How to Choose the right band for your Wedding

OK, so the date is set, the planning has started, your perfect day is in your sights. With the hundred and one things that you have to organise to make your wedding day perfect, there is little doubt hiring the right band or entertainment may be one of the most important decisions you can make.

 Setting the right atmosphere for your reception by choosing a professional experienced Wedding band or act may be the the differnce to really make your celebration one to remember

What kind of entertainment do you want ? 

There are many types of wedding / function bands. The most popular are

• rock /. indie / pop
• Soul / disco 
• Jazz / background
• Tribute ( dedciated to one act in particular - for example ' an ABBA tribute ' or a genre tribute, for example Motown) 
• Orchestral ( string quarlets etc ) 
• Rat pack / Big band / Crooners 

Timing and Tactics - get exactly what you want !

For many people a to book a band just for the reception is enough. But, there are no rules to how you want your wedding to pan out  with regards to entertainment.. For example, you may want a string quartet to play during the Wedding meal. Or you may want to actually book an acoustic act during the ceremony.- my own was booked to play a deaf wedding ( the bride and groom were hard of hearing / deaf  )  with a sign language interpreter during the ceremony for only 3 songs -  ( this was a specific request by the bride and groom for what they wanted from us on their special day)

 So booking entertainment may be a lot more creative than maybe just a live band at the reception. It's totally up to you and by dealing with an agency you can cover all the ins and outs of how your ideas and creative plans for your entertainment may become a reality

Why use an agency?

Many of the bands on agencies are experienced in playing Weddings and larger functions. Dealing with a good agency direct is helpful as they will recommend the best musical acts taliored for your exact needs, and know how to overcome any problems or worries you may have about technicalities. Therefore Problems you may or may not have seen are something that an agency will be aware of due to experience, and more often that not the agency will be able to answer most, if not all of your questions if you are unsure how certain things may work. 

Contracts

An agent will also write up a contract for you and the act. So everyone knows where they stand in the event of natural diaster or smaller problems or details. It is true that for many Weddings, booking a band that you know, or are recomended is normally a good option and sometimes the best. However by using an agent you have an intermediate who works in the best interest of the bands / acts and the client to make sure no stone is unturned in terms of what if situations and that you get exactly what you ask for. After all it does the agency no good at all to have booked you an unreliable or 2nd rate act. 

Reputation is Key

Most agencies are very strict with Bands / acts that have any bad feedback at all from the client that has Justification. They normally would drop the band from their roster if they were un-punctual or un proffessional. The reputation of the agency and acts they represent is key to the agency succsess. So by using an agency you are normally dealing with someone who understands all the ins and outs of supplying an act or band for your wedding and it is in their best interests to find you the best act available for your budget requirements. Agencies do not mess around with bad or unreliable acts. They are looking for the best acts they can possibly get !

Pricing and availability

How long is a peice of string? Pricing can vary for many reasons. An experienced popular and established wedding band no doubt charge higher as their diaries are alot busier an are in demand, and so will normally have a set rate they will rarely will not play less for. However, off peak nights, say midweek or even fridays and sundays could bring the price down. Some bands and agencies wont budge on price but some will depending on the day of the week and time of year.  The summer is going to be hard to get discounted acts due to it being a busy period, but in January for example bands and acts may play for less.

Other pricing considerations

• How many people in the band? - Also consider how many people there are in the band you book. If you want a solo acoustic act, this will come at much cheaper price then lets say an 8 piece soul band with brass section.
• Uniqueness - If the act you require is rare or even unique then expect that this will refelct in price
• Location - Most acts have an add on charge for distance.  A Band booked to play in their home townnwill obviosuly charge a less than if they have to travel 200 miles for the event
• Set length - how long do you want the band to play ? Most agencies will specify how long the act would normally play for, for their set price. Additional time could cost additional money

All things considered a band just starting out will normally come at cheaper price than a very busy experienced wedding band. Bands who are looking for work and want to build reputation will want to be paid well, but will be alot more flexable with pricing. The agent normally will give you options to bands on their books that are good but new,  and may come at price that fits your budget. Or even direct you to an excellent duo or solo act who may be amazing but are of course cheaper because their are less members in the band.

How much would you expect to pay? 

Most Agencies work on the basis that the act have a recomended price they work for and then an agent fee of 15 to 20 percent is put on top. So one band may cost £400 and another £1000. That is for the act to specify to the agent and the agency works off the indvidual bands / acts pricing structure.

