Heather Miller Music

115 - Whip In

The open mic at Whip In is on Odd Tuesdays.  That means the 1st, 3rd, and if there is one, the 5th Tuesday of each month.  Which means sometimes you’ll have two weeks in a row, when there’s a 5th Tuesday the week before a first Tuesday of the next month.  It’s really not that confusing, it’s just a little odd. Which fits the Whip In.

But some people mistakenly think of it as “every other week”.  Which is probably why when I showed up a little late on the first Tuesday of February, which came after a 5th Tuesday in January, I was the second person on the list, and I got to do five songs.  I had been crossing my fingers I’d get to play at all, because other times showing up late meant playing late, even with everyone only playing two songs.  Since I was bussing it that night, I had a definite deadline to get home if I didn’t want to walk an hour in the dark.

So it was a treat to not only go on shortly after arriving, but also to get to do a longer set.  Better still, there were people and whole tables actually paying attention and enjoying the songs.  Partway through, a few other musicians showed up, so it turned out to be a sweet little open mic night after all.  Still it was cool to know for myself that if they hadn’t, I would have felt totally comfortable playing even longer!

To top it off, after my set, one of the waiters tapped me on the shoulder, pointed to a couple who had been attentive and appreciative while I played, and said, “Hey, they want to buy you a drink.”  I felt a little like a rockstar for a minute, ordered a beer and brought my dinner over to their table to hang out.  They were both big music fans and we talked about different bands and festivals and venues and creative inspiration.   I didn’t quite catch what she does, but he designs children’s toys and they are pretty darn cute if you’ve got any little ones who need presents! http://giggletoys.com/ They bought drinks for the duo that went on after me as well and we all sat and chatted between songs.  One of the gals who I noticed was enjoying my set came up to say so on her way out the door.  

All-in-all, a pretty awesome night!  It is fun to look back and remember that it was only June last year that I did my first open mic in Austin at Whip In, and how nervous and sick I felt, and how rough that performance went, and that 8 months later people are buying me beer?!  Neat! :-D

Songs: Keep Telling Me, Rain Song, I Know, Jonah’s Whale, Sister’s Prayer

Tagged: open micperformanceperformingconfidenceWhip InAustinTexas

Countdown to 100: 9 - Baker Street Pub

Chronicling the final 10 out of 100 Open Mic and Showcase performances I have done since June 2011. This is #92

I bundled up in layers when heading out to Baker Street Pub because it was actually cold, (not the slight temperature dip that seems to freak many Texans out), and the open mic is usually outside.  I was quite relieved when they decided at the last minute to do it inside, because really, it was cold enough that no one was outside to listen.  Even the musicians were likely to wait inside till it was their turn to play, which would mean you’d be performing to nobody at all, not even other musicians!

So we headed inside which is quite charming, filled with chunky wooden tables, leather chairs, and big shelves of books and other London and Sherlock Holmes themed decor.  Usually they are broadcasting a football game on a big screen with a projector on the stage area, but luckily there are also several other big TVs around, so it’s not like we were completely robbing the football fans of the game but taking over the stage.

One pretty funny thing about the stage area outside is that it is directly under a couple of TV’s, so I’ve had it happen more than once that the crowd goes wild during my set, but I quickly realize the cheers and hollering are actually because the team above my head scored a goal.  A significant portion of the crowd is also actually listening to the music, so thus far I just find it amusing rather than take it personally when I figure out what percentage of the attention is actually going toward the game vs. me.

The list fills up fast, so I was glad I got there on time and got to play second.  The sound is great, Justin really pays attention and tweaks as needed throughout your set.  Tiffany is bubbly and friendly and also keeps things moving along well.

I had some great conversations with other songwriters tonight about showing up, performing, and writing positive songs that add to the good energy of the world rather than bringing things down.  It’s fun that now I’ve made some connections with people who know and like each others songs to the point we can help each other pick what to play or make requests of what we want to hear from the others, or give that extra little push of encouragement to try something new!

Songs: 
The Way I Am (Cover), Rain Song, Winter Time, Shoreline of Alaska

Hosts:
Justin & Tiffany of Justif

Location: 
Baker Street Pub & Grill
3003 South Lamar Boulevard
Austin, TX 78704-4703 
(512) 691-9140 

Sundays - Sign up at 6:45, Music at 7-till close. 3 to 4 songs depending on how full the list is.

