May I suggest waiting a couple weeks to allow grassland nesting birds to successfully fledge their first brood? Surely you have meadowlarks and bobolinks nesting in those beautiful fields.
At my local open mic, the host is paid by the brewery. They have a tip jar out but I think of it as a jar for those who are just watching to contribute to. Over time I've gotten to know folks and help out with setup and break down, but that's absolutely not necessary. Do not feel obligated to put any money in as a performer.
I think the most important pieces of performing at an open mic is:
- Be ready when it's your turn. Have your instrument tuned, walk right up when you get the cue and get the show going as quick as you can. When you're done, get out of the way.
- Stick to your allotted time or song limit. If you go long or try to play an extra song, it puts the host in an uncomfortable situation.
- Be a good hang. Stay for as long as you are able to support other artists. Listen to other performances. Give kudos after, a fist bump or quick compliment will do. Do not leave as soon as your performance is over.
- If you can afford it, support the venue. For my place it means most times I go I'll get a beer.
There's a lot to dig into here.
I don't have solutions for your particular situation. However I've been in a band where the social dynamics and therefore musical dynamics are severely hampered by a certain individual. We all liked the guy, tried many times to reason and be frank, but it just never worked. He played too loud, too much, and didn't listen to what anyone else was doing. Some people either don't understand or don't care enough to change.
I've since made another band with two friends. We are pretty set on keeping it a trio to avoid the complications of adding another member who doesn't share our ethos. We've invited friends to join for a practice here and there, which is fun, but we have more fun when it's the three of us. There's less of a chance of stepping on each other.
Good luck friend. Music is supposed to be fun and I always come back to that. Grandeur visions are fun for a minute but the important piece is enjoying the process of getting together with friends every week and playing music. That's gotta be the core of it all, for me at least. Whatever comes after is a bonus.
My first concert ever was cold play at SPAC on the lawn. Magical memories. Lotsa room, felt like I was really chilling in the grass listening to music.
Went to see the Lumineers at SPAC in 2022, swore I'd never go back again. The lawn felt DANGEROUS. Impossible to move around, even the walkways which should be managed by security and kept clear were jammed packed with people so you literally couldn't get out. There was no lawn, just a sea of people. Awful experience.
This is awesome, OP! Thank you for organizing local shows.
I've been organizing local shows in Central VT, it's a lot of work, and no matter the music, a bunch of old white folks show up. It's amazing that anyone comes, and all of the posers in these comments saying it doesn't look "punk" have nothing to stand on. If you like punk music and go to punk shows then that's as punk as it gets. It's not punk rock to complain about live shows on Reddit.
Would love to make the journey to play in Potsdam someday!
I have tremolo on 75% of the time, set to a slow pulse with low depth. It just gives things a bit of subtle movement that I enjoy.
I'm interested and my band is located 30 minutes from Rutland.
Church parking lots have worked for me. But I'd rotate between a few churches so I'm not staying more than one night at a time at each.
Very cool! I'd love to explore around the diamond mall. Is it still standing?
Thanks for sharing. Seems like a spot with a lot of old school charm.
I would love to watch this. Open mics are so much fun, would love if you could focus each episode on a couple of characters from each location. In my experience, it would require going to several open mics at each location to really get a handle on the culture and how to portray it. I say that because I'm a regular at an open mic in VT, I go almost every week, and there are certainly people who are staples to the scene who you could potentially miss if you were there for only one night.
Hiked Killington last fall, shared a bottle of prosecco at the top with my wife, and got the gondola down for free. Sobered up, got sushi. Great day.
2000 followers in 2 months... Damn! I'm at 140 in 14 months lol!
Agree completely. It's gotta be on streaming platforms or it just doesn't exist for most people, including myself.
My good friend has 3 stellar albums on Bandcamp. Love his music. I jam with him often, know the lyrics to many of his songs, seen him live many many times. NEVER listen to his music cause it ain't on Spotify...
Two powerfully cringey moments... The silent crowd and the band leaving you with all that booze. Brutal!
Awesome! I'm guessing you encountered a lot of mud? Also, is that fire tower open to hikers?
Can you share more about why this is problematic? From the outside it seems like the more markets the better but I'm sure I'm missing something.
I've found this to be true for the most part. Mostly, being in a band forced me to find a sound and leaves less room for "well what if I tried this reverb instead."
Seems like it was quite the successful business at one point. I wonder what happened?
Thank you for thinking of the wildlife!!!
30 acres of hay ready to cut. It will be square bailed and sold for horses.
vermont