We have a friend and colleague at school who is uber cool because he is in a band. Eric (our friend), invited us and a bunch of faculty to his band’s second CD-release party. Mer and I were free, so we decided to go.

The release party was last Thursday, and was held at a music club/bar called Musica in downtown Akron. Mer and I actually managed to find it with little trouble, but we were about 10 minutes early (the doors opened at 7:30 for the 8:00 show). We passed the time getting warm in the coffee bar next door to Musica, and I thanked them by later buying a hot chocolate once we got our seats. I also thanked Musica by buying a Sprite, so I felt okay sitting on my stool for what turned out to be 4 hours.

Musica is set up as a band-centered place. There is a large open space in front of the stage, and high stools and tables are set around the perimeter and at the back (where we sat). The bar is off to one side in an obvious but not dominating place.

We got our table right around 7:30. We knew there was an opening act, starting at 8:00. We chatted with Eric and got to meet his wife, Shanna. Shanna is the lead singer of the band (Bethesda), as well as being an English teacher at a different high school. She seems great, and we want to see if we can go out to eat with Eric and Shanna soon.

The first band did come on at 8:00, and it was made up of a female guitar player/singer, a lead guitarist, and a violin player. They were okay. The music was good (I like acoustic music). The singer had an alternative style, so she seemed to be off the melody (she wasn’t – it was just the style). It was hard to hear the lyrics over the chatting going on around the room. It had been over 10 years since I had been to a bar concert, and I had forgotten that people talk during the music. It is not a great situation for hearing the music, but I guess it helps to bring out the people.

To our surprise, a second band that was not Bethesda came on a little after 9:00. There were two guitar players and a drummer. They were…..loud.  Really loud. Cover-your-ears-because-it-causes-pain loud. I know I’m getting old and thus I must think young people’s music is loud, but the music really was causing me pain. Happily, at this time, about six other teachers from CVCA showed up, so we were able to chat in brief stints between songs.

Sometime around 9:30, a third band came on. There were two guitar players, a drum player, and a really wild bass player. I’d always thought that bass players were always mellow. This guy was all over the stage, and I thought he was going to accidentally hit the fans with his guitar neck. He lost his glasses at one point when they flew off his face. Musically, the band was very talented – the two lead guitarists were very, very good. The musical style was loud and rapid and even a bit angry. The lyrics of the songs were largely screamed at us through the microphone. I liked watching the band play their instruments, but I cannot say I enjoyed the music too much.

Finally, around 10:00, Bethesda came on. Shanna sang and played a small xylophone. Eric played rhythm guitar, trumpet, and the small tuba-like euphonium. There were a bass player, a drummer, and a keyboard/dobro/steel pedal guitar player.

They have a good sound. The bigger band let them try to blend the music in more interesting ways than two guitars turned up “to 11.” They all seemed to enjoy being on stage and playing (although the keyboard player was a bit more mellow than the rest of the band). Since Musica seems to be used to mixing really loud bands, they only did a fair job of mixing Bethesda. Sometimes it was hard to hear the lyrics, although you could always hear the notes being sung. It was very difficult to hear the dobro and steel pedal, and even the brass was a little hard to hear from time to time. Over all of this, the now-large crowd was chatting the entire time. It was unfortunate. Still, I enjoyed Eric’s band very much. They have a slightly edgy sound, but do a variety of styles, from acoustic solo guitar to full fledged beat-on-the-guitar music. What makes it good is that the musical art came before the volume. And yes, it helps knowing someone in the band. I’m looking forward to hearing Bethesda in a better venue soon.

Mer and I finally got home after the concert around 11:30. Quite an evening for a school night – loud music in a bar and staying up late.