While one aims for clarity, a comedian doesn’t explain the joke to the audience, even though she knows a portion of them might not get it.
She moves on to the next joke, while the confused scratch their heads.
I love this aspect of comedy. I think songwriters and artists can borrow from that expectation of the audience, that they must do a little work, come to the venue with prior knowledge.
When releasing music that’s challenging, we need to be prepared for part of the audience not to get it. When I was 15, I didn’t get a lot of the themes of the 90s era music, especially the Babes in Toyland record. Now that I’m older, more well-read, and have watch the Riot Grrrl documentary and the Punk Singer, I’m ready to revisit those songs, with ready ears.
Reach out to the listeners who are ready. For the one’s who aren’t, let them scratch their head. That’s often their first step in a wonderful journey of studying up on something new.
* * * * Tap Room’s Comedy Night – Mondays * * *
My friend Alan Black is co-hosting a Monday comedy series in Ypsilanti, MI, and it’s going really well!
No cover. Mix of new and experienced comedians for a great show. Ypsilanti’s Alan Black and Amy Probst host.
More info at their Facebook page.
Cobain, Layne, and now Weiland.
Died at age 27, 34, 48.
When we are teenage musicians, we study our musical heroes underneath their posters tacked to our bedroom wall.
When we are adults, we might not have those posters on our walls, but we continue to see them rock the stage; usually the audience demands to hear the old hits, but hopefully the artists make art that challenges the culture.
Last year, when Weiland had a rough gig in Texas, it was easy to see his decline, easy to write a headline, even a joke. When substance abuse of the famous leads to tragedy, it sometimes feels so distant to our own lives, but it’s not.
Addictions are rampant in our towns and circles, in our communities. And it’s passed over the counter, or written on a script. Amy Winehouse’s father often said it was the alcohol abuse that killed her. Prescription medication abuse is a growing epidemic.
Yes, this requires a discussion of personal responsibility; but it’s also a discussion of community responsibility. Today we are going to discuss a loss of a musical icon. Tomorrow, we need to continue the discussion of substance abuse and how to help those suffering, and discuss how to help the friends and families trying to help the addicted, too.
A crime or a health problem? Maybe both, but in the Odyssey, we are warned of the universal dangers in a chapter called the lotus eaters; it’s the shipmates that return, following the orders of their captain, pull their lost companions out, and get them back on course.
Some musicians can’t pull themselves out; the gigging road can often seem like returning to the lotus eater’s island.
Cobain, Layne, and now Weiland.
I’m frustrated when I notice a mid-sized level acts neglect to mention their local openers for their concerts.
So you need the extra ticket sales, but you can’t share a tweet, a link on your website, a mention in your newsletter that a local act is opening the show?
I just noticed this for one of my Michigan friend’s show this month, who is probably going to outdraw the headlining act. I know, I know. It comes with the territory of being undiscovered. It’s known as paying your dues.
But it’s also a reminder that sometimes it’s more fruitful strategy for us undiscovered artists to work with other undiscovered artists!
* * * *
PS: I’m playing a cool concert in West Michigan with Frances Luke Accord, New Years Day!
Workshop: “How to Book 1000 Gigs, DIY”
Musicians and songwriters, I’m hosting a workshop about the music business titled, “How to Book 1000 Gigs, DIY”
I’m hosting a workshop January 3rd at my Dixboro Guitar studio in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Buy a ticket here. Cost is $10 to attend. Very limited seating. Includes a PDF eBook of tips (emailed December 31st), pizza and coffee.
This is an opportunity for us to kickstart our new year with strategies. Topics I’m covering include:
DIY touring, house concerts, stream/sales, selling merch on the road, promoting techniques, current music trends, and most importantly, staying organized like a business. I’ll be an open book about my 4+ years full time music, too.
Related show
During the PVSG challenge in 2013, one of our song prompts was “accidental hero.”
Inspired by Rita Dove’s poem, “Rosa,” I decided to break the song structure and worked through quatrains of Rosa Park’s fateful day in December.
I hope my turn of phrase in the song is clear; she isn’t painted as an accidental hero in verse four; rather the action of the fingerprinting cemented her deliberate role in the Civil Rights Movement of 1960s, a woman who trained at Highlander to take a role in civil rights.
Textbooks often misconstrue that Rosa Parks was tired when she refused to take a different seat; she was tired, tired of “giving in.”
Demo:
“December 1, 1955”
old look
passengers
third stop,
asking her
window seat,
lighting rod
better make it light
left them awed
forty-two,
in fifty-five;
chapter six,
$10 fine
police report,
fingerprint
hero made
by accident
midnight
clean flame
one phone call
reclaim
boycott
tenderfeet
sacrifice
take a seat
