your losses and go on the hunt for a replacement, you run the risk of ruining any friendship built up between the opposing parties.

Firing someone is not a pleasant task, to say the least. I have seen the strongest friendships dissolve immediately as a direct result of it. So at this stage you have to weigh up the options. On the one hand you can allow the problem to continue, to inevitably lead to the failure of the band at some point, and on the other you have the risk of losing a friend. Only you can make this decision – each situation is different and there is no one-size-fits-all solution.

Alternatively, the rogue member may voluntarily and amiably decide to leave, without any permanent damage to your friendship. They may even recommend a replacement! At this point this is the best solution to your problems, and you can all happily continue on your separate journeys. If this happens, thank your lucky stars it worked out well! The experience of being the 'bad guy' and hurting your friends is never, ever enjoyable.

I hope you find this article useful should you find yourself in this difficult, apparently 'Catch 22' situation. Thanks for reading, and good luck! :)