Band FAQ

When should I book the band?

It’s best to book your band as ear­ly as pos­si­ble. Many of our top wed­ding bands are booked up to two years in advance and we are tak­ing book­ings for 2026 already. For wed­dings held on Sat­ur­days in the pop­u­lar months of May through Sep­tem­ber, we rec­om­mend secur­ing your band at least a year before your date. Since Sat­ur­days in the sum­mer are high­ly sought after, bands receive the most inquiries for those days. How­ev­er, with more cou­ples choos­ing Sun­days and mid-week dates (espe­cial­ly Thurs­days and Fri­days), it’s a good idea to reserve your band soon­er rather than lat­er to avoid disappointment.

Can I watch the band per­form live before booking?

In most cas­es, it’s not pos­si­ble to see the band live before­hand. Pro­fes­sion­al bands typ­i­cal­ly per­form at pri­vate events like wed­dings and cor­po­rate func­tions, and it’s usu­al­ly not fea­si­ble for poten­tial clients to attend. How­ev­er, it does­n’t hurt to ask, as there may be rare oppor­tu­ni­ties. Occa­sion­al­ly, wed­ding bands might per­form at pub­lic events, such as a pub gig or a fes­ti­val, where you could catch them live.

How long do wed­ding bands typ­i­cal­ly perform?

Most wed­ding bands per­form two live sets, either 2 x 45 min­utes or 2 x 1 hour. If you’d like the band to play for a longer dura­tion, just let them know — this is usu­al­ly pos­si­ble, though it may come with an addi­tion­al charge.

What hap­pens between and after the band’s live sets?

Most wed­ding bands offer a lap­top DJ” ser­vice between and after their live sets. While this isn’t the same as hir­ing a pro­fes­sion­al DJ who can read the room and adjust the music to the mood, it typ­i­cal­ly involves a pre-made playlist (often on Spo­ti­fy or iTunes) that plays through the band’s PA system.

Can I choose the music played between and after the band’s live sets?

Yes, you can usu­al­ly pro­vide the band with a list of song requests before the wed­ding, and they’ll down­load them to play on the night. Alter­na­tive­ly, you can cre­ate your own playlist and bring a device to con­nect to the band’s PA system.

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What songs do wed­ding bands play?

Most wed­ding bands have a well-rehearsed setlist tai­lored for wed­dings, fea­tur­ing songs that appeal to guests of all ages and are guar­an­teed to keep the dance floor live­ly. These tried-and-test­ed songs usu­al­ly span dif­fer­ent gen­res and decades to ensure a great time for everyone.

Will the band learn my first dance song?

Yes, most bands will hap­pi­ly learn your first dance song and per­form it live on your wed­ding day. How­ev­er, if the song does­n’t fit the band’s style (e.g., a jazz song for an indie-rock band), they may rec­om­mend play­ing the record­ed ver­sion through their PA sys­tem. Some bands may charge a small fee (around £150) to cov­er the extra time need­ed for rehearsals to learn a new song.

Can I hear the band’s ver­sion of our first dance before the wed­ding day?

No, unfor­tu­nate­ly, you won’t be able to hear the ver­sion of the first dance song before the actu­al wed­ding day. Most of our bands will only record songs when they can be sure of prop­er sound qual­i­ty. Audio from a band rehearsal would­n’t be right and def­i­nite­ly not suit­able for prac­tic­ing your dance to. The band may also not need to rehearse your first dance if it is one they have played before or one that can eas­i­ly be adapt­ed to their per­former line­up. Rest assured, the final ver­sion on the day will be per­formed to the high­est stan­dard for your spe­cial moment.

Can I give a list of songs for the band to play at my wedding?

Many bands are open to learn­ing one new song that’s not already part of their setlist. Some may even offer to learn two or three new songs, but beyond that, it can be too time-con­sum­ing. Learn­ing new songs, espe­cial­ly for singers, can require con­sid­er­able preparation.

Can I share my song pref­er­ences with the band?

Yes, most bands will wel­come your input on their setlist. You can indi­cate which songs you’d pre­fer they avoid and which songs you absolute­ly want played on your big night. The band will then tai­lor their setlist around your preferences.

What time do wed­ding bands nor­mal­ly arrive at the venue?

Bands typ­i­cal­ly arrive around 5 p.m. to be ready to per­form by 7 p.m. This allows them enough time to set up their equip­ment and do a sound­check to ensure every­thing sounds great and com­plies with any sound or noise restric­tions at the venue.

Can the band arrive earlier?

Yes, most bands can arrive ear­li­er if need­ed, though they may charge for the addi­tion­al time. If you’re con­cerned about them set­ting up while guests are present, rest assured that expe­ri­enced bands can do this dis­creet­ly with min­i­mal noise and mess. The sound­check, which is the loud­est part, usu­al­ly takes only 15 – 30 min­utes. For a more cost-effec­tive solu­tion, you might con­sid­er hav­ing just one or two band mem­bers arrive ear­ly to han­dle set­up, rather than pay­ing extra for the entire band to come early.

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What time do wed­ding bands nor­mal­ly finish?

Most bands aim to fin­ish by mid­night, which aligns with the pol­i­cy of many UK venues requir­ing live music to stop by that time.

Can I ask the band to stay lat­er than midnight?

Yes, bands are gen­er­al­ly open to play­ing past mid­night, though this will usu­al­ly come with an addi­tion­al fee.

Can I use the band’s PA sys­tem after midnight?

Yes, you can usu­al­ly con­tin­ue using the band’s PA sys­tem, but this may incur a high­er fee since at least one band mem­ber will need to stay until the par­ty ends to pack up the equip­ment. Keep in mind that some band mem­bers may have a long dri­ve home after the event.

Do wed­ding bands bring their own sound equip­ment and instruments?

