What I think makes a rock band suck

To me, these ideas seem painfully apparent and perhaps not worth voicing. I expect that the reader will probably nod, roll her eyes and skip the site. But for as obvious as these ideas seem, it is surprising how few bands seem to get it.

• DON'T rely on any one element whether part, presence or player, to make your act.
  
• DO add something other than music to your show that is interesting.
  
• DON'T write songs where the verse is the time we have to wait before you get to the chorus hook.
  
• DON'T be fooled into believing you have a good act because you can entertain a bunch of drunks.
  
• DO set a song aside after writing it and come back to critique it with the utmost criticism.
  
• DO record and evaluate your performances, especially the audience's waxing and waning interest. Focus on their peaks.
  
• DON'T misjudge your audience’s reaction.
  
• DO study the use of silence and climax and change the way you use them from song to song.
  
• DO make sure your music is interesting even without vocals.
  
• DON'T sound like a copy of your "influences".
  

Too many bands follow a trend, trying to sound like what they hear on the radio. Admittedly it can work, but for how long? If a band has nothing new to contribute it has little chance of any real success. I'm so tired of hearing band X that sounds like band Y or sounds so cliché I feel like I’ve heard it before a thousand times and can't count how many amateur bands sound just like it.

My two bits.