Rehearsal Log… Thursday 22nd November 2018

With only 3 sessions (Including today's) remaining it is important that we keep on track and focus on getting through a full set list performed as if we were on stage. This is important as we haven’t been through the songs fully and tried to go into the next song straight after, This will be a challenge as we have to know exactly where we need to start and get there quickly. Ideally the transition between songs should be between 10-15 seconds, which is just enough time to get ready and do the count in for the next song. As a band we have discussed the setlist for the gig and we have decided to start with the Amy Winehouse song ‘You Know I’m No Good’ followed by the Adele song ‘ Make You Feel My Love’ and ending with Stevie Wonder ‘Master Blaster’ We decided this order as the beginning and ending are the most upbeat meaning the most memorable to the audience will be the most upbeat ones.

During this rehearsal session we did a couple of run throughs of each song and tried to improve the arrangement as a band and tried to give a better performance. For master blaster we tried focusing on the transition from the second guitar solo part back into the main chord progression, this is a part we struggle with as we lose momentum and end up stuttering and it sound rough and unclear. For ‘You Know I’m No Good’ we focused on getting through the structure of the song and trying to swap between the correct chord progressions from the verse and the chorus. We also need to work on the ending of the song to make it sound clean and smooth and not abrupt or unfinished. For the Adele song we are working on how the arrangement should be so when the different instruments come in. For the duration of the song we will keep the Piano in as it is a ballad style song and the piano is good for that we will have guitar outlining the chords throughout most of the song and we are thinking of adding a simple melodic guitar solo in to brighten up the song and make it a bit different. For next week’s rehearsals we are going to do a complete run through of the set and make the transitions much cleaner. For this to happen we are all going to rehearse the songs at home like we have been to ensure that we are as clean and as confident as we can be before we try and go through the whole set. I am looking forward to the gig but as it gets closer and closer and the band are still not on top form and nailing the song every time with perfection I am getting slightly nervous and worried that it won’t go as smoothly as planned. To prevent this happening I put in a lot of work at home to rehearse the songs so that I know them to the best of my ability.

JWJ