Yes, pro­fes­sion­al bands bring their own gear, includ­ing a PA sys­tem, mix­ing desk, basic light­ing, and their instru­ments. If you’re host­ing a large wed­ding, you may want to con­sid­er hir­ing extra sound and light­ing equipment.

Do wed­ding bands need a stage to per­form on?

No, most bands can per­form with­out a stage, although a stage can enhance the visu­al expe­ri­ence if you’re able to pro­vide one.

If I pro­vide a stage, how much space will the band need?

A 4‑piece band typ­i­cal­ly needs at least 5m x 3m of space to accom­mo­date both the musi­cians and their equip­ment, includ­ing instru­ments, speak­ers, and a mix­ing desk.

Can I or my guests play with the band?

Yes, if arranged in advance, most bands will allow you or a guest to join them for a song or two. How­ev­er, you should check with the band first, as some may have pub­lic lia­bil­i­ty insur­ance restric­tions that pre­vent guests from using their instru­ments or equipment.

Do I need to hire a DJ as well as a wed­ding band?

Most bands offer pre-record­ed playlists between and after their live sets, so a sep­a­rate DJ is not nec­es­sary. How­ev­er, if you want a DJ who can active­ly read the crowd and adjust the music in real-time, hir­ing one is a good option.

If I hire a DJ, can the band and DJ share equipment?

Bands and DJs can often share the same PA sys­tem to reduce clut­ter around the dance floor. How­ev­er, you’ll need to coor­di­nate this with both the band and the DJ ahead of time to ensure com­pat­i­bil­i­ty. If the DJ is per­form­ing into the ear­ly hours, it might make sense for the band to use the DJ’s equipment.

Do I need to pro­vide any­thing for my wed­ding band?

While the band will bring all their tech­ni­cal equip­ment, they usu­al­ly expect a hot meal and soft drinks. This is espe­cial­ly impor­tant as they may have been on-site for a long time, from set­up to per­for­mance. The meal doesn’t have to be the same as what’s served to your guests — many venues offer a sup­pli­er meal option, or you could allow the band to par­take in your buf­fet if you’re hav­ing one. Pro­vid­ing food will help keep the band ener­gised for their performance.

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Will the band mem­bers be the same as in their videos?

Not always. Most pro­fes­sion­al bands have a core group of musi­cians who play at most wed­dings. How­ev­er, they also rely on deputies (or deps”) — stand-ins who fill in when reg­u­lar mem­bers are unavail­able. This is a com­mon prac­tice in the music indus­try, as many musi­cians work as free­lancers and may be involved with mul­ti­ple bands or even tour­ing with oth­er artists. Using deputies ensures the band can still per­form even if some­one is unavail­able or unwell.

What do wed­ding bands wear?

You can usu­al­ly get an idea of a band’s attire from their videos. Most bands opt for smart shirts or semi-for­mal wear. If you have a spe­cif­ic theme or dress code, let the band know in advance. For exam­ple, if you’re hav­ing an 80s-themed wed­ding, you can check if they’re will­ing to dress to match the occasion.

Will the band need park­ing spaces?

Yes, most bands will arrive by car, as it’s the most con­ve­nient way to trans­port their equip­ment. Pro­vid­ing 1 or 2 park­ing spots close to the venue will be great­ly appreciated.

Is a sound lim­iter at my venue a problem?

Some venues, espe­cial­ly those in built-up areas or his­toric prop­er­ties, have sound lim­iters to con­trol noise lev­els. Most pro­fes­sion­al bands are famil­iar with work­ing under these con­di­tions and can adjust accord­ing­ly — some­times using an elec­tric drum kit. How­ev­er, you should inform the band well in advance, as some bands may not be will­ing to per­form under these restrictions.

What is Pub­lic Lia­bil­i­ty Insur­ance (PLI)?

Pub­lic Lia­bil­i­ty Insur­ance (PLI) is required by many UK venues. It pro­tects against legal and finan­cial claims if some­one is injured or prop­er­ty is dam­aged dur­ing the event. Most pro­fes­sion­al bands will have PLI and can pro­vide a cer­tifi­cate to the venue upon request. Mem­ber­ship in organ­i­sa­tions like the Musi­cians Union often includes PLI coverage.

Do wed­ding bands need PAT-cer­ti­fied equipment?

Yes, most venues will ask bands to pro­vide proof that their equip­ment has been PAT-cer­ti­fied (Portable Appli­ance Test­ing). This ensures the equip­ment is safe to use. A band unable to pro­vide PLI and PAT cer­ti­fi­ca­tion may not be ful­ly pro­fes­sion­al, as these are stan­dard require­ments for full-time bands.

Can wed­ding bands per­form outdoors?

Yes, many bands are hap­py to per­form out­doors, espe­cial­ly dur­ing the sum­mer. How­ev­er, British weath­er can be unpre­dictable, so the band will need some form of shel­ter from rain or strong sun­light. Instru­ments are often expen­sive, and even a small amount of water can cause seri­ous damage.

Do I need a con­tract with my wed­ding band?

Yes, the best way to secure a band is to book through an agency like Gecko Live, where all book­ings are gov­erned by a con­tract. This con­tract, based on the UK Musi­cians Union’s stan­dard, pro­tects both par­ties and includes details like the date, venue, and spe­cif­ic terms agreed upon with the band.

How do I find a live wed­ding band?

The eas­i­est way is to sub­mit an enquiry on Gecko Live. Since top bands get booked quick­ly, sub­mit­ting details about your event ear­ly allows you to receive offers from avail­able bands. You can then com­mu­ni­cate direct­ly and secure your pre­ferred band through the site at no extra cost. Gecko Live curates top-qual­i­ty UK acts, ensur­ing you get the best selection.

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