From Pub to Main Stage: Phase 1, Part 2 - Gig Etiquette

In our last post, we broke down how to strategically conquer your local circuit and expand your reach through the power of gig-swapping. But packing a room is only half the battle. If you want to make sure you get invited back to that room, and eventually graduate to the festival circuit, you need to master Gig Etiquette.

You can have the best riffs in the world, but if you are a nightmare to work with behind the scenes, your journey ends right here in the local pub. Word travels fast in the music industry. Promoters, venue owners, other bands, and sound techs all talk to each other.

At Beermageddon, we have over 70 years of collective industry experience. Trust us when we say: your attitude on stage and backstage is just as important as your music.

Here is your definitive, no-nonsense guide to gig etiquette.

1. The Sound Engineer is Your Best Friend (And Don't Trash Their Gear)

The sound engineer has complete control over how you sound to the audience. Treat them with the utmost respect. They are not your roadies, and they are not your servants, they are your partners for the night.

• Introduce Yourself: When you arrive for load-in, find the sound tech, shake hands, and introduce yourselves. Hand them a neat, printed stage plan and input list (yes, even for a tiny club show, this instantly marks you as professionals).

• The Soundcheck is Not a Rehearsal: Soundcheck is a purely technical process to get the levels right. Only play when the tech explicitly asks you to. Keep your stage volume reasonable. If you max out your Marshall stacks in a 100-capacity room, the tech cannot get the vocals over the mix, and you will sound terrible out front.

• The Show Must Go On (We’ve Got Your Back): Especially at festivals, the tech crew is there to help you. If you have a technical issue mid-set, a lead goes down, a pedal loses power, or a mic cuts out, do not stop the show, panic, or complain to the crowd. Keep performing as normal. Stay professional and keep the crowd engaged. The crew will already be on it, slipping onto the stage to fix it in the background while you keep the energy alive.

• Don't Stamp on Monitors: We see this all the time: a singer trying to look "rock 'n' roll" by putting their boot through a stage wedge. Stop doing this. That monitor is someone's expensive equipment, their pride and joy, and for many venue owners and freelance engineers, it is how they earn a living. Nobody is coming on stage to deliberately trash your guitars, so don't trash their gear.

• And for God's Sake, Don’t F***ing Spit on the Stage!: Nobody wants to step in, slide on, or pack up their cables in your spit. It is disgusting, incredibly disrespectful to the venue staff, and a guaranteed way to make sure the sound tech hates you before you’ve even finished your set.

• Say Thank You: Give a shout-out to the sound and lighting crew from the stage during your set. When you pack up at the end of the night, thank them personally.

2. Make Sure Your Gear Actually Works

If your band sounds like crap on stage, the sound engineer can only amplify that crap to make it louder. They cannot magically fix a poorly maintained rig.

• Check Your Equipment: Make sure all your gear, cables, pedals, amps, drums, and guitars, is of a good standard and works exactly as it should.

• Do Regular Maintenance: Change your guitar strings before a gig (and stretch them so they stay in tune). Check your patch cables for crackles. If your amp has a known fault, get it serviced before you bring it to a live venue.

• Power & Backups: Bring your own power strips, extension leads, and a robust "spares box" (strings, picks, drumsticks, fuses, batteries, and gaffa tape). Do not rely on other bands or the venue to bail you out because your cheap cable finally died mid-set.

3. The Golden Rule of the Quick Changeover (The "Fast Out")

Nothing kills the momentum of a gig, and infuriates promoters and other bands, like a slow changeover. If there is a 15-minute gap between bands, you need to clear the stage in five.

⏱️ Clear First, Pack Second: The second your set ends, unplug your instruments and carry them off the stage immediately. Do not stand on stage packing your pedals into their individual cases. Do not start wrapping your cables neatly. Do not stand there chatting with fans or sipping your beer. Move all of your gear, drums, amps, guitars, pedalboards, completely off the stage to a designated load-out area or back to your van first. Pack it up there. Let the next band get their gear on stage.

4. Sharing Gear Graciously

On local multi-band bills, sharing drum breakables (snare, cymbals, kick pedal) and bass/guitar cabs is standard practice to save time.

• Respect the Owner's Gear: If you are using another band’s drum kit or cab, do not adjust their hardware angles drastically without asking first. Mark their settings with tape if you have to change something, and put it back exactly how you found it.

• The "You Break It, You Buy It" Rule: If you break a drum skin, a cymbal, or a bass string that belongs to another band, do not ignore it. Apologize and offer to pay for a replacement immediately.

5. Respecting Set Times & Curfews

When a promoter gives you a set time, it is a hard boundary, not a suggestion.

• Plan a Buffer: If you have a 30-minute slot, prepare a 25-minute set. This gives you a safety buffer in case of minor technical issues during the show.

• Don't Ask for "One More": If you started late because of a delay earlier in the night, your set gets cut. Accept it with grace. Do not try to force your last song in. Cutting into the next band's time or pushing past the venue's strict licensing curfew is a guaranteed way to ensure that promoter never books you again.

• Be Ready on Time: Be tuned up, have your spares ready, and be standing by the stage 10 minutes before you are due to play.

6. Band-to-Band Respect & Shared Spaces

The bands you share local stages with today are the ones who will invite you on regional tours tomorrow. Treat them like colleagues, not competition.

• Watch Their Sets: Do not play your set, pack your van, and leave. It is incredibly insulting to the other bands on the bill. Stand in the crowd, support them, buy a pint, and show them the same energy you want from their fans.

• Don't Hijack the Merch Space: Space is usually tight at local venues. Don't spread your shirts across three tables if there are four bands on the bill. Keep your footprint neat, use a vertical display grid if space is tight, and make room for everyone.

7. Respecting the Stage & Venue (Keep it Dry and Clean)

The stage is a workplace packed with high-voltage electricity, expensive electronics, and delicate gear. Treat it as such.

• Absolutely No Open Containers on Stage: Spilling a pint of sticky, sugary cider over a venue's £2,000 digital stage box, a monitor, or your bandmate's pedalboard is not "rock 'n' roll." It is an amateur, expensive disaster that can easily short-circuit the entire venue's PA.

  • The Rule: Keep open cups, glasses, and cans off the stage floor completely.

  • The Solution: Use sealable sports bottles for water, or keep your drinks tucked safely behind your amps, completely clear of any cabling or electrical gear.

• Clean Up Your Mess: When you load off the stage, do not leave it looking like a tip. Pick up your empty cans, plastic cups, broken drumsticks, and the peeled-off backings of your gaffa tape. No venue cleaner or sound tech should have to pick up your rubbish after you play. Leaving a clean stage tells the venue staff you are a professional act.

The Takeaway

Excellent gig etiquette shows that you respect the venue, the crew, the other bands, and the audience. When you make a promoter's life easy, you become their go-to band.

When festival bookers (including us at Beermageddon!) look to book underground bands, we ask local promoters about their reputation. If we hear you are a breeze to work with and highly professional, you immediately jump to the top of the pile.