Quote:
Originally Posted by AwwSugar
I don't like the idea of making a band a dictatorship.
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that's why i specified a democratic dictatorship. i don't see anything wrong with taking ownership of your vision. it only becomes an issue if you start trying to control your band members, you can have 'your' band 'your' way and still have input from all members. if some input strays too far from your vision then address it in the moment, afford them the freedom to pursue interests independently of your own but still welcome them back into your fold when they want to play your style.
my personal experience with the situation did ultimately fail, but not for lack of trying. i expressed my views on what i wanted to do with my music, my 3 friends all agreed and nodded along. then any time i'd start talking about some sort of public performance the issues that 2 claimed to not have would crop up again and again. i'd tell them flat out that there were 6 other nights in the week where they could follow other directions and play other styles. the only one who did that was the, technically speaking, 'bad' drummer. funny how he's the only one i'd consider playing music with now if we could only collaborate schedules and find a jam room.
the drama and underlying tensions of the situation soured two friendships and resulted in complete stagnation of our music. it would be super nice if everyone could just get everything going smoothly, but fact is, the world isn't fair and human life isn't infinite, so having a room of guys all biting their tongues because they'd rather say what they think the other guys want to hear rather than what's really going on is futile.
it's not to say the other way doesn't work, but i think it has to be established from the get go. if you've got a vision, lay it out in black and white for the other guys and let them make their choice to follow along. on the other hand if you want to make it a full on by the people, for the people collaborative effort express it that way as well and make sure everyone tosses their opinion to the mix.
ultimately, just like playing music, there's no right or wrong way to handle a band, but i do think that any musician getting involved in a band needs to take the time to do a little soul searching to figure out just what they think a band should be and what they want to get out of it. then it needs to be expressed openly and honestly with all other potential band members, and if everyone ends up on the same page from their own internal devices then hold on because you just started something seriously serious.