Post by Gene on Jun 6, 2012 15:18:35 GMT -5
What’s shakin’? Summer is kicking off, and I’m happily gigging regularly:
WED, JUN 6: Dixie Saloon, Mackinac City, 9pm-1
WED, JUN 13: Dixie Saloon, Mackinac City, 9pm-1
WED, JUN 20: Dixie Saloon, Mackinac City, 9pm-1
WED, JUN 27: Dixie Saloon, Mackinac City, 9pm-1
WED, JUL 4: Dixie Saloon, Mackinac City, 9pm-1
Yeah, there’s a definite pattern here. I’m very happy to have this regular gig, but I really expected a few more on the schedule for June by now. Funny, I was waiting on get-backs from about six other places, but they never materialized. Either these places I’ve been waiting on are running things extremely last minute, or they just flat aren’t going to have entertainment like this at all this year (or I flat "washed out", which is always possible!...). I have a few others in the coming months, though, and this summer will still prove to be a good one, but it’s not looking like a record breaker compared to past years. Solo performance gigs in the area generally are down in my area, for sure. Full bands seem to be doing just as good if not better than last year, I think, though. It can be seen as a good thing for the scene, since many places will go more big with entertainment if they feel they can make that investment back, so it’s an optimistic sign. The better times don’t mean that there’s no place for solo artists, but it can mean that entertainment like this could be shifting around to other venues.
I got to play at La Seniorita’s in Petoskey for Cinco de Mayo, and that went very well. I could be back there, but this place isn’t a very regular entertainment venue, so it will be just for novelty gigs if anything. I got to play on the Island for the new Village Inn last month, and that was a blast. I got to stay overnight in a room right across the street, which was the most convenient gigging situation I’ve ever experienced on the Island. The room had a kitchen, too! I sure hope I can play there again, but it could very well be next year, since I was probably just put on the schedule as a try-out for this year, and the booking for this year is already done. But, it’s still a worthwhile thing for the longer run, and playing the Island in moderation is always fun. I had a last-minute booking for The Islander in Hessel, for some ladies group anniversary event there. That place is always nutsy, and I can never get over what a cool, happening place this is. You’d think this little rural place would be some depressing alcoholic bar filled with old farmers, or something, but it’s nothing like that at all. I sure hope I can play there again soon! I did the first Dixie gig at the tail end of May. It was the Wednesday right after the holiday weekend, and attendance was seldom a two-digit number all night. I sure hope that was why it was slow and it picks up more for the subsequent Wednesdays, but my bartender friend there said it’s been a down month generally. I suspect it’s going to get better, though.
I was able to get around a little and see some other local acts, which is always enjoyable. The earlier gig on the Island allowed me to see Paul Bedour and Brian Thomas do dual performances at the Huron Bay later in the evenings. Sometimes they’d do things together, and sometimes they’d “tag team” songs to fill out the night. I’d seen Paul for short periods a couple times before, but I had never seen Brian. They are very similar kinds of entertainers: Not exactly what I’d call “finesse” guitar players, but both have excellent singing voices and they choose a lot of cool songs, and deliver the product to what the party demands. They appeal to 30-somethings as a center demographic, which is not only a good fit for what’s needed, but a shrewd business move, since Myk Rise pretty much owns the baby boomers with what he does there. Me being an entertainer that tries to keep fresh with material, I found their performances inspiring, and you can bet I’m going to steal a few ideas from these guys!
Of course I had to flit out and see Myk Rise right across the street at the Pink Pony for some gaps of time, too. I remember seeing him very regularly back in the summer of ‘06 when I played early gigs at Mission Point, and back then he was leaps ahead of anyone else I’d ever seen, so I was very curious just where this guy was taking the state of this solo performance art some six years later. Just to get it out of the way, I’ll say that it’s unanimous that this guy is incredible and was born to do it, and I’d have to call Myk Rise personally my most influential local player. That said, there were some things about his direction that I couldn’t agree with. He’s leaning on using loopers much more, which expands possibilities, yes, but overuse can be a bit cheesy. It’s clear he doesn’t need loops in the same way a substandard player “hides behind” them, though, as I often see. He really is most led by the coolness of the particular song as he sees it, and uses his tools with no barriers or rules to get to that place, which is quite a different philosophy altogether. Sometimes it’s laid on pretty thick, though, like his version of Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir”, where it was so pre-canned produced and accompanied that the guitar could cut out and no one would really know the difference. That crosses a line, in my opinion (but opinions should differ here, since it’s art, after all). If he had another Achilles’ heel, it’s that his material is starting to show its age. It unapologetically aims at 50-somethings and greater, but looking at the audience, you don’t see a lot of grey hair there. The formula obviously works for him though, and there’s got to be a limit on where this all stops, right? I throughly enjoy seeing him, though, all said, and I learn something new every time I see him.
