Current mood: looking for excuses ...

Snags

... not to go to the open mic down the road in case everyone laughs at me for daring to show up.

Ridiculous that I can happily lead a church congregation singing, or get up at the FB Huddersfield gig, but going to a crap boozer 800 yards away has me bricking it 

VimFuego

how about ''you're all a bunch of cunts and I'm worried if I spend any time around you some of the cunty will rub off onto me''. I always like to get the audience on my side. 

revsorg

Go, at least this time.

Sassafras

I was like that. Terrible stage fright but 2 minutes into the set, I'd forget all the nervous jitters and get into the music.

Snags

@VimFuego That's a bit mild for what I was thinking.  Might open with "Hate my life" and move on to the ANWL's "I hate people" before lowering the tone properly. 

@revsorg I intend to. Still bricking it though 

mart

VimFuego said:

how about ''you're all a bunch of cunts and I'm worried if I spend any time around you some of the cunty will rub off onto me''. I always like to get the audience on my side. 

That’s probably more appropriate for getting the Sunday congregation going.

Swriosuly tho, I’d be exactly the same, although it’s yet to be seen how I cope with a fretboard jam.

richardhomer

I’m stressed playing at tFB jams as I so rarely play in front of (or even with) other people nowadays. The last one I’d cried off from - then decided to pop in to say a hello to a couple of people on here. I quickly got roped into playing on a borrowed guitar through a Boss Overdrive into a Katana. I bloody loved it - perhaps because I hadn’t expected to play I didn’t let the stress build up?

I’d get down there and give it your best shot - most audience members are there to support those performing - they’re generally not ‘out to you’ in my experience. 

Sassafras

I reckon a lot of people in the audience wished they had the balls to get up on stage and they feel a certain respect and envy for anyone who does.

Snags

Well, that wasn't totally awful. 

A lot like a FB jam - bunch of blokes of a certain age all faking it

Bridgehouse

Snags said:

Well, that wasn't totally awful. 

A lot like a FB jam - bunch of blokes of a certain age all faking it

Speak for yourself - my mistakes are all genuine

fastonebaz

How does an open mic night work?   Do you just turn up? Take a guitar?  A cable?  A pedal board? Am amp?  What do you play?

Snags

@Bridgehouse mine tonight were deliberate,  to make everyone else feel better. <cough>. Have to say,  it's a novelty coming away being happier with my singing than my playing. 

@fastonebaz it varies, I think,  but this one was just turn up with a guitar. PA provided. Guy putting it on was rigged for two electric, bass, percussion and DI acoustic, two vocal mics. Most people did solo acoustic. One chap, obviously a regular, went electric and the bass player joined him. 

munckee

Glad you feel better about it. What did you play, any Bon jovi?  

See you Sunday mate you can tell me about it. 

Snags

Ha! No, Bon Jovi is @mrkb 's forte. Just some easy stuff I've done before at Sasquatch.

Trouble is, I reckon I've got about two more weeks worth of songs that I can sing and play,  and that work on acoustic, before I have to start learning new stuff 

HAL9000

When I did my first one, I played Hungry Heart (Bruce Springsteen), Learning to Fly (Tom Petty), and Free Falling (Tom Petty). All have just one chord progression that repeats ad Infinitum (no bridges, no middle eights) so didn’t have to think too much about playing and could concentrate on getting the singing right(ish). Also meant I could show the bassist the progressions in a matter of seconds.

HAL9000

Snags said:

Trouble is, I reckon I've got about two more weeks worth of songs that I can sing and play,  and that work on acoustic, before I have to start learning new stuff 

Why? You are allowed to repeat yourself. Most people won’t remember what you played a fortnight ago.

Snags

HAL9000 said:

Snags said:

Trouble is, I reckon I've got about two more weeks worth of songs that I can sing and play,  and that work on acoustic, before I have to start learning new stuff 

Why? You are allowed to repeat yourself. Most people won’t remember what you played a fortnight ago.

Yeah, but I will   It's also a good opportunity to build up stuff I know to both play and sing, rather than one or the other. And to try and write more of my own.

FWIW I went with Personal Jesus (Johnny Cash version), Follow Your Arrow (Kacey Musgraves), Hang the World (Martyn Joseph), and Learning How To Die (Jon Foreman). With an acceptable number of fluffed notes/forgotten words.

hywelg

Walking into a jam session armed with a guitar,  full of strangers who mostly are already cliqued up is difficult. I tried it once, when I was way less confident than I am now, and whilst talking to the organiser when i arrived, I never once got invited to play, all the various cliques just suited themselves. I walked out well before the end, never to go back. 

Snags

Have to say this lot were pretty friendly. The organiser always does an opening set, and he spotted me as a new face, so gave me a shout out and introduced himself and a few other people. People get put on seemingly at random, I ended up in the middle of the running order, and probably the middle of the talent (not that it ran in talent order)..

There was one chap there who clearly had some kind of special needs, and they made sure he got a slot (and he wasn't rubbish, either). Everyone obviously knew him, and were looking out for him, although he vanished fairly sharpish after his go. Turned out I knew someone there anyway (mate's dad), and one of the other guys was pretty friendly. I expect if I go back for a couple of weeks and buy the odd pint for people they'll open up. Might even take an electric and go Billy Brag on them at some point.

Mind, I did rather carefully pick this one as "probably the shittest open mic in the area" in terms of general talent level and therefore risk of snootiness or snobbery. Even so, no-one was dreadful.

Now the cherry is popped I'll keep going back, I think. Maybe work up to one of the ones where you can hear them being rude about you whilst you're playing

axisus

I could not imagine doing an open mic thing in my wildest dreams. Damn, I'm so bloody inhibited. 

Reverend

Watch some GG Allin videos for pointers on good stage repartee