Open Mic @ The Alley. Tues Jan 17, 2023.

Another Tuesday, another open mic. It was a bit of a wild night at The Alley in Littleton, CO. The snow started coming down on my way there, but there was still a good sized gathering. Really talented people and the host, Tony, is the nicest guy. All in all, it’s a great spot to meet good people and settle in for a bit.

I decided to do another instrumental set tonight since last week went so well. I drudged up a song I haven’t played in 10 years: Uluru. I had to relearn it this afternoon. I am too shy to ask anyone for video, so here’s a recording and an old video of the song for reference:

I also played Open Road and Ode:

The set went really well. I got lost in it, really. I closed my eyes and could see my guitar as if it was right in front of me. It felt warm and close and almost a part of me. I think I only looked at the guitar a handful of times, but I could see everything I was doing. It was kinda weird.

This time, the entire bar was engaged. Normally, half the place is kinda talking over you and half is with you, but tonight it felt like everyone was with me. Like we were doing it together. I love that, because that means people are connecting with me and feeling what I’m feeling and almost playing the song with me. It changes things, and I played better than I usually do. Lots of mistakes, but much more expressive and free. When I feel that kind of support from a room, I really respond.

Afterward, it took 10 mins to get back to my seat! Everyone wanted to say great job and tell me stories and share a bit of themselves. It’s a crazy thing, to be there, in your own skin, but also being present as people connect to something larger because of something you started. It’s a bit of an out of body experience that you can see in the third person in your memory. I absolutely love it because it validates how powerful music is and how it can bring people together. These people who were just strangers are now telling me about their families, kids, vacations, hopes, dreams. It’s just amazing and I feel a bit healed and at peace as a result.

I think we all need that. Connection. We are so trained to hold people at a distance. If you read the news, it’s not hard to wonder why. And yet, when we dwell in connection with others and forge new connections, it feels like some communal brain forming new neural pathways. I think there's truth to that. I suppose I’m a bit Jungian, but in my experience there is a collective conscience and we can feel it when our individual energy fields enmesh with another’s. Music is a great medium for this, but it’s certainly not the only one. Anytime someone shows up and is vulnerable, saying “This is what I love to do and I want you to see it,” it’s a powerful bid for connection. Others feel that and respond in kind and it’s just so, I dunno, human in the best way.

Ok, sorry. I went long-form philosophical for a minute. If I’m honest, a part of me resents that my instrumental music most powerfully displays my hues to the world. I wish it was my singing or my songwriting that did so. It does, but not in a way that grabs people and says, “Hey, something bigger is happening and I want you here with me.” I guess I just wish my voice was my actual voice. But it turns out, so far, anyway, that my playing sings to people in a way my voice never could. I am happy for that. And I will keep working on my singing and songwriting because I feel something there. Something really big.