Last Night with Silent Muse
May. 21st, 2004 09:49 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
realexplodingcatA last minute show with the band. Actually, I think we knew about it a week ago, but that's not a lot of warning. An interesting time, for which I have mixed feelings. Earlier yesterday the homunculus who operates the controls inside my head decided to push the No Multi Tasking button, while work decided to force me to multi task. So, I was well and truly irritated before the show.
We were the opening opening band, playing first before No Gods No Monsters and In Tenebris. So while there were people there to see us, we definitely had the young opening band vibe going on. The event was really not our event, like our solo shows. There were a bunch of dudes at the bar watching a hockey game. There was a giant dead moose head on the wall. And this night was dubbed the hard rock night, or something (we have our heavy moments, but I'm not sure that label fits us). Never played here before. The vibe was weird. Felt a little out of my element.
So, the show for me felt a little like I was just doing my job. It didn't feel as much like a special event as previous shows. I enjoy pointing out my mistakes to laugh at myself. This is a good one. I accidentally had the tip of my foot on the sustain pedal during a string part. So the notes kept holding and playing on top of each other. Oops. Didn't take me too long to figure that out. But that was a dumb. Otherwise, I was just responsible for making Silent Muse 1/3 jam band, 2/3 gothic rock, by doing my typical...oops, mistake, time to improvise until I get back on track. That actually keeps the playing fresh for me anyway, when I can deviate from the "written" song and play something new each time.
But I hear we did well. Although the audience looked a little sleepy, I received positive feedback from all the people that count. The sound was well mixed and we performed well, even if I wasn't in a particularly groovy mood.
Other highlights include our vocalist's microphone falling apart a few times. No duct tape for him. And I think we had our first official hecklers. At least this is the first I'd heard. I dubbed them the Professional Peanut Gallery. Some older dudes hanging out near the bar would yell at us. I didn't take it personally, especially after I noticed them heckling and aping at the other two bands (who were quite awesome, I should add). The one guy looked like a 400lb walking beard. Probably not a gothic rock fan. He was just one example of the odd mix of people there.
Overall, I think I had the most fun outside of the actual performance. I enjoyed sound checking at a new place. Talked with a lot of people. Talked shop with some of the other musicians. If anything, that's one reason I got into this band thing--the community aspect of participating in a local scene.
We were the opening opening band, playing first before No Gods No Monsters and In Tenebris. So while there were people there to see us, we definitely had the young opening band vibe going on. The event was really not our event, like our solo shows. There were a bunch of dudes at the bar watching a hockey game. There was a giant dead moose head on the wall. And this night was dubbed the hard rock night, or something (we have our heavy moments, but I'm not sure that label fits us). Never played here before. The vibe was weird. Felt a little out of my element.
So, the show for me felt a little like I was just doing my job. It didn't feel as much like a special event as previous shows. I enjoy pointing out my mistakes to laugh at myself. This is a good one. I accidentally had the tip of my foot on the sustain pedal during a string part. So the notes kept holding and playing on top of each other. Oops. Didn't take me too long to figure that out. But that was a dumb. Otherwise, I was just responsible for making Silent Muse 1/3 jam band, 2/3 gothic rock, by doing my typical...oops, mistake, time to improvise until I get back on track. That actually keeps the playing fresh for me anyway, when I can deviate from the "written" song and play something new each time.
But I hear we did well. Although the audience looked a little sleepy, I received positive feedback from all the people that count. The sound was well mixed and we performed well, even if I wasn't in a particularly groovy mood.
Other highlights include our vocalist's microphone falling apart a few times. No duct tape for him. And I think we had our first official hecklers. At least this is the first I'd heard. I dubbed them the Professional Peanut Gallery. Some older dudes hanging out near the bar would yell at us. I didn't take it personally, especially after I noticed them heckling and aping at the other two bands (who were quite awesome, I should add). The one guy looked like a 400lb walking beard. Probably not a gothic rock fan. He was just one example of the odd mix of people there.
Overall, I think I had the most fun outside of the actual performance. I enjoyed sound checking at a new place. Talked with a lot of people. Talked shop with some of the other musicians. If anything, that's one reason I got into this band thing--the community aspect of participating in a local scene.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2004-05-21 03:10 pm (UTC)Ah, so, it has been proven that Bigfoot is more of a smooth jazz kind of race.
no subject
Date: 2004-05-21 03:45 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-05-21 04:10 pm (UTC)Aren't you glad he didn't like your band?
You wouldn't want Bigfeet to be humpin' to your songs, now would you?
no subject
Date: 2004-05-21 04:29 pm (UTC)Although, I'd like the idea of having a large bumper sticker to slap on my gear, or maybe a t-shirt, that reads "Bigfoot is my Groupie."
no subject
Date: 2004-05-21 03:10 pm (UTC)That's a pretty apt description of him. The words "giant walking testicle" came to mind, but that was inspired as much by his behavior as his appearance. The fact that he heckled all the bands actually made me feel a lot better, because it was obvious that he didn't have an actual opinion of his own but just liked to shout a lot.
no subject
Date: 2004-05-21 03:50 pm (UTC)It's kind of a bummer, but quite often the heckler's actions are a reflection of their own shortcomings. I took a look at that guy and knew my morale had nothing to fear from him. It did make it easier to bear, of course, when he proved his testicle-ness by shouting at everyone.
no subject
Date: 2004-05-21 06:44 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-05-21 07:19 pm (UTC)I was also thinking about the nature of being an opening act. It's a tough job. It does take time to shift and raise the collective energy of a room full of people to the level desired by the headlining act. The opening act serves two purposes, as I see it. For the opening act, it's exposure and practice playing before an audience. For the headlining act, it alleviates them from needing to wait for the audience to make the transition from Sleepy Post-dinner Thursday Night Energy to We're At Show! Let's Rock! Energy.
I felt this phenomenon at the Neubauten show. Without an opening act before them, I noticed it took me a little while to adjust and really get into the show. And I noticed it last night with other people who, judging by their compliments, clearly seemed to enjoy us. But it took them time to loosen up, liquor up, and really get in the mood to groove. But we were already off stage by that point.