It's kinda nice being nervous...
03/03/10 22:35 Filed in: Performance Reviews | mp3
Yesterday I played with Tomo, Shenandoah, Alina, and Jacqueline of Grand Hallway (plus ~5 other musicians) live on KEXP.
For my out-of-state friends, KEXP is the ultimate indie rock station in, well, probably the whole world. It’s the kind of station that when announcing the songs you just heard, you don’t know whether they’re actually naming band names or just using incomplete sentences. (Indie bands can get pretty creative.) There’s an air of refined snobbery to KEXP, and rightly so, they’ve worked hard to get where they’re at. Plus, you’re not worth a thing in Seattle if you’re not nonprofit, so... brownie points for them.
Now, let me tell you that I’ve played in some pretty crazy stressful situations. College admissions. Recitals. Concerto performances. Auditions galore. And the caliber of stages I’ve played on would be enough to make a Great Dane shake like a Chihuahua. All this, and I haven’t had more than a twinge nervousness.
The only time I get nervous is on the radio. Every week for 3.5 years I DJ’ed for my college radio station: 88.1 FM KTXT (Rest in Peace.) And it never failed. I’d walk through the doors of the station and a flood of nerves would prick my skin right through to my stomach. No amount of breathing would suffice or settle me down. The only thing that removed the massive knot in my stomach was to just go for it.
Radio is a weird thing. Perhaps it’s because I don’t know how many people actually aren’t listening. It’s probably because I’m used to judging how the audience is receiving a performance, or how a friend is receiving my words. I’m just in a room talking/playing) away with this ghost-of-the-unknown hovering above me.
So radio... zoom from college years to yesterday. That familiar feeling of needles in my belly washed over me as I drove across the Aurora Bridge, with views of the Olympics, the Cascades, and Lake Union. It’s my favorite spot in Seattle and I couldn’t enjoy it because I was so nervous. The nerves start in my throat and melt down into my stomach, requiring my lungs to work about 50% harder than necessary.
As I arrived to the station the nervousness became increasingly elevated until the sound engineers were counting down: “You’re on in...3...2...1...” Whhoooosh... The nerves vanish after about 3 deep breaths & the whole performance went really smoothly. That’s the way it always goes. Nervousness has become that friend you never think of inviting to the party. But when they arrive, the party finally becomes ALIVE & It’s awesome.
Did you get a chance to hear it on-air? If not, have no fear - I’ve got the recording right here.
Videos & photos to come shortly.
For my out-of-state friends, KEXP is the ultimate indie rock station in, well, probably the whole world. It’s the kind of station that when announcing the songs you just heard, you don’t know whether they’re actually naming band names or just using incomplete sentences. (Indie bands can get pretty creative.) There’s an air of refined snobbery to KEXP, and rightly so, they’ve worked hard to get where they’re at. Plus, you’re not worth a thing in Seattle if you’re not nonprofit, so... brownie points for them.
Now, let me tell you that I’ve played in some pretty crazy stressful situations. College admissions. Recitals. Concerto performances. Auditions galore. And the caliber of stages I’ve played on would be enough to make a Great Dane shake like a Chihuahua. All this, and I haven’t had more than a twinge nervousness.
The only time I get nervous is on the radio. Every week for 3.5 years I DJ’ed for my college radio station: 88.1 FM KTXT (Rest in Peace.) And it never failed. I’d walk through the doors of the station and a flood of nerves would prick my skin right through to my stomach. No amount of breathing would suffice or settle me down. The only thing that removed the massive knot in my stomach was to just go for it.
Radio is a weird thing. Perhaps it’s because I don’t know how many people actually aren’t listening. It’s probably because I’m used to judging how the audience is receiving a performance, or how a friend is receiving my words. I’m just in a room talking/playing) away with this ghost-of-the-unknown hovering above me.
So radio... zoom from college years to yesterday. That familiar feeling of needles in my belly washed over me as I drove across the Aurora Bridge, with views of the Olympics, the Cascades, and Lake Union. It’s my favorite spot in Seattle and I couldn’t enjoy it because I was so nervous. The nerves start in my throat and melt down into my stomach, requiring my lungs to work about 50% harder than necessary.
As I arrived to the station the nervousness became increasingly elevated until the sound engineers were counting down: “You’re on in...3...2...1...” Whhoooosh... The nerves vanish after about 3 deep breaths & the whole performance went really smoothly. That’s the way it always goes. Nervousness has become that friend you never think of inviting to the party. But when they arrive, the party finally becomes ALIVE & It’s awesome.
Did you get a chance to hear it on-air? If not, have no fear - I’ve got the recording right here.
Videos & photos to come shortly.
