MANILA, Philippines—Some do’s and don’t for rocking out in Rock band.
Come in costume. You are in the privacy of your own home anyway, so you might as well go glam or grunge or metal. The only one who’ll know are your band mates and the people who get to see the pictures when they are posted on Facebook.
Be a multi-instrumentalist. Don’t hog the microphone! If you were Mick Jagger or Axl Rose, you’d be in a real band right now. So try your hand at guitar or bass or drums. And your friend who insists he is the second coming of Eric Clapton or Slash, well, tell him to not dream that it is over but to sing Enter Sandman instead.
Don’t trash your or your friend’s place. Just because you are living your rock star fantasies doesn’t mean you have to act like one. There’s no need to break bottles or stage dive onto the coffee table. Keep the fantasies to playing rock music. It’s all fun and games until something expensive breaks.
Don’t give up. You wouldn’t be having so much fun if you really knew how to play an instrument so if you get booed off consistently, don’t lose hope. Keep to the easy level and just practice. It gets easier.
Really rock it. Once you’ve gotten the hang of the guitars, start swaying to the music. While singing, interact with the rest of the band and do big arm movements as if there was a real audience in front of you. Feel it.
Know when it’s time to take a bow. It’s all fun and games until someone loses his/her voice or suffer from meta-carpal syndrome. Three or four hours of it is a work-out if you really rock it, but remember, there’s always next weekend again.
