Vendors IV - Musicians

Choosing the musicians was probably the most stressful of all the decisions I have had to make for the wedding so far. And it wasn't like I had the wedding for the ceremony nailed down and was just worried about the reception. No. I was stressed out about all of it.

The music for the reception was the first to be tackled. I knew bands were generally the way to go, but I hadn't seen any bands from the area where I'm getting married and the idea of picking a band sight unseen (or sound unheard) scared me to death. What if I paid all this money for a band that showed up and was terrible?! However, the upside potential for a band is huge - they can really get the crowd going and who doesn't love to get up on stage and sing with the band?

(my friends Meredith and Kristen (the two in dresses) with the band during a girls weekend - doesn't the lead singer look SO happy?!)

Then a friend recommended a DJ from a wedding she had attended, claiming their wedding was one of the more fun she's been to (and she's been to a lot!). That got me thinking - while a DJ doesn't have some of the upside potential a band does (it's not quite a fun to get up and sing from the DJ booth), a DJ doesn't have near the downside of a band you've never heard before. But I have to admit, I was a little nervous about the stigma DJs can carry (think Love Actually). What if he was cheesy? What if he was obsessed with the Macarena?

After some considerable counseling from my very reasonable fiance ("Natalie, you know your friends, they are going to be dancing at your wedding regardless of where the music is coming from."), we decided to go with a DJ. Especially since you can specifically say that you don't want any songs with coordinated dance moves played at your wedding (which we did).