For experienced bands who make a living from Weddings and Functions you would normally be looking at paying £700 plus to book them. ( it can be a lot more depending )  This may include the agents fee or the agents fee may be on top. Some bands will play for a lot less but you would be hard pushed to find an agency full band for less than £350. If you do pick up a band from an agency at very cheap price question why ? and make sure you check the band out as much as possible to guard against the fact they might not be that good as you think, or maybe they are just cheap and that's that

Its worth noting that tribute bands are normally expensive because they are specific in what they do.

Solo artists would normally come at least £200 upwards. Their is vast array of solo artists who can come at variable prices. If you have a low budget with careful research or the help of a good agency you can could pick up a gem of an act that fits your budget. This also applies to duos , but expect them at no cheaper than £250 / £300

Deposits

To confirm the booking as well as a signed contract the agency will normally ask for a deposit. This will protect you and the booked act against anything that goes horribly wrong. You can expect a full refund if their is major problem with the act - some agencies may hold back an admin fee, but a good agency will fully refund if the the problem has been with the act they supplied - it will all be specified in the contract of course so you know where you stand - worst scenario - the band didnt turn up! - very rare buthappens. Also if there is a viable exuse for a band not turning up - lets say a car accident or illness - the agent may be able to send down a replacement act at very short notice - and this may come at a disccount to over all price

.

Expect a deposit of 30 to 50 percent of overall price to confirm the booking. Once this has been paid and the contract signed then the act or band are committed to your Wedding. The remainder of the fee would normally be paid before the event. Each agency has its own policy within the contract, but expect to pay the rest a month or a week before the Wedding depending on the contract you have signed

What extra can the band provide ?

The band or act also may come with additional lighting and DJ options. This is worth asking the agency about when booking the act, if this is not specified in pre-contract discussions, ( it normally is specified ). Most serious weddings bands and acts ( but not all ) will set up their own lighting rig, ( and of course PA ), and some for an extra charge ( or free  ), will DJ the event to the end of the reception or when required. Price may fluctuate if you want the band to play longer than that they normally would. This would be negotiated before the contract is signed. Some bands however may play longer than asked on he night of the event for no extra charge. This is at their discretion if it is not in the contract.

Additional Details?

Ask the agency everything. Don't leave a stone unturned. Find out what songs the act or band normally play, and specify requests from the their repertoire or even ask for the band to learn certain songs you would like them to play. For most professional bands this is not a problem at all. Some discretion is maybe needed here. Although it is nice to have requests played or the band learn certain songs you wanted, it would be a  but much to ask the band to learn a whole new set? If this was the case maybe you have booked the wrong act and should look for one that plays the music you want. ( I once got asked to play a Wedding in my duo that we turned down because, although I was in an original act that mostly played original music - they wanted us to learn and play around 30 songs that we didn't know - due to time restraints and wondering why they wanted us we eventually turned down the show ) 

Make sure you are happy with your selection and everything is clear to all involved and that the agency and band /. act, know exactly what you want from them ( and that they are happy with this and can provide )  Read the contract and specify if you are not happy with anything - although most contracts look scary and cover quite a a lot- they are normally standard contracts that most agencies use with small changes depending on how that agency works. However, negotiate an amendment if needed.

To sum up

Obviously in the end - if you know a band personally or that come recommended then this may work for your Wedding.  As I mentioned earlier, this may be the best option for you. But agencies are their for a reason and specialise in sending quality acts that will deliver what you need with a written and signed contract.

On a day when you really want nothing to go wrong - and you want as little worry as possible it is worth remembered a good Live band agency wants to deliver a good service where everyone involved is satisfied and happy!!!

stuart mills ( music agent as apostrophe agency ) 

www.apostrophemusic.co.uk

Live Music At Cheltenham Races - Apostrophe Music

Apostrophe Music News

If your going to Cheltenham Race Week March 13th to 16th of March then you may be interested to know that Apostrophe Music are providing Live Entertainment at the Spectre Pub for four days consecutively during Cheltenham race week.

So once you have finished your great day at the races and are looking for somewhere to spend some of you winnings we highly recommend you have a look at the Quality Cover Acts we are providing The Spectre Pub that week.

