Black Cat » Open Mike Night

What is an Open-Mic Night?

A good question. Ask ten people and you will probably get ten different answers. Some may have quite vague, general views of what an open mic night is, while you may find others who hold quite strong and specific views about what they think an open mic night should entail. A good starting point would be to take an Oxford dictionary definition:

open mic: noun
An occasion in a club when anyone can sing, play music or tell jokes, etc

We like to think that an Open Mic Night should be something a little more, and we believe the BlackCat Open Mic Night experience is just that. We like provide a warm and welcoming atmosphere, for listeners and performers alike, and that we encourage diversity.

BlackCat Open Mic Night = Diversity

We are just as happy to see a poet or an African drum troupe on stage, for example, as a guitar playing singer/songwriter. We also take an open-minded approach to the nature and material of the acts – we are equally happy to provide opportunities for people to perform old or new material, their own material or other people’s, to play an instrument, or to sing to a backing track, read a poem, tell a story or show a film.

An Open Mic Night should be a chance for anyone to perform, regardless of ability or style – and the BlackCat Open Mic Night experience is just that – whether you are performing for the first time or consider yourself a veteran, we would like to give you the opportunity to perform.

Open-Mindedness & Open House

Some Open Mic nights fall short of their true potential in that they lack diversity, concentrate on the more professional act, or favour one particular musical style over another. We harbour no musical or artistic prejudice. We believe ‘Open’, i.e. ‘not closed’, should mean just that, in terms of both open-mindedness to content and style and an open house to any and all who want to perform, regardless of ability.

Yes, it’s sometimes nice to hear an instrument being played particularly well or a song sung with an amazing voice, for example, but it is also refreshing to hear someone attempting something they’ve never done before, or a group of people spontaneously jamming – in that sense we identify with the old punk ethos of just giving something a go, and hope you will too.

Shhhhh…………Quiet Please!

Finally, we must mention one much-debated question surrounding Open Mic Nights – should the audience be quiet while acts are performing? To one extreme there is the argument that the audience should be somehow forced to be quiet during performances. To the other extreme is the line of thought that, if the act is good enough, the audience will be suitably quiet and attentive anyway. We try to find some common ground at the BlackCat Open Mic Night - we appreciate that performers should feel that they are being noticed and appreciated, but also that the audience are there to enjoy themselves – and fun should mean being able to talk as well as listen. We don’t want to be too heavy handed (as with Jongleurs, or certain Open Mic nights, where heavy handed ‘fun police’ can spoil the evening), but neither do we want the acts to be drowned out or ignored. At the beginning of each act we encourage the audience to listen and support the act.

Come On Down

So, now you know what the BlackCat Open Mic Night experience involves, why not come along and listen, or perform, the last Thursday en every month?