I would have liked to see the Teabag Band at Horn’s, but it was so crowded in there that there was barely room to stand, never mind get a beer, so I listened to them while chatting with Paul and Brian outside. Man, this band knows how to DO it; Every song was a “banger” and filled the dancefloor, and they sounded great. It’s no wonder they are a fave at Horn’s.
I knocked around Mackinaw Crossings with my bother and his kids on Memorial Day Saturday. The Crossings has some pretty safe and conventional acts, intentionally trying to appeal to families, kids, little old ladies and stuff, so you have to understand what it is when you see something there. I finally got to see Denny Beach in a busking situation off the main stage there. He does practically no promo and he doesn’t play very often, so he’s been hard for me to catch for a few years, now. He’s an older guy, probably in his late 50's, and I understand he does carpentry work as a day job. He stood with an electric guitar, just playing 50's and 60's oldies to his backing tracks, and he sure had a few passers-by dancing. He liked to banter it up a little, too, and showed good crowd rapport. The guy is good at what he does, and was a great fit for the place.
Bruce Kapla and his wife were on the main stage that day. I’ve been harsh with his act in the past, since this is a perfect example of what I consider overuse of backing tracks for live performance. And, this time was no different, looking pretty much like a Karaoke act with the players posing with instruments that you couldn’t really hear over the very-produced tape. But, in all fairness, this really should not be looked at as a live act, and that’s probably my mistake. It’s really a different breed of thing, and it’s the equivalent of saying “This orange makes a terrible apple!” I’ve softened my stand a bit on this, and I think I’m closer to “getting it”. People were lounging around the courtyard in the sun, having fun and listening to the music, and there ain’t nothin’ wrong with that. I still can’t say that it’s my personal cup of tea, though...
I’ve always liked to think that local performers were a fraternity of sorts, rooting for each other and happy with each others’ successes and all of us happy in doing our art, but every once in a while I have an experience that reminds me of the unpleasant business side of all this, and I had just such an experience lately. As I’ve mentioned, I am scheduled to play every Wednesday at the Dixie all summer, and that was squared up in late February. One day, another local performer sends me a message saying, “I hear we’re switching off every other Wednesday at the Dixie. What Wednesday would you like to start?” I corrected him that me and the Dixie mutually promised that I’d be playing every Wednesday, not every-other. He then answered twice that, no, we would be swapping every-other. I then called the person that books at the Dixie and asked about this, and he said that he told no one else any such thing, and that I would be playing all the Wednesdays, just as we discussed last. I would have dismissed this as a misunderstanding, but I’ve caught this guy spreading some slander about me before, and he’s a career musician that is very ambitious and hungry to play every day he can, sometimes even two or three gigs a day. Given all this, I couldn’t conclude anything else other than he was trying to trick me into giving some of my few gigs I had to him. We sent some mutual nastygrams about all this, and I made clear that I’m not going to give my gigs to him, even if I did have the right to do that. He’s now mad at me that I won’t “work it out” (whatever is meant by that). In the end, I kept my gigs and “won” and everything, but it’s left me with a very disappointing feeling, I suppose. I had no idea a fellow local musician would try something like that on another, and it doesn’t set right with me that we’re now on bad terms. I’m not going to slam him when speaking with other venues or anything, since engaging in that can have a backfiring effect of making you look petty and protective, I think, but it’s pretty hard to see us ever helping each other in any way in the future. I’m not even going to say who it specifically is here, since that would be a similar thing. Thinking this through, it would seem to me that I was the one wronged, and, me as just a hobbyist that got good and does a few gigs for fun and him being a career musician that MUST gig to put food on his table, he has much more to lose than I do by us not getting along. Rather than me doing something, I think I’m just going to let it lie, and we’re just going to do our own mutual things. Sad thing is, I like the guy and think he has a pretty good act that is conducive to our local music scene, but, I guess we’re competitors in the end, and that’s something I’m just going to have to remember. It was something I had to learn; Welcome to “the big leagues”, I guess...
