And the Band Played On
In the back room of London Billiards in Worchester, My Missing Half is waiting for the show to start and getting their equipment together. The place is not unfamiliar to them—they’ve played there twice. As I enter the building, their lead singer and guitarist Bijan Hennessey informs me that there are no other audience members due to the fact that the headlining band dropped out at last minute. On arrival there is only one other band present but the others trickle in over the course of the next hour.
The three members mainly stick together. The drummer left the band a few months prior so a friend from another band is filling in. Hennessey and bassist Pat Laycox interact with some of the other musicians. The lead guitarist Steve Lowell talks with the drummer and some other musicians. Overall Hennessey displays the most support for other bands by standing in front of the stage for the first band and taking free items from the merchandise tables. My Missing Half appears to be the only band without someone handling their merchandise.
The show starts about an hour and a half late but once it gets going it flows without much hesitation. My Missing Half is second on the bill. In comparison to the band that just played, they act more like a team when setting up their instruments on the stage. The audience at the beginning of their set consists of five guys from other scheduled bands, me, and my friend. Only one of the guys is wearing a My Missing Half shirt. As always, the set starts off with their intro where Hennessey introduces the band and they go straight into their song “Liar”. From the beginning, there are amp problems. Hennessey later informs me that this caused Lowell to come in off-time which threw the drummer off-time and so forth. It remains this way throughout the performance. At the height of their set—during“Haunted”—there are 11 people in the audience.
The three members mainly stick together. The drummer left the band a few months prior so a friend from another band is filling in. Hennessey and bassist Pat Laycox interact with some of the other musicians. The lead guitarist Steve Lowell talks with the drummer and some other musicians. Overall Hennessey displays the most support for other bands by standing in front of the stage for the first band and taking free items from the merchandise tables. My Missing Half appears to be the only band without someone handling their merchandise.
The show starts about an hour and a half late but once it gets going it flows without much hesitation. My Missing Half is second on the bill. In comparison to the band that just played, they act more like a team when setting up their instruments on the stage. The audience at the beginning of their set consists of five guys from other scheduled bands, me, and my friend. Only one of the guys is wearing a My Missing Half shirt. As always, the set starts off with their intro where Hennessey introduces the band and they go straight into their song “Liar”. From the beginning, there are amp problems. Hennessey later informs me that this caused Lowell to come in off-time which threw the drummer off-time and so forth. It remains this way throughout the performance. At the height of their set—during“Haunted”—there are 11 people in the audience.
After exiting the stage, Hennessey wastes no time in declaring that it was their worst gig. “Halfway through the first song I wanted to kill myself. It feels like you just worked out but got weaker” he explains. This is why Hennessey was not his usual head banging and screaming self onstage. Laycox says they’re embarrassed: “The audience knew we were bad because they knew how the songs should sound”. He also adds that the band has “got to stay positive”.
A week later, I meet the three band members at Hennessey’s house before a practice session takes place. I ask them about their showcase that occurred over the summer. Hennessey tells me how “all the fans showed up at the showcase, there was a good response, and the audience even wanted an encore but we were told we didn’t have time”. When they went up to the representative for the label he had his headphones on and was listening to something else. The band told him they weren’t interested. “He ignored us” Hennessey rationalizes. “People were e-mailing us afterwards thinking we had gotten signed”. One of the biggest problems that the band is facing now is finding a replacement for their drummer. When I ask them what happened to their old one they proclaim that they weren’t entirely sure but that it had to do with not being able to keep up with both school and music. Before the drummer announced his leave in the fall, Laycox was going to leave the band in August. However, he decided to stay. “I needed a break but I love the music” he reasons. |
When it comes to the big picture, there are multiple aspects of the music world that can make it difficult to catch a break with a good label. First of all, there are too many local bands. “There are probably about 30 local shows on any given Saturday that no one is going to see” Hennessey laments. Laycox accounts for the rise in number of bands: “Everyone plays guitar or at least owns one”.Hennessey believes that culture plays a role. “It’s more acceptable. There are schools for rock and metal”. Lowell further adds that “technology makes forming a band easier”. Bands rarely get paid for playing gigs. The most My Missing Half has ever gotten paid is $80. Hennessey explains, “If you don’t play, they’ll get someone else”. Many places are willing to have any act that will draw people even if it’s a minimal amount.
