News – May 9, 2023
Life is good, folks! I’ve been crazy-busy, lately, but my days and evenings are jam-packed, full of the amazing music you all make, so…no complaints! And it’s only gonna get better and better!
The Bar 580 Shows are currently booked almost through July. The plan is to get on a schedule where we’re promoting each upcoming ‘show’ and ‘showcase’ a full two weeks in advance, with at least 4 ‘impressions’ on all the relevant social media platforms. EVERYBODY, please ‘follow @LMSBratt on fb and insta, and share, Share, SHARE the shows we post!!!
For those of you who have slots, we will be getting in touch with you very soon, looking for the information we need to properly promote your show. Here’s what we’ll be looking for:
- Photos – if you don’t have any, get in touch and we can shoot some
- A brief ‘blurb’ – in your own words, 100 or less – about what you do, your style, your influences, etc.
- Availability to do a 15 min., mini-interview, by phone, to gather any other interesting info about your music
- Links to any video content you have online
- Links to any recorded music you have online
Sunday Night Open Jam sessions are going well. I’m working on putting together an “Open Jam Bible”, full of the types of songs we can play at these gatherings, and getting set up to project lyrics and chord charts onto the wall, to make it easy for any and all to follow along. There will be a playlist to go with it, that I’ll share this week. (Feel free to send me any songs you think would be great additions to the list. Best if they’re fairly easy, so those who don’t know the tune can follow along without difficulty.)
I’d sure like to see participation in these things continue to increase. Yes, it’s a chance to get together and play songs, but it’s also meant to be a ‘community-building’ thing. This is a theme you’re going to hear a lot: We all want the gig, and because we have so much incredible talent in this area, with not enough venues willing to go out on a limb and host music regularly, we need more gigs to go around. The way we make that happen is to show, when there is a gig, we bring a crowd. And the way we make THAT happen is, when we, or one of our compatriots gets a gig, we share it around, we invite all our friends, and we show up to hoot and holler and make it a raucous good time. And yeah, I know, we’re all busy, and times are tough, and none of us has as much $$$ as we’d like. I’m not suggesting you come out and blow your whole allowance for the week. At the very least, though, whenever you can, stop in, have a drink of some sort, and make some noise. It is the stated mission of the LMS to create a vibrant, live, local music scene in Brattleboro, but the first step in MAKING a scene, is to BE the scene.
I’ve been communicating about the Open Jam by sending out weekly text message ‘reminders’. This hasn’t been working so well, because…technology. I’m going to be transitioning to doing this via email, so if you want to stay ‘in the loop’, make sure I have your working email address – use the “subscribe” form, in the footer of this site. The Open Jam will also be listed on the “EVENTS” page of this site.
All that said, unless you hear otherwise, ASSUME the weekly Open Jam IS happening, every Sunday night, between 6 and 10pm. If you are a musician of any level or ability, and you want to join in, contact me through this site, tell me a little about yourself, and I’ll get you the details.
LMSBratt.com is obviously up and running. I’ll be working to get all the shows listed, at least a month in advance. “News” posts, like this, will be weekly, normally on Thursdays, so check back often! I’m going to be working in the coming weeks and months to build out an “ARTISTS” page, get a newsletter up and running, and make playlists of local artists available, among other things…
A Million and One Ideas – anybody whose spoken to me in the last couple/few months knows, I’ve got some lofty goals for where I want to take this thing. I’m one guy, though, with only so many hours in the day, and all the normal responsibilities. If I’m gonna get close to achieving those goals, I’m going to need some help. To that end, if you feel like I’m onto something, and you want to participate, and be at the front of the line when it comes to ‘dibs’ on gigs and events, please attend…
Planning Meetings – I’m going to be hosting a couple planning, organization, and information sessions, at my place, here in Brattleboro. There are things already in the works, I’ll fill you in on, and other things I’d like to get into the works, but will need some assistance to get going.
That said, know this – this is my full-time job at the moment, though nobody is compensating me for it, in any way. I do know, it can’t be yours. If we all pitch in, just a little bit, I’m certain we can make some great things happen, pretty quickly. We’ve got a huge wave of momentum at the moment, as spring rolls into summer, and folks are finally shaking off the ‘pandemic’ mindset, and looking for life to get back to something like ‘normal’. We’ve gotta ride that wave, as if our livelihoods – our one true, calling – depends on it. Because it does.
I’m offering two dates and times – Wednesday, May 17th at 7pm, and Saturday, May 20th, at 11am. They’ll be listed on here, as “events” as well. The hope is, if you can’t make one, you’ll be able to make the other. If, for some reason, you can’t make either, and you DO want to be involved, contact me directly, and I’ll arrange to meet with you individually, at some point.
If you’re NOT a musician, but just a FAN (we love you!), and you want to help out and be a part of the growing the scene, you are, of course, welcome to join us!
Like at the Open Jam, I’ll provide some snacks. BYOB, if you’re so inclined – these are going to be casual affairs. Bring an instrument if you want to do a little jamming, after the planning is done! Unlike the Open Jam, for these I would like an RSVP. Call or text me at 802-380-3101, email, [email protected], or feel free to use the “CONTACT” page on this site right this second, before it slips your mind!
So yeah, there’s a lot of cool stuff going on, and it’s only gonna get more and better! Don’t miss out on being a part of it!