I hope you have a lot of fun plans for your upcoming summer, and Take Care!
–Gene.
WED, JUN 6: Dixie Saloon, Mackinac City, 9pm-1
WED, JUN 13: Dixie Saloon, Mackinac City, 9pm-1
WED, JUN 20: Dixie Saloon, Mackinac City, 9pm-1
WED, JUN 27: Dixie Saloon, Mackinac City, 9pm-1
WED, JUL 4: Dixie Saloon, Mackinac City, 9pm-1
Yeah, there’s a definite pattern here. I’m very happy to have this regular gig, but I really expected a few more on the schedule for June by now. Funny, I was waiting on get-backs from about six other places, but they never materialized. Either these places I’ve been waiting on are running things extremely last minute, or they just flat aren’t going to have entertainment like this at all this year (or I flat "washed out", which is always possible!...). I have a few others in the coming months, though, and this summer will still prove to be a good one, but it’s not looking like a record breaker compared to past years. Solo performance gigs in the area generally are down in my area, for sure. Full bands seem to be doing just as good if not better than last year, I think, though. It can be seen as a good thing for the scene, since many places will go more big with entertainment if they feel they can make that investment back, so it’s an optimistic sign. The better times don’t mean that there’s no place for solo artists, but it can mean that entertainment like this could be shifting around to other venues.
I got to play at La Seniorita’s in Petoskey for Cinco de Mayo, and that went very well. I could be back there, but this place isn’t a very regular entertainment venue, so it will be just for novelty gigs if anything. I got to play on the Island for the new Village Inn last month, and that was a blast. I got to stay overnight in a room right across the street, which was the most convenient gigging situation I’ve ever experienced on the Island. The room had a kitchen, too! I sure hope I can play there again, but it could very well be next year, since I was probably just put on the schedule as a try-out for this year, and the booking for this year is already done. But, it’s still a worthwhile thing for the longer run, and playing the Island in moderation is always fun. I had a last-minute booking for The Islander in Hessel, for some ladies group anniversary event there. That place is always nutsy, and I can never get over what a cool, happening place this is. You’d think this little rural place would be some depressing alcoholic bar filled with old farmers, or something, but it’s nothing like that at all. I sure hope I can play there again soon! I did the first Dixie gig at the tail end of May. It was the Wednesday right after the holiday weekend, and attendance was seldom a two-digit number all night. I sure hope that was why it was slow and it picks up more for the subsequent Wednesdays, but my bartender friend there said it’s been a down month generally. I suspect it’s going to get better, though.
I was able to get around a little and see some other local acts, which is always enjoyable. The earlier gig on the Island allowed me to see Paul Bedour and Brian Thomas do dual performances at the Huron Bay later in the evenings. Sometimes they’d do things together, and sometimes they’d “tag team” songs to fill out the night. I’d seen Paul for short periods a couple times before, but I had never seen Brian. They are very similar kinds of entertainers: Not exactly what I’d call “finesse” guitar players, but both have excellent singing voices and they choose a lot of cool songs, and deliver the product to what the party demands. They appeal to 30-somethings as a center demographic, which is not only a good fit for what’s needed, but a shrewd business move, since Myk Rise pretty much owns the baby boomers with what he does there. Me being an entertainer that tries to keep fresh with material, I found their performances inspiring, and you can bet I’m going to steal a few ideas from these guys!
Of course I had to flit out and see Myk Rise right across the street at the Pink Pony for some gaps of time, too. I remember seeing him very regularly back in the summer of ‘06 when I played early gigs at Mission Point, and back then he was leaps ahead of anyone else I’d ever seen, so I was very curious just where this guy was taking the state of this solo performance art some six years later. Just to get it out of the way, I’ll say that it’s unanimous that this guy is incredible and was born to do it, and I’d have to call Myk Rise personally my most influential local player. That said, there were some things about his direction that I couldn’t agree with. He’s leaning on using loopers much more, which expands possibilities, yes, but overuse can be a bit cheesy. It’s clear he doesn’t need loops in the same way a substandard player “hides behind” them, though, as I often see. He really is most led by the coolness of the particular song as he sees it, and uses his tools with no barriers or rules to get to that place, which is quite a different philosophy altogether. Sometimes it’s laid on pretty thick, though, like his version of Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir”, where it was so pre-canned produced and accompanied that the guitar could cut out and no one would really know the difference. That crosses a line, in my opinion (but opinions should differ here, since it’s art, after all). If he had another Achilles’ heel, it’s that his material is starting to show its age. It unapologetically aims at 50-somethings and greater, but looking at the audience, you don’t see a lot of grey hair there. The formula obviously works for him though, and there’s got to be a limit on where this all stops, right? I throughly enjoy seeing him, though, all said, and I learn something new every time I see him.
