music…when it sucks

this is an older post, but i’m giving it to you again because i witnessed the same thing tonight at the flying saucer in little rock. from the exact same guy who i wrote about the first time. so yeah, here it is. i didn’t edit it, even though there was no opener (it was just the one guy, who shall remain nameless, even though a lot of you will know who i am talking about), and some other details aren’t the same…the basic message still applies, though…amazing that he hasn’t changed in three years…

i hate fake performances, maybe even moreso when the “artist” has a gleam of talent. i don’t understand the need these people feel to try and create some special aura about themselves. man, just play your songs. i went to a show friday night where this occured. the opener vs. the headliner. guess what? in my opinion, the opener kicked the headliner’s ass. and here’s why: the opener played what his heart was feeling; he didn’t throw some image at us, he let the music speak. and then along comes the high and mighty headlining act, and from the minute he stepped on stage i sensed the act. i’m not saying he doesn’t like, maybe even love, what he’s doing, but what i felt from watching him was that he was showing off to an audience. he wasn’t trying to reach us; wasn’t trying to connect on that higher plane of music where idle words outside the song cannot express near enough emotion. several times during the opener i felt chills running through my body, not because of an amazing performance (though it was very good), but because the words leaped into my soul and refused to be denied their chance to speak. i didn’t even come close to feeling that during the headliner. in fact, i was so put-off by the performance that i left after four songs. is this harsh? maybe. but i guarantee if i had felt an ounce of sincere, beautiful music, i would have stayed. but then, maybe i’m not in it for the same reasons as some. some do it because they can, and some do it because they have to. because there is something deep within them that demands to be released. that is the essence of music.