GIG REPORT - Slightly Offensive (Mugshots 3/5/11)

This past Saturday night my band SLIGHTLY OFFENSIVE played @ Mugshots (Bridgeview IL). We got this gig through a new booking agent who is just starting out. When we came by to drop off the flyers to promote our show the owner told Cory that he had some people stop by inquiring about us (our name was on the marquee), heard we were a “great band”. :D Cool!!! Mugshots is kind of a dive bar located in a strip mall. Reminded me a lot of when we played O'Learys back in Dec. When I arrived, it was just the bartender & I in the place. The owner came out of the back office & introduced himself and moved the punching bag video game ($1 a punch??? Are you kidding me??) So that's where I set up, right up against the video game. Again, whenever I get to a new place I always check out the flyers to see what types of bands play here to get a feel of the place. There's a Godsmack tribute band playing here in a couple weeks & the jukebox...all it was playing was Godsmack, Disturbed, Alice In Chains etc. While we were setting up a birthday party came in and set up their balloons in the back corner, across from them there was a biker dude & his friend, these 2 knew the owner well & the rest of the bar started to fill in a little bit. I took a head count before we started and we were up to 25ppl at the start. I think I'm going to do this from now on. Cory (singer) was worried that the B-Day party was going to leave before we stared (they did go outside to smoke) & I looked over there and saw the balloons were still there. I told him that when those balloons go out the door that'll be the end of our night. We won't do well with a “biker” type crowd.

Now last Thursday night I got a call on my way home from work from our singer Cory. He went to an old bar we played at before w/other bands that just changed ownership & talked to the new owner about playing there. Well, after some small talk the owner (who also sings in a band, same songs basically as us) asked if we could play a set that night while he auditions a new sound man & test out his newly acquired PA system. Cool, so we all went over there last Thursday night & played a set. Now, his band is playing some Top 40 songs however they don't have a keyboard player so when they play Lady Gaga's “Poker Face” it doesn't quite sound right and the younger patrons do notice. Cory told him that I use a Roland Guitar Synth and I can mimic all those Top 40 tunes. So after I set up I tested out my synth by playing the opening lick to “Poker Face” & Key$ha's “Tik Tok” & I was watching the owner down by the end of the bar with his friends and I could tell he was intrigued. Then I started playing the opening piano lick to Journey's “Don't Stop Believing”, that's when he heard enough & put down his beer and walked all the way up to the stage & I explained to him my customized guitar rig and how I'm able to come up with all these unique sounds. He was impressed, so impressed that HE came out on Sat night with his girlfriend to check us out. He stayed for 1 set and left but I heard that he wants us to play his grand opening party on St Patty's Day but we still need to work out the details/pay etc. :D

So the first set went well, some mistakes during “American Girl” where the bass player couldn't hear me and he was 4 counts ahead of everyone else on the changes until he took his earplugs out, then we finished fine. Some tunes were hit & miss during the first set. I think I'm going to start taking notes on the setlist (1-5) of songs that we do and see if I can see a pattern of “dogs” that don't go over well and replace those w/something else.

So we took a 1/2hr break & I counted heads, we were up to 50ppl now & EVERYONE'S drinking. :D Our 2nd set ALWAYS goes over well and the highlights of the things I remember from Sat night were our little sing-a-long w/Every Rose Has Its Thorn, all the girls from the B-Day party up in front of us singing for most of the 2nd set. During Save A Horse Ride A Cowboy I saw a girl riding her man on the barstool like a mechanical bull (memorable but we didn't get a pic of it) :D . One of the girls asked what are we going to play so they can dance on the bar so we played Def Leppard's “Pour Some Sugar On Me” which I started out the opening lick ½ step down (C instead of C#) so the bass player hears that I started it in the wrong key and CHANGES TO HIS Eb BASS. Now when I go into the pre-chorus & I hit the E chord & OMG did it sound “SOUR” :shock: ...I mean it almost caused a train wreck (band to stop playing) and of course the bass player isn't noticing anything, so I tried to signal to him...then I YELL...then I try to get the singer to get his attention by this time the bass player notices I'm playing it in the correct key and adjusts. THAT was so embarrassing :oops: . That's the 3rd time I've done that live now. The other 2 times were with 2 different bands & it was the SAME SONG I did it on, UGH!!!. At least we recovered and the girls didn't care, they were just having fun dancing on the bar. I didn't see much of that b/c I was still trying to overcome my embarrassment during the song. They stayed up there for a couple more tunes “All Summer Long”, sang w/us during “Don't Stop Believing” & Grease's “Your The One” (they loved that one). Overall we finished STRONG & at the end of the night the booking agent who was there went & talked to the owner & he told her “if the B-Day party wasn't here they wouldn't have had anyone here.” Now granted that party was 10 people but #1, they stayed all night w/us, we're high five'ing me when I walked past to hit the rest room and there were 40 other people on top of that??? He had nothing but nice things to say to us while we were breaking down so I guess maybe he was trying to keep our rate low w/her??? I had heard last week another band (a duo w/a bass/drum track) had 9 people there and they sent them home early (12am) & paid them 50% of what they agreed too so who knows.

Our next gig was supposed to be back @ The Tilted Kilt on St Patty's Day but we haven't heard back from them, then we got booked @ Jack Desmonds but now we got bumped for some bagpipers coming in from Ireland :? . So HOPEFULLY we can secure the gig @ Sullivan's for St Patty's Day. So far this is the 3rd change of venue for our St Patty's Day gig so we'll see if we end up playing somewhere.

Pics are up from our Jameson's gig on 2/26/11 gig & I will put these pics up soon on my Facebook page (Tom McLaughlin) & on MySpace (Tommy Gunz) when I get them.

Next Gig is??? St Patty's Day Thursday 3/17/11 @ Sullivan's (used to be Papa T's Midlothian) (4660 W 147th St, Midlothian). A NEW ROOM FOR US but we've played here before when it was Papa T's however the decor is REALLY NICE now. No more concrete floor now its all that fake wood floor stuff and has more of a LARGE pub feel to it w/a HUGE stage to play on!!!! Should be a LOT of fun. Hopefully we draw well!!!! :D