Posts Tagged ‘Killing Floor’
Settling In
The most recent post on the Boston Blues Society Blog:
Mike Null
Special to The Killing FloorIt’s great to be back. The band received a warm reception and despite some basic house sound issues, we had a pretty successful first week.
We have definitely been busy…from rehearsing three hours every day to going to a sterile government health facility and getting the required “health check”. This consists of changing into a little white robe and slippers and being bussed from one room to another for a series of tests. I even tried to crack a joke as I laid on the bed getting my sonogram…”Is it a boy or a girl?”
The doctor didn’t laugh, but he did give me a chocolate afterward.
There is always the necessary trip to some of the local fake markets to get the Boston boys hip to the International standard of dress: suits that actually fit to the T, and gig clothes that don’t look like you’re about to start your shift at the local Citizen’s Bank. And, of course, everyone wants to try the Chinese McDonald’s.
Once the loose ends are tied up, we can finally focus on the main reason that we’re here, the music, and lots of it. Three sixty-minute sets a night, six nights a week. A lot happens to people when they realize that they have to play that much. Back in the states, Asia-bound players become so overwhelmed by the fact that they’ll be in China in a few weeks, that the whole “six nights a week” thing doesn’t quite sink in.
It’s not until they actually physically get here and have to do it for a week before they find out what they signed up for. Anxiety begins to set in and people go through a lot of mental changes. They begin to feel trapped and their “inner divas” come out. They can become extremely sensitive to sound issues and they worry about how their hands are going to hold up. Part of my job as a band leader, and I guess being the more experienced one because I’ve done this before, is constantly reminding people that everything will be okay.
“It’s cool…I know where to get a good cheeseburger.”
“If the bed is too hard, there’s an IKEA in Shanghai where you can buy a softer mattress.”
“We don’t have anything to do in the mornings. Sleep in…every day.”
My favorite thing about six nights a week is that I have to get up there and give it everything I’ve got—no matter how I feel that day. The worst part about six nights a week is that I have to get up there and give it everything I’ve got—no matter how I feel that day. It’s a real growing experience. A contract like this will cut through all of the mental excuses holding you back from musical evolution. One can say, “but…but…” and it doesn’t matter because you still have to get up there and kill it.
Again. And again.
There’s life before Shanghai, and there’s life in Shanghai. And right now, I’m here…on a contract, and there’s a room full of people here to experience this American thing called “the Blues”. If I’m not feeling it, they’re not going to feel it.
I had better get some sleep! Until next time…
