A gig-day checklist for the whole band
A gig day rarely goes wrong dramatically. It goes wrong in small, avoidable ways — the lead nobody packed, the start time nobody agreed, the amp left charging at home. None of it is a disaster on its own; together it turns a good night into a stressful one. A short checklist, run the night before and again before you leave, catches nearly all of it.
The night before
- Charge everything — in-ears, pedals, wireless packs, phones. Anything with a battery.
- Pack spares — strings, sticks, batteries, a fuse, and at least one spare lead. The spare lead is the one you will actually use.
- Save the stage plot and input list where you can find them without signal.
- Confirm load-in and set times in writing, so there is one agreed answer rather than three half-remembered ones.
- Settle who is driving and who has the gear. "I thought you had it" is not a plan.
What everyone brings themselves
Each player owns their own kit — say so out loud, because the things everyone assumes someone else packed are the things that get left. A quick personal list: your instrument and its spares, your own cables, ear protection, your copy of the set list, and a pen.
The shared box
One box the band owns and never unpacks: gaffer tape, a couple of spare leads, batteries, a multi-gang extension, a small torch, paper and a pen, and basic first aid. It lives with the gear, not in someone's bedroom.
On the day
Arrive for load-in, not for stage time
The two are hours apart, and turning up for the second when you were needed for the first is the fastest way to start a night badly. Load in, set up, line-check, soundcheck — in that order — then leave the stage as tidy as you would want to find it.
The most useful thing you can do at soundcheck is be quick and quiet. An engineer who gets a tidy, fast band gives that band a better mix.
Before you leave the house
One final scan: paperwork sorted and everyone clear on who is collecting what from whom, the set list agreed, phone charged, and the shared box actually in the van rather than by the front door.
After the show
Load out fully — do a lap of the stage and the floor before you leave, because the lead you abandon tonight is the spare you need next week. Say thanks to the room's contact; it is remembered. And while it is fresh, note anything that went wrong, so next time's list is one line better.
Keep your stage plot and input list on your entertainment page so they are a single link on the night, not an attachment you go hunting for. If you play rooms you do not know yet, their listing tells you a lot about what to pack — browse venues near you, or set up your own page.
