artist a)CivilizationofLOVE

Wednesday night, about 9:40 p.m., October 19, 20011. Once i got to the mic to perform my first open mic night ( @ the Elks Hall) since moving to Courtenay,b.c. last month, the train wreck began. . The only thing that wasn't such a wreck was the performance, as short and slightly out of tune as it was. The emcee seemed to have plans of his own as to what an open mic was ( later on that) and unfortunately my ability to use my new digital field recorder failed, otherwise i would have posted it and you'd hear for yourself. Instead i will try to recall the details for the sake of your textual entertainment. Back to the mic. Mister emcee had to mic my guitar, as 'apparently'? i was supposed to show up with my 3/4 size 'travel' acoustic, .. . ready to be plugged in. Whether this is true or not, I did not know this, this being the first open-mic i have ever attended. As i stand with my guitar by my side, watching mister emcee get mics in place, it slips from my hand and falls to the floor. It went unnoticed by all but the emcee who seem a little rattled. I say something funny into the mic, but no response was heard. mic not on. The audience wasn't paying the slightest bit of attention. No thing. My guitar needed tuning so mister emcee and i turn to his hyper too sensitive tuner that would not hear my guitar. Annoyed i plod on. The emcee begins getting nervous and gets his hand around the tuning keys, interrupting me. The room has maybe 20 people who don't seem remotely phased by the unfolding ordeal on stage. I tell him that ill just tune my guitar by ear. Instead, the whip comes down. "You HAVE to have it in tune!" he spurts. Twitchy and obviously not listening at this point, he kicks into a minor tirade about what a piece of crap my guitar is, how over- wound I had wound the strings, and how old they are. Back in reality, it is a sweet new travel guitar, strung by whomever strung it before i bought it . . ..with new strings. I begin. I can hear the new sketch (Belief/Brain Waves) is slightly out of it but what the fuck, I am fully committed now. Onward. Done. A pretty good applause comes at me. Not tooo bad. Now for a song, (Unphysical). Went well. Suddenly here comes the emcee toward the stage looking all twitchy and wiry. "Time to get off the stage we have other people that want to play". Back in reality, in this nearly empty room, there was one other woman. I felt the hook, but i just could not see it. As i walk off and back to my chair for a sit, the emcee grumbles out a couple of snide comments . .. about putting people to sleep and something else. That was entertaining i think to myself, more what i witnessed than what the audience witnessed. As the next performer begins, i can still hear this guy, now at the back of the room, going on some more....'i dunno how many joint you need to smoke to play that....grumble grumble. . . yes, said it b4..will again in a few lines .. this is at an open-mic night. This particular emcee, as i understand it, has had plenty of experience playing music and playing music live, and yet, has failed to understand that the audience was thin and thinning, and it was an Open-Mic Night!?. My friend and i listen to the next performer knock out a couple of short and sweet improvisations on piano, then get up and leave. As the door closes behind me, I hear it opening, and a voice telling me how good the songs were, that i should come back for the next one in two weeks time. whodathunkit. I stayed in my center, and quite enjoyed myself at the mic. And thanks to i forget your name for coming out the door and sharing your kind fine thoughts with me. very gracious of you indeed. I just might go back. There are many more open mics in this town to be had. Don't know if anyone will top THIS emcee though.