LUKE BROWN

Wed 14th of March - start time 9 pm ( LADIES DAY at Cheltenham Races )

Most definitely an act for the ladies - young good looking with the voice of an angel - check out the very popular Luke Brown -

THE COPICATS

Thur 15th March - start time 7.30 pm ( St Patricks Thursday at Cheltenham Races )

 Without doubt the most popular Cover Band Apsostrophe have on their roster A Favourite at The Spectre the Copicats will not disappoint and if you want a good night out then go and party watching this great act!!!!!

  

THE GALLAGHERS  

Fri 16th March start time 7.30pm ( The Gold Cup at Cheltenham Races ) 

A fantastic Irish act to see out Cheltenham Races. We know Cheltenham will be cray after the Gold Cup so if you want to see out the race week and see in St Patricks day in style there is only one place to be. The Spectre pub !!!!

 A.K.A

Sat 17th March - start time 9.15 pm ( St Patricks Days )

Another Crowd Favourite at the Spectre Pub. AKA return to play you some top quality cover songs spanning many decades and will give your St Patrick Day Celebrations a massive boost if you are partying in the Spectre Pub 

www.apostrophemusic.co.uk

I named my company after my Favourite Album

Just a small mention about why I called my company Apostrophe. ( apostrophe music agency )
Even though I have a vast musical taste I have had a love affair with the music of Frank Zappa from the age of 16.The first album I heard written by Zappa made a distinct impression.

I was baby sitting for my auntie and, knowing I was into my ( vinyl ) records she allowed me access to her record collection and record player for the evening to occupy me . This was just total bliss for a 16 year old on an educational music mission. As I remember I scouted the Pink Floyd and the Led Zep as I was aquainted with those acts already. Then I pulled out an Album that really stood out just by this guys face on the Album cover....as displayed below

I thought 'wow - what  a moustache and square-type beard add on ' - yes so I thought this guys looked pretty interesting - ill give this record a whirl. ...... 40 mins later or so - I was thinking ' what the hell just happened ? where did that come from ? I've never heard anything like it. ', I think I played the album three times simultainiously - the third time recording it on to cassette tape. I was obessessed......

I will save time by not reviewing every song and showing my utter Geekness for this total genius of an album - but I was looking for some music that  I would fall in love with and this album was, and still is that.
Never has an album touched me as this one did. Never have I had a Girl Friend who hasn;t been subjected to having to listen to this album either ( with extremely mixed reactions ). My current Girlfriend being my favourite reaction of just, ' turn it off '. Not everyones cup of tea obviously.

However if you are reading this and are intrigued - and want to hear something that is truely unique then give it a go --- apostrophe ----and let me know how you found it, and if you want a little extra info on the man that wrote it check out Frank Zappa -

Anyway - the imprint on my mind of this work made it very easy for me to finalise the name for my company Apostrophe Music. It's kind of my personal Ode to the man that made the music on this fine album.