The expectations labels have for musicians have also changed. Before you could record a demo, give it to the label, and if they liked what they heard they’d sign you. Now, because of technology making it easy, almost every band has some sort of demo and labels aren’t as impressed by it. As Lowell puts it “Labels won’t sign you unless you have money. They don’t care about talent”. My Missing Half has been contacted by smaller labels but has rejected all offers. These labels had offered to pay for records and small tours as part of a contract but they would also own everything. “I could do that myself” Hennessey puts simply. Lowell agrees: “If record labels don’t do their job, we don’t want to”. All three members of the group agree that other bands they know who are signed aren’t much better off. The labels aren’t able to give good offers since so many people illegally download music and therefore the label doesn’t make money. Hennessey expands this idea: “They’re trying to make money off of what people do for fun”. The band isn’t too bothered by the fact that many fans download their music off of Youtube instead of paying for it because they know the fans will give it to their friends and get their name out. |
When I ask the band members where they think they’ll be in five
years I get two completely different responses. Hennessey projects himself as being “broke, living in a van, working a 9-5 job, and playing on weekends”. Lowell has a more positive view: “People will still care. Fans will stay because they constantly listen to the music”. The band gives an example of how one fan kept going to shows at the London Billiards in the hopes that the band would return and he could get their name. Lowell also stresses how much he is in it for the music. “All I care about is metal. It’s like an itch you need to scratch. I would rather play metal than go to parties”. Lowell was recently asked by two of his friends to start a side project but rejected the idea. “I put everything into My Missing Half. No side projects”. He describes the feeling of having a stopwatch, only a certain amount of time allotted to get his music out there at the right time. “Others play fad music. The earliest and most original stay”. Laycox may have other reasons for the band. “I’m in it for the girls”. He quickly adds, “I’m lying". One of the most effective ways to get the word out about one’s band is social media. With the rise of the internet, this has become an invaluable tool for musicians just starting out. “Social media thins out the herd” states Hennessey. “The standard of songwriting and performance has gone up”. Promoting on sites like Facebook help get fans not only across the country but across the globe. The downside is that these fans will not be able to come to My Missing Half’s shows which are limited to the New England area. Still, knowing that their fan base is wide-reaching gives the band hope for the future. Their Youtube videos have comments on them such as “This is brilliant! Ups from the UK!” and there are pleas for visits to areas such as Mexico. Alongside real interaction these social sites lead to bands helping each other out. According to Hennessey, “Everything is a product of the connections you make” |
After the interview portion, I go down into Hennessey’s basement with the band to catch some of their practice. Today, they are trying out a new drummer. I am almost instantly handed a pair of headphones from Hennessey. “You’re going to need these”. He’s right. The space is small and the wall I’m leaning against and stairs I’m standing on are shaking the whole time. The drummer has only one mistake in the intro and has trouble with the breakdown during “Liar”; two other songs, “Haunted” and “Fade Away” are able to be played from beginning to end.
In the upstairs portion of the Brewery Exchange in Lowell, the band is once again waiting for the show to start. This time, no one has dropped the show and there are significantly more audience members—both male and female. There is a line of merchandise tables and My Missing Half has one complete with a female worker. Besides a few mic setbacks before they start playing, it is a flawless show. Hennessey is rocking out: head banging and screaming vocals included. The audience steadily grows with some even moshing. By the time they play “Finding Reason” they are commanding the attention of the entire room with some even clapping along. There are photographers taking pictures all around.
When their set concludes, I overhear many people talking about how they want to hear more. Many also state they have become instant fans. There are already people lining up to compliment and have discussions with the band members. The band members themselves are renewed with hope. Tonight, My Missing Half is in their element.
In the upstairs portion of the Brewery Exchange in Lowell, the band is once again waiting for the show to start. This time, no one has dropped the show and there are significantly more audience members—both male and female. There is a line of merchandise tables and My Missing Half has one complete with a female worker. Besides a few mic setbacks before they start playing, it is a flawless show. Hennessey is rocking out: head banging and screaming vocals included. The audience steadily grows with some even moshing. By the time they play “Finding Reason” they are commanding the attention of the entire room with some even clapping along. There are photographers taking pictures all around.
When their set concludes, I overhear many people talking about how they want to hear more. Many also state they have become instant fans. There are already people lining up to compliment and have discussions with the band members. The band members themselves are renewed with hope. Tonight, My Missing Half is in their element.