I would have liked to see the Teabag Band at Horn’s, but it was so crowded in there that there was barely room to stand, never mind get a beer, so I listened to them while chatting with Paul and Brian outside. Man, this band knows how to DO it; Every song was a “banger” and filled the dancefloor, and they sounded great. It’s no wonder they are a fave at Horn’s.
I knocked around Mackinaw Crossings with my bother and his kids on Memorial Day Saturday. The Crossings has some pretty safe and conventional acts, intentionally trying to appeal to families, kids, little old ladies and stuff, so you have to understand what it is when you see something there. I finally got to see Denny Beach in a busking situation off the main stage there. He does practically no promo and he doesn’t play very often, so he’s been hard for me to catch for a few years, now. He’s an older guy, probably in his late 50's, and I understand he does carpentry work as a day job. He stood with an electric guitar, just playing 50's and 60's oldies to his backing tracks, and he sure had a few passers-by dancing. He liked to banter it up a little, too, and showed good crowd rapport. The guy is good at what he does, and was a great fit for the place.
Bruce Kapla and his wife were on the main stage that day. I’ve been harsh with his act in the past, since this is a perfect example of what I consider overuse of backing tracks for live performance. And, this time was no different, looking pretty much like a Karaoke act with the players posing with instruments that you couldn’t really hear over the very-produced tape. But, in all fairness, this really should not be looked at as a live act, and that’s probably my mistake. It’s really a different breed of thing, and it’s the equivalent of saying “This orange makes a terrible apple!” I’ve softened my stand a bit on this, and I think I’m closer to “getting it”. People were lounging around the courtyard in the sun, having fun and listening to the music, and there ain’t nothin’ wrong with that. I still can’t say that it’s my personal cup of tea, though...
I’ve always liked to think that local performers were a fraternity of sorts, rooting for each other and happy with each others’ successes and all of us happy in doing our art, but every once in a while I have an experience that reminds me of the unpleasant business side of all this, and I had just such an experience lately. As I’ve mentioned, I am scheduled to play every Wednesday at the Dixie all summer, and that was squared up in late February. One day, another local performer sends me a message saying, “I hear we’re switching off every other Wednesday at the Dixie. What Wednesday would you like to start?” I corrected him that me and the Dixie mutually promised that I’d be playing every Wednesday, not every-other. He then answered twice that, no, we would be swapping every-other. I then called the person that books at the Dixie and asked about this, and he said that he told no one else any such thing, and that I would be playing all the Wednesdays, just as we discussed last. I would have dismissed this as a misunderstanding, but I’ve caught this guy spreading some slander about me before, and he’s a career musician that is very ambitious and hungry to play every day he can, sometimes even two or three gigs a day. Given all this, I couldn’t conclude anything else other than he was trying to trick me into giving some of my few gigs I had to him. We sent some mutual nastygrams about all this, and I made clear that I’m not going to give my gigs to him, even if I did have the right to do that. He’s now mad at me that I won’t “work it out” (whatever is meant by that). In the end, I kept my gigs and “won” and everything, but it’s left me with a very disappointing feeling, I suppose. I had no idea a fellow local musician would try something like that on another, and it doesn’t set right with me that we’re now on bad terms. I’m not going to slam him when speaking with other venues or anything, since engaging in that can have a backfiring effect of making you look petty and protective, I think, but it’s pretty hard to see us ever helping each other in any way in the future. I’m not even going to say who it specifically is here, since that would be a similar thing. Thinking this through, it would seem to me that I was the one wronged, and, me as just a hobbyist that got good and does a few gigs for fun and him being a career musician that MUST gig to put food on his table, he has much more to lose than I do by us not getting along. Rather than me doing something, I think I’m just going to let it lie, and we’re just going to do our own mutual things. Sad thing is, I like the guy and think he has a pretty good act that is conducive to our local music scene, but, I guess we’re competitors in the end, and that’s something I’m just going to have to remember. It was something I had to learn; Welcome to “the big leagues”, I guess...
I hope you have a lot of fun plans for your upcoming summer, and Take Care!
–Gene.