ahhh.. The age old story about drumming too loud.. It comes with time, practice and a bit of talent ? I've had the occasional case of 'this-is-too-much-fun' on stage but, then you get the look from the sound guy and you realize 'umm, maybe just a tad softer.' Communication however is very important, up to the point where I developed hand signal (as the FOH guy) with the band. Very easy things, but we all agreed that they have to sound good, and the only way for that to happen is to communicate.
TomCat wrote
I've even gone to the extremes of going on stage and setting the amp levels for the players during the gig and giving them the "You touch that again and you're dead look".... ? ?.
THE LOOK!! I'm not too sure how one develops it, but it is a sure way of getting people to realize that they need to listen. Diplomacy only goes so far, then the threat of death has to take over. At least me being bald (I shave all my hair off), 6foot4 and clocking the scale at 100kg's does pose a major physical threat to any band member who will try to disregard the laws of Johann.. (And no, I don't resort to this approach, but at times one has to go 'when in Rome ? )
You have to understand why a PA was developed in the 1st place, why monitors are called monitors (they are not speakers for the band to hear whats going on at FOH), why a venue's acoustic properties changes from sound check to the show (audience, temperature and adrenaline all play a role)
It's also a good idea for at least one member of the band to understand the ideas behind sound. Gain structures, EQing, PA's and monitor placements (how and why are they placed where they are)