Favorite Baker Street eats: 
OK, I’ve only had one thing there, it was a veggie burger and fries and it was delicious! :) And this is a crappy picture but these holiday drinks look pretty amazing, I’ll get back to you if I try one:

Kraken Cookie Crumble, Fruitcake Martini, Piece of Cake Shot, Shiner Cheer Beer.

Other things I like about Baker Street Pub: The beautiful patio deck with a huge tree and pretty lights strung across.

Tagged: Rubicon Yearopen miccountdowncountdown to 100919Baker Street Pub & Grillsongwriterperforming

Countdown to 100: 10 - Fair Bean Coffee

Chronicling the final 10 out of 100 Open Mic and Showcase performances I have done since June 2011. This is # 91.

Photo by Amy Zamarripa

Friday night was low-key & sweet, just a few of the regulars for the day after Thanksgiving at one of my favorite open mic venues - Fair Bean Coffee.  After a lovely Thursday of traditional Thanksgiving festivities with my cousin and her friends, it was great to spend some time with members of my adopted Austin musical family, sharing songs both new and familiar.

I did have a first though, a woman having coffee asked me to sing something for her significant other’s birthday.  After a quick mental scan through of my songs, I thought I better look up the actual Birthday Song on my phone and then I wrote down the chords in my notebook so I could see them easily.  

While it’s an incredibly simple song, and I pulled it off good enough to create a special moment for the couple (I even saw him taking a picture or video of me when I got up for a second round of songs), the experience made me realize that knowing the Birthday Song by heart is probably one of those unofficial requirements of being a gracious musician.  Imagine the difference in feeling between someone asking you to sing Happy Birthday and being able to launch right in, and saying “Oh, yeah, uh, I don’t really know it, I just write my own music, I don’t really know other stuff.”  Even if you don’t know how to play it, leading the singing would be good thing to do.

I also had a sweet moment at the counter where one of the baristas asked me which song I had sung earlier, and I told her that all the songs I had performed that night other than Happy Birthday were ones that I had written.  She said she liked it and I told her I would be recording them in March, and maybe she’d also like them then with more instruments and such and she said she was sure she would.  It was nice to know that at a place where I’ve been playing a similar handful of songs for the past 6 months that at least a couple of those songs are recognizable and appreciated by the staff who pretty much has to be there.

Songs:
Round 1) Happy Birthday, Rain Song, Keep Telling Me, Jonah’s Whale
Round 2) Shoreline of Alaska, Anchor, Wings

Host:
Amy Zamarripa

Location:
Fair Bean Coffee
2210 South 1st Street, Suite I
Austin, TX 78704

Favorite Fair Bean treats:
Iced White Mocha, Red Symphony Latte, Orange Bars (like Lemon Bars but with orange!), Veggie Chorizo Empanadas, Hard Boiled Egg

Other things I like about Fair Bean:
Fair Trade coffee, comfy couches, plenty of plugs for laptops, big glass windows to let in the light and allow for people watching.

Tagged: Rubicon Yearopen miccountdowncountdown to 1009110Fair Bean Coffeesongwriterperforming

Showcase Night at The Red Shed - Tues, Nov 1!

Emily Shirley, Heather Miller, Katie Lessley, Jana Pochop

As of this post, I have performed at 74 open mics or showcases since June 7th, 2011!  

I’ve learned and gained something from every single one.  I know I’ve grown stronger as a performer both from the feedback from people who have watched me and said so, and from my own measuring sticks, like the fact that I’m using a pick now, and that I’m singing much louder.

I’m pretty excited that my 75th performance since starting my Rubicon Year will be as part of a showcase with some other really awesome songwriters who I admired from afar for a while and more closely in the past few months.

By closely, I mean for example, here they all are together in our living room singing a Susan Gibson song, Evergreen:

That’s close!

Now, we are each doing our own set of songs, but I bet there may be a chance they’d do this one on Tuesday.  I guess you’ll have to come see to find out! :-)  See below for the info and links to their various websites and such.

There are just 3 more weeks of Songwriter Showcases hosted by Amy Zamarripa at The Red Shed before a winter break. Come out and enjoy the great courtyard atmosphere and fresh local music the next few Tuesday nights!

This November 1st, the line up features:
Emily Shirley
Heather Miller
Katie Lessley
Jana Pochop

Music starts at 7pm!
Red Shed Tavern
8504 S. Congress Ave.
Austin, TX 78745

http://emilyshirley.com/
http://heathermillermusic.com/
http://katielessley.blogspot.com/
http://janapochop.com/

Hope to see you at The Red Shed!

Tagged: showcaseRubicon YearRubicon Artist DevelopmentRed Shedperformanceperformingopen mic