Todd A » 2010 » August

Last Saturday night at The Fretted Frog

I played The Fretted Frog‘s new open mic last Saturday night. The place is an alternative acoustic music shop in Echo Park with tons of crazy banjos, ukuleles and oddly tuned guitars. It’s an awesome atmosphere just for a shop but it turned out to be possibly the best open mic I’ve ever attended.

I arrived a bit early since traffic in LA is always a big question mark. Roland, the owner of the shop, and Colin readied the place for the open mic by arranging chairs and a bench to face the stage. They ran two mics through a small PA system and a Lunchbox amp. (Which was the coolest amp I’ve ever played through. Want one.) The sound was just spectacular. In that room surrounded by guitars all over the walls with just some simple amplification, it was amazing.

They set out snacks and drinks and soon people showed up just to watch. Nice, polite people who just wanted to hear the music.

I met Ricky Stein from Austin, TX and talked to him while they waited to start the evening. He went on after me and basically tore the roof off the place with three original Americana tunes that sounded older than he is.

Roland allowed me to go on first since I had to depart a little early to make another engagement. It was, and I don’t think I’m exaggerating, the best time I’ve ever had playing an open mic. It sounded so good to me and I felt so comfortable in that environment. I sang Frankly Mr Turner, Stay Together For the Dog and Ewa. During “Ewa,” I had that momentary feeling that everything was going right — I was singing well and strong, hitting the notes, hitting the words, playing well. It was beautiful. Roland video recorded a lot of the show but I almost don’t want to see it since it could taint my version of my performance. It was a really wonderful experience on all counts.

Tuesday, 31 August 2010 | more: Show Diary | Comments (0)

Open Mic at Father's Pub

Title: Open Mic at Father’s Pub
Location: 13912 Ponderosa Street Santa Ana, CA 92705
Link out: Click here
Description: I’m playing an open mic at Father’s Pub that my friend Boris hosts.
Start Time: 21:00
Date: 2010-08-31

Tuesday, 31 August 2010 | more: Show Diary | Comments (0)

Johnny Riggs's Photos

I’m enjoying Johnny Rigg’s Flickr stream. (Just wish he’d give them a CC license.)

Monday, 30 August 2010 | more: Notes | Comments (0)

Tried a new thing last night

Set list on the side of the guitar.

Friday, 27 August 2010 | more: Show Diary | Comments (0)

Last night at Viento y Agua

I played Viento y Agua Coffee House last night with Blue in the Face, a piano / guitar / laptop duo from Portland, Oregon. I had a good time. The crowd was sparse but the environment is so cool and the sound is so phenomenal that playing there is a pleasure no matter what. It was the first show I’d played there (I’ve played some open mic nights) and Angie does a great job on the sound and making you feel welcome. I hope to be back there soon.

For those of you who missed it (and you know who you are), audio and video are below. I tried a little experiment of playing a bunch of short, similar songs all together right up front. I have mixed feelings about that approach. You can leave me your impressions in the comments.

Here’s the video. Audio is below it.

the Hit On List – live at Viento y Agua from the Hit On List on Vimeo.

You can play the individual tracks below or just right-click that first link to get all the mp3s. The song titles link to the song pages where you can get more info on that particular song.