Hi,
Last week we discussed how to book your shows. This week we’re going to talk about energizing them.
I am talking about light shows, one of my favorite subjects to discuss.
In this newsletter, we will address a few of the ways that a light show can help you to dramatically improve your shows.
We hope you enjoy this issue of the Gorilla Newsletter.
Cheers,
John Michalak
Author of “The 5 Steps to Becoming the Biggest Band in Town”
Vice President of Gorilla Music
Light Shows Create Excitement, Increase Energy Levels, and Build a Professional Atmosphere
By John Michalak
One of my favorite subjects regarding shows is lighting. I guess it goes back to my younger years when Kiss was my favorite band. I loved the music and the make-up, but when the lights went wild and the confetti started falling from the sky, I was mesmerized.
Now most clubs have lights but no one to run them. The great thing about a club’s lights is that almost anyone can run them for you. You can usually get a friend to run them for free, and you can usually teach them how to do it in five to ten minutes.
It’s so easy to do, yet no one does it. Most groups don’t even think about the lights. Leaving the settings the same, the soundman simply turns them on and never changes a thing.
Most lighting systems are simple; they have about 6-12 scenes (a group of lights that all turn on or off at the same time with the push of a button), and they have single faders (individual lights on a switch) that can turn single lights on, off, or somewhere in-between.
At the local level, your light show is critical, and here are a few reasons why:
1. Lights can make your shows more exciting for your fans.
I have found that the best light shows are all about movement. If you can create movement, then the human-eye stays entertained. If the eye has nothing to look at, then it gets bored and so do the people watching your show.
2. Lights can help to make you look like a national act.
You can use your light show to make your group look professional. This technique is almost subliminal; almost all national acts use it all the time while very few local groups use it at all. It’s called a black-out, and all you do is black out the stage for about two seconds, in-between songs.
The light person turns off all of the lights for a second or two at the end of each song. He then turns them up just a little until the next song begins. He does this so that the band can be seen on stage but the fans can’t see the whole stage until the next song starts.
3. Lights can increase the energy levels on stage and inside the venue.
The great thing about light is how they affect everyone in the room including the members of the group. I promise you that the better your light show is, the higher the energy level will be in the room and on stage.
Make every show the best it can be by putting on a great show, filling up the room with your fans, and by making stronger connections with you fans.
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