I think the open mic was terrible!

[alstallio]

I thought the music was ok but there was no real originality, nothing that moved me.it was just all the same apart from a few.I also spoke to alot of people who thought the same.but hey its 15 minutes of fame for some..but the end for others.the rally was good though. alot of interesting peoplewww.alstallio.com where honesty counts

[Casey H]

HiI was at the smaller "upstairs" open mic Saturday night and I was totally impressed by the talent, especially the songwriting. I have to 1000% agree with Jimi that this is more about songwriting than performing. All I know is I had a blast at the upstairs thing on Saturday. Some people played totally heart-wrenching songs while others played hysterically funny ones. For me, I wasn't looking to see a concert with outstanding performances- I was looking to have fun. Now, I never was downstairs so I have no point of reference. And in the intimate environment of the smaller room, I made friends with some very cool people. Casey

[stick]

[sigh ]

[Casey H]

I walked away from this thread upset and disappointed.... maybe a little angry ... I don't know if I am overreacting but something doesn't feel right about this thread.No, I wasn't at the downstairs mic... But I find the very idea of having a THREAD saying you were disappointed with the level of talent bothersome. It's just one of those negative things that that only serves to hurt some people's feelings. If you had played there and read this, how would you feel? And maybe the intention WAS NOT for it to be a competition of who can be best, but a place for people to have fun and enjoy playing for a crowd. Now I do appreciate that people want to make positive suggestions regarding how do to this differently at future rallies. Maybe sending those directly into TAXI might be better than commenting publicly on people's talent level.I love you all- my fellow dots, but this one hit me this way... Casey

[tedsingingfox]

Quote:ok so some of u are upset, but why should we all lie that everyone is good or made the effort.in my life i only get told the truth. so thats the way it should be. does simon cowells tell the bad acts on american idol that they're good for effort.... nah, not in the real world.only your families will like your efforts... no-one else.so if your good keep doing what u do.if your bad then dont give up the day job. What's wrong with applauding someone who's just started writing songs 3 months ago for sticking their neck on the chopping block and making the effort to challlenge their scared self to take that first step? Step back for a minute and remember the time when the only people telling YOU that you were any good was your family and friends. Empathy goes a long way, here , so Breathe, OK?Ted

[paults]

Quote:Quote:ok so some of u are upset, but why should we all lie that everyone is good or made the effort.in my life i only get told the truth. so thats the way it should be. does simon cowells tell the bad acts on american idol that they're good for effort.... nah, not in the real world.only your families will like your efforts... no-one else.so if your good keep doing what u do.if your bad then dont give up the day job. What's wrong with applauding someone who's just started writing songs 3 months ago for sticking their neck on the chopping block and making the effort to challlenge their scared self to take that first step? Step back for a minute and remember the time when the only people telling YOU that you were any good was your family and friends. Empathy goes a long way, here , so Breathe, OK?TedI'll take that one step further - if a person gets some kind of validation or amusement by starting a thread to proclaim in a public forum that an entire group of performances was "terrible", I think that says much more about the person than it does about the performances.

[mazz]

I think what Stick is saying is that maybe the Rally is the place to put your best foot forward at all times and the local coffeehouse open mic is the place to work the bugs out of your songs.The Rally is not an invited open mic and the term "open" mic should be an indicator to anyone that you may or may not get a level of brilliance that meets up to your pre-conceptions.More than once it was discussed around a few drinks that the TAXI membership is a microcosm of the larger world of the music business. In that case, there's going to be a huge variety of people at all levels and they rarely are all represented in one place like they are at the Road Rally. How many brilliant pieces of music never got pulled out of the boxes at the listening panels compared to how many were actually played? You can judge for yourself if you were there. No wonder A/R people come off cranky sometimes!Let everyone have their shot at the big stage in LA. Not to be too presumptious but you've got two legs and probably know how to stand up and walk out of a room. There's plenty of nice folks to talk to if you need a break from the open mic. Walk over to the bar, don't torture yourself!. Mazz

[daniel481]

I just wanted to chime in and say that Jon Brion would be awesome Maybe Jason Falkner, too??

[sgs4u]

Quote:Casey and Ted, if it will make you feel better I'll gladly go back up and delete my posts. If nothing else you've helped me understand a little better what the point of that open mic is supposed to be... and it's clearly not what I thought it was going to be as a Rally newbie. I hope you guys got to know me enough at the Rally to know I'm not out to knock anyone else down. -b Steve Sticking up for Stick. . I don't go to open mics. I know exactly what I'm missing. When music I really don't like is playing, it's like barbed fish hooks are sinking into my skin, and I have to remove them (painfully) before I can get back to work. Everyone has a right to believe in themselves, but I don't have to listen. Nor am I required by law, or etiquette, to say anything nice about it. Stick didn't say anything nasty, he simply expanded on a thread and gave his version of what he witnessd. If you remember, Stick even offered to play piano for any forumers, before we all went to LA. I thought that was a brilliant idea, and I felt strangely envious & competitive. Some people get bent out of shape easily, that obviously includes me. But let's save the circling shark mentality, for the knobs, that truly deserve it. Get off the scapegoat bandwagon. For all of you who think our friend was too harsh, relax a bit before you condemn someone who brings a ton of clout, information and love to this forum. We're all a bit giddy from last weekend, and all pumped up. I can admit, I was subjected to more than a few bits of music I didn't enjoy. I was pretty quick to raise my hand to turn them off, too... Is it a really surprise that open mic participants chosen at random, are a cross section of performers that is less exciting to listen to, than what lifer musicians wanna be around? Hardly... Perhaps you think some of us full-time musicians live in musical glass towers. I can't speak for Brian, but I paid enough of those kinds of dues. So, here I stand, a far more out-spoken and easier, rounder target to aim at. Wanna make something of it...? It's hard to hit Stick, he lives up to his name, and he's a prince of a human being. (and I'm quite positive he'd rather have this subject disappear quietly, than for me have to take any of you outside....)

[sgs4u]

Ooh, what a fabulous song that is. My wife made a screen saver thingy to that song with pics of our family. We all cry when the chorus starts... I'm very sorry I missed their performance, but I had a few opportunities to swap fish stories, if ya know what I mean.Doh, that was last year... my bad. I was way too dumb last year, and didn't know much about the rally, except for a premonition of this weird and delightful "Rally Love", which I'm happy to now be part of.Quote:Quote:...and the lady that wrote "I Hope You Dance" (her name escapes me now, sorry) and her husband....You mean Tia Sillers and Mark Selby:http://markselby.com/tia.html&http://ww ... sillersTia wrote IHYD with Mark D. Sanders