Ziggy's, October 22, 2004

Ziggy's, one of North Carolina's premier rock clubs, never disappoints when it comes to opening slots. This past year, MG4 has played 4 times at this club. 3 of the four times have been in supporting roles. All three exposed us to a big crowd.

Yesterday, MG4 opened for the multi-major-label band Better Than Ezra. I say "multi" because they've been on a few different labels. They've managed to nurture a strong fan base in that juggle. And, in a volatile industry, they've found a way to stay afloat. They brought in close to 500 kids for the show on Friday, October 22 in Winston-Salem, NC.

Our sixty minute opening set was probably the best MG4 set we've played to date. There wasn't much room on stage, so we set up "James-style"; that is, in a straight line. Do you remember the band James from the 90's? Well, I saw them one time. They set up in a straight line. It was kind of neat. The crowd was energetic and supportive.

I like seeing people connect with the music. Usually, people are into our newer songs. There are those who look a bit bored until they hear a familiar song like "Automatic" or "October." I like to see faces their light up, as if to say, "Oh, yeah, I remember this song. It's good."

We shuffled the set list around in order to make it a little punchier. We dropped the acoustic number and added "Rusted Radio."

Don't Fade Away
Automatic
Summer Machine
Sour Milk
Another Day in Paradise
Walk in Circles
Sister Havana
Sigourney Weaver
Superhero
Rusted Radio
October
Gravity Affects Me

After the set, I sold merch. I sold a lot of merch, mostly EP's. We sold 50 copies of the EP. That means about 10% of the audience purchased our CD because they liked our set. Man, I can't tell you how happy I am about that. After almost two months, we're at 67% of our sales goal of 500 EP's.

I hung out with Ryan, the Better Than Ezra merch guy for most of the evening. I enjoyed BTE's set. They played a number of songs I forgot that I liked by them. I ended up picking up their live DVD recorded at the House of Blues in New Orleans. Incidentally, that's the only House of Blues Collapsis ever sold out. It's smaller than most, but it's so, so great.

At the end of the night, Kevin, the lead guy from BTE, told me how much he enjoyed our set. I returned the compliment. He and the other guys were swamped with fans, but I appreciate his taking the time to mention that to me.

The Evening Muse, October 12, 2004

Shows on Tuesdays are usually duds.

This one wasn't.

The Evening Muse is a small club in the NODA district of Charlotte, NC. I usually play there three times a year. Usually. I enjoy it's ambiance. Joe and Lea, the folks that run the place, are really nice. I should also mention that they are fair when it comes to money. Clubs usually aren't.

Lea asked me if I'd like to open this show for Stereo 360, a band from LA, a few months back. It seemed like a good idea. Getting in front of a new audience is key when you're trying to promote a new project.

The day of the show, Stereo 360 had some transportation trouble...purportedly. If they did, that's fine. If they didn't and said they did, that's crappy. Personally, I've done the touring equivalent of "calling in sick" to avoid a money losing show. Whatever really happened, the bottom line was that they weren't coming. So, the show became mine.

Most of my fans appreciated that the other band cancelled. I gathered this as I was getting ready to take the stage. I gathered about 35 fans from the bi-state area for the show. That's not bad for a Tuesday. A lot of bands don't do those numbers on a weekend, so I considered the turnout a success.

I couldn't do the show I planned to do because, well, I had to add an hour to my set. I made an outline of a set list and worked off of that. I tend to drift from my plans once I get into the show. I think I drifted well. I had a few songs I wanted to play, but, by and large, I left the song selection up to the fans.

Many people told me, and I'm surprised with this, that this particular show was among the best they had seen me do. I made an effort to keep my anecdotes relevant and fresh. For example, when I played "When I Was Five," I told a story about my going back to the house I grew up in near Hinesville, GA. I don't recall telling that tale before. The night was good.

I'm surprised with the number of EP's I sold this night, too. I sold 12. That doesn't sound like a lot. However, when you look at the ratio of EP's sold to those in attendance, it's a different story. 34% of the people at the show bought EP's. If that trend was constant, that would mean a 500 person crowd would be expected to purchase 170 EP's! Now, I realize that the 34% rule I just made up is not a constant. Yet, $5 is such an easy sell. Things are looking good.

I'm seeking out more clubs like the Evening Muse all around the country. I recently booked a show in Pittsburgh that seems a lot like the Muse...a place called Club Cafe. I've started the ball rolling on a massive Pittsburgh press campaign, so I think I could see the numbers that would make the trip worthwhile.