rest in peace Frank

Original Songwrtiters v Cover / Tribute Acts and some ramblings

Original Songwriters v Cover / Tribute Acts and some ramblings

I have been writing and performing original Music for for 14 years. As well as promoting small venues and trying to help expose original acts. In the early days I had a touch of bitterness towards towards cover acts. I certainly did not book many and concentrated on booking original acts trying to help them get exposed on a larger scale ( the ones I beleived in ). After seven years of promoting I finally saw a local talent get signed to a major label - Scott Matthews to Island Records. His original release on the small label ' san remo ' I got a credit for helping with exposure as I was the only person shouting from the rooftops about Scott ( as well as his small label and management team) . My part in it was small - I just thought this guy was hell of a talent. As far as I know the original sales were not massive of his début album but he did win the Novella Award for the song ' elusive ' - which is the industry saying song of year!!! so well done him.
 Personally it was satisfying to see someone I knew and had been involved with for many years go on and have some success and to play a very small part in this certainly made me proud as low level local live band promoter. At that point I had booked maybe over 1000 bands and acts or so from the Midlands area all with hopes and dreams. And it had been disappointing not to see anyone go on to a larger scale.
 Around that time also, other acts I had booked frequently Like NIZLOPI ( number one with the JCB song ) and the Twang also had major mainstream sucsess.
 All of these three acts are of course original Acts and write original music. As do I. with my beloved friend and singer Omoyele. In those days I was totally in the low end music biz touting about originality and that was reflected in how I ran events and what kind of acts I was interested in booking. This attitude was of course partly fuelled by being in an original act myself and knowing how hard it is out there to get your music noticed and heard - and to be fair to get people interested in going to your gigs. Of course as soon as an act you have been touting ( and people don't listen ) gets any kind media attention or success then the people that were not listening before suddenly are. I haven't really got a problem with that - that is just surely human nature and the reaction to the media saying buy it / see it / like it / love it. Add credibility of T V advert for instance against a small time promoter saying you gotta check this act out and it is very understandable why interest is then ten fold with the credibility of high profile marketing and adds.
 For the hardcore original artists out there reading this post - at this point I could quite easily get into thee X-Factor debate and how crappy the high end Music Industry is and how it works. However , as I come to my point of original acts v cover acts I think I should just say I'm not going there with this Blog just yet. As I'd be going very slightly off my point. Although, I understand I could quite easily get into all that ....not just yet.
So ok Omoyele, the act I play guitar in. One thing I noticed, and use, and still do during our performances, is to drop certain covers in our set to grab attention. We are an original act and play the odd cover for fun. However, we soon noticed that dropping in the right cover at the right time could change an audience reaction to you instantly. For example , a lot of our early gigs were at busy bars maybe open mics etc - and maybe we wouldn't be playing to ' our ' crowd - so naturally people will talk and attention to what we doing on stage may not have been great - and it is then the case of grabbing their attention - we have a lot of quiet songs I suppose - finger picked on guitar - and its a hard job to get people to listen sometimes. Drop in the right cover and hey presto people start taking notice - and then are more inclined to give you a proper listen. We found our cover of Led Zeps ' bring it on home ' ( "Bring It On Home" (Sonny Boy Williamson II song), a blues song, later reworked by Led Zeppelin ) worked for us - in fact it could silence a busy bar - and get them all looking our way and interested.. So now its gets in our set, 2nd song in normally, if we playing pub gigs with our original music etc.  Case in point - By using someone else's song to grab attention - there is more interest on us for the remainder of our show. ( it might tail off - but still - heads were turned )

 And my point is it is about what do people want to listen to? .To me it maybe this simple. I love the music I have written - and have a high regard for it ( just like most original acts do ) - but do random people want to listen to it ? some people do - but most people would rather not have to listen too hard. They would prefer to listen to lots of famous songs they already know. I used to hate the idea of this. But then I realised, no, if someone's out having a good time - and they walk in a pub and there is a random covers act ( who really are doing a great a job ) of playing lots of hits from 5 decades adding to the atmosphere of a lively night out, with people singing along and dancing and having a good time, what's wrong with that? ) If they walk in the same pub and there is an original act playing ( maybe the next Oasis or Radiohead ) they just are not going to get the same reaction - a quality original act will always go down better than a bad one - but still people unfamiliar with the original music will find it hard to give it the attention it needs. Massively so if the point of them being in the bar in the first place is to get drunk and chat etc
 That's not to say that original music shouldn't be given a chance and there are thousands of venues and promoters catering for this - good established small venues and promoters will do a great job of exposing the cream of the crop new talent  they find. It is a hard job and takes dedication from all involved - Oh and  passion - sometimes your lucky - if someone comes along that has so much original talent no one can ignore them. And on the same hand much talent slips through the net - too much !!! but the world we live in is the general public don't try out new acts - friends and family mostly support new talent ( in venues - not fans - although fans can be built up locally - not until the original act has major media help will others soon follow - word of mouth is golden but sometimes is not enough to help out new talent - before Scott Matthews signed to Island he rarely pulled more than 20 in my venue - now he sells 600 plus I would guess in the same city.
 In general People prefer what they already know - Cover band and tributes - I book solo acts that play covers in bars they will get Oasis requests all night long  etc etc - Very occasionally someone will walk over and ask - do you write your own music ? Oh that makes me smile but also the so does  the rest of the pub who are enjoying, not really caring if they do or they don't write their own music- they are just enjoying the show !
 One of my acts I represent is currently turning heads as a cover act - his solo shows really show him off as a young talented singer - he makes great money doing this and people ask me ' why isn't he famous yet , he should be etc '  - his passion is his original song writing- and like most musicians that turn to cover or tribute work , whilst he waits for his big moment he is happy making some extra cash entertaining people with covers....and the people he plays for love it - His name is LUKE BROWN and I will surely keep you posted  in his development - Is he a cover act ? an original act ? or just a young talent that I'd rather not see slip through the net - check him out and spread the word on www.apostrophemusic.co.uk