Hello there and all that sort of thing-ting-a-ling. Add 5+1+7 to make 13. Now some of you superstitious numerologists out there might think of thirteen as having an unlucky influence on proceedings, but be assured that in this case the number thirteen is purely a prime number. Which means this Saturday we have booked a prime featured act.

Tina Louise Avery has played on the OOTB stage several times and always to an appreciative audience. Tina’s music has a uniquely styled folk/country direction coming through where the lyrics take you on an emotional and moral journey of human nature painted by the clear tone of Tina’s vocals. Her accompanying finger-picking style on acoustic guitar is strong and distinctive, and expect a ukulele to make an appearance on the night as well. Tina has coordinated her OOTB performance with a timely EP release titled ‘River Man’. Well worth coming along to the Kilderkin bar this Saturday to witness what will be memorable live performances from her long awaited EP launch. Here’s a link to some of Tina’s music: soundcloud.com/tina-louise-avery

Fifteen minute performance slots are up for grabs if you want to show off your finely crafted creations. Just turn up sometime before 7:30pm to confirm a booking and we’ll blow the starting whistle at 8pm. Join in our weekly raffle to be in with a chance of winning a top prize hidden deep within the depths of our Silver Bag Of Dreams. All proceeds directly finance the running costs and strengthens the future of OOTB hosting live original music in Edinburgh.

Right then, apparently there is a million dollar prize to find the next prime number. The most recently discovered prime number has a mere seventeen-million digits to it, so for any success I’ll need a much bigger computer and brain.

Oh well, be there or be forever trapped in a multi-dimensional mathematical square…

TB 😕

Hello, straight onto this Saturday’s featured act. Chris Yendell is a solo artist who’s music showcases his strong vocals and full sounding acoustic guitar riffs, which take influence from the likes of Kelly Jones and Dave Grohl. Having supported the likes of Two Door Cinema Club in previous bands, Chris is currently pursuing his solo career and playing venues across the UK including Edinburgh, Glasgow and London. His recently released debut EP ” In a Nutshell” Includes six tracks that combine some whopping vocal harmonies laid over an intricate mix of guitar, piano, drums and even some subtle synth parts for good measure. Here’s a link to some of Chris’s music : reverbnation/chrisyendell

Performance slots are up for grabs as usual. Turn up sometime before 7:30pm to confirm a fifteen minute booking and we’ll kick off at 8pm for a night of original music. Take part in our weekly raffle where the lucky winner can snaffle a curious prize of wonderment to amuse and delight from the mysterious silver bag of dreams. The proceeds are directly fed into the mouth of running costs at OOTB to ensure that the future of showcasing original live music in Edinburgh has longevity.

OOTB are always looking for volunteers to help everything along. Played on our stage before? Fancy a shot at hosting or being the sound-person for an evening or more? It’s easy, just speak to any of us on the night or send an email via our contact page. It’s all good fun and there are always friendly humanoids there on the night to lend a hand. Well worth a go!

If you have any articles or advice on writing music, performing, recording etc., then get in  touch and why not have your words of wisdom for all to see on our web-site. We have a ‘Lyrics & Writings‘ section as well if you want folks to read your creations with possible comments posted from other like-minded people. Give it a try!

Right oh well then, good, u-huh, see you there or be an odd pair…

TB 😀

Hello there, sitting here at my laptop poised to type and thinking about nothing really. If entirely nothing existed then what would be there instead?  A perception of endless and dimensionless black or white void perhaps, which of course is an existence in itself.  Just saying ‘nothing exists’ is a blatant paradox. So existence has to happen (or has always been there as it was never born out of nothing, from or into any sort of time-scale) because absolute nothing is entirely impossible. That’s maybe why molecular particles and their constructs, down to the smallest scale possible, exist the way they are because through no choice that’s the most efficient lowest energy and logical state of existing in any form and dimension whatsoever. Ah hell, what do I know? I can only consciously think in three dimensions out of an apparent eleven dimensions. My head is starting to hurt thinking about nothing for too long now.

One person who can sooth anyone’s over-thinking mind is this Saturday’s featured act. Colin Donati is a respected and admired member of the Edinburgh acoustic scene’s oldskool, though live performances these days are few and far between.

He was the first Musician in Residence for StAnza Poetry Festival, St Andrews, in March 2012. As well as musician and songwriter he’s a poet and printmaker. Colin is currently (and belatedly) recording album of his own material with Graeme Mearns (PIG).

Colin will be joined this Saturday by cellist Robin Mason.

Stage time slots in a state of fifteen minute emptiness are waiting to be filled with several dimensions of original musicality. Starting time is 8pm, but turn up sometime before 7:30pm to confirm your performance existence slottage.

OOTB are looking for volunteers to help out with the sound on Saturday nights. If you’ve played at OOTB before and know your way round a mixing desk, then get in touch or speak to us on the night. Any help is always good and assists in keeping original music in Edinburgh enduringly alive. Spaces for hosting are available too if preferred, it’s all worth a go!

Right oh well then, see you there or just quietly vanish into thin air…

OOTB 😀

Hello. The clocks go forward this weekend, although you would hardly believe it as winter is defiantly holding its grasp on our section of the planet. My fingernail broke off more than is normal, just into the sensitive top part of my middle finger whilst playing guitar due to my hands being almost frozen at the time. Not very rock ‘n’ roll, but what is these days?

Our featured act this week has cancelled, so therefore more fifteen minute performance slots are available than usual this Saturday, just turn up sometime before 7:30pm to confirm a booking and OOTB will kick off at 8pm with no football involved. Worried about losing an hour in bed the next day as we reach British summertime? (try thinking about British summertime without feeling depressed). We finish up around 11pm, so after what will be a great evening of music we can all get home and climb into bed an hour early….yeah as if.

OOTB are looking for volunteers to help out with the sound on Saturday nights. If you’ve played on our stage before and fancy a go then get in touch by email or talk to us on the night. Knowing your way round a mixing desk would be an advantage and the set up itself is straight forward with other folks usually there to lend a hand. Maybe trying a bit of hosting for us is more up you street, you are more than welcome to give it a go.

I’m off to put a fresh plaster on my finger, so be there or be bleedin’ digitally sair…

TB 😕

Yes, I’ve still got the flu. You’re probably thinking, “What an unfortunate downtrodden unhealthy feckin’ bastard this one is. Undoubtedly doesn’t feckin’ exercise too much or at all, eats far too much feckin’ brown food and feckin’ cakes, and has no feckin’ right whatsoever to call himself any kind of creative bleedin’ artist or feckin’ musician. How dare he even think about posting a feckin’ blog that he reckons would be interesting to any of us worthwhile people wasting our bleedin’ time reading this from one so damned miserable and feckin’ weak! How very dare he feckin’ exist at all!  Feck, fack, fick, fock, fu..!!!”. Well that’s what I’d think.

Onto this Saturday’s featured act. We have been fortunate enough to book one of Edinburgh’s (and beyond) legendary performers who goes by the name of Graeme Mearns. Graeme is a natural born entertainer and creative force. His music embraces eclectic styles such as jazz, funk, blues, punk and rock which are flavoured by Graeme’s unique indie approach. His humour and charismatic stage presence adds another dimension to Graeme’s creations of original well-written songs. Expect the unexpected too from a refreshingly unpredictable top quality performer who’s bound to enthral us all! This is how it should be done, so don’t even think about missing this one. Here’s a link to music from “The Graeme Mearns Band”: Reverbnation.com/thegmb. How much more convincing do you need…

  Announcement!!   Due to having an extra special one-off set from the New Orleans band The Green Mantles (following Graeme Mearns feature set), performers may only be able to play 1 or 2 songs each. We will try to fit in everyone though!

Got a spare gold coin to donate to our raffle this Saturday? All proceeds go towards running costs of OOTB to ensure a solid future of showcasing original live music in Scotland’s capital city, and of course the winner of our weekly raffle has the privilege of grabbing a top prize from the mysterious Silver Bag Of Dreams.

Right. I’m feeling quite dizzy now from eating too much pie, chips and Victoria sponge to nurse my ongoing flu infection. So see you there or be forever hoovering mouldy crumbs from almost bleedin’ everywhere…

TB 🙁

Hello. I’ve caught the flu whilst visiting my mother outside of Edinburgh through Mothers Day weekend so I’m feeling rather poorly right now and will get straight to what’s happening this Saturday at OOTB.

Featured act for ‘OOTB 512’ is Glasgow born Gerrybhoy. A regular performer and songwriter, Gerrybhoy has a distinct folk/rock flavour to his music. The lyrics can be narrative and emotional penned to catchy melodies that are difficult to get out of your head. With such strong and experienced song-writing talent, it would be rather silly of you to miss Gerrybhoy’s performance this Saturday evening. Here’s a link to his Soundcloud page for further confirmation of what I just said.

Fifteen minutes of mucus-free stage time are available for the taking. 8pm is the starting time, but it’s always wise to turn up somewhere before 7:30pm to confirm a snot….eh…I mean slot.

Any experienced OOTBers are welcome to try out a bit of hosting or sound-mixing if you fancy a go. It’s always a bit of fun on the night and many folk come back to do more. Try it to encounter something different for a change or to further enhance any ‘live’ skills or to positively charge any negativity. Just talk to us whichever Saturday evening or send an email via our contact page. You will not regret it!

Right, I’m going to spread myself over my mother’s couch like a green bacterial blob of bubbling slime and watch (without much choice really) outdated sitcoms on ITV3. Yeah!

Be there or be stuck at home picking solidifying debris from conjealed nose-hair,

TB 😛

Good after-morning to you. Normal procedure for constructing this post would involve displaying a photo of our weekly featured act. This Saturday’s event is free of such a booking and we therefore have a full three hours of open slots for your delectation. Theoretically for me to get a snap of an ‘open slot’ to show you all would require myself to be setting up my camera on a tripod whilst stark naked and drunk. Then in one careless movement I would catch the cable of the remote shutter release button between my toes and activate the camera as I trip awkwardly onto the unforgiving floor in a disgraceful heap with my buttock-crevice suffering a hot flash burn on full show in front of the lens. Thankfully unfortunate accidents such as that are very unlikely and absolutely did not happen at all this morning just after half-past eleven.

OOTB starts as a singularity at 8pm and inflates with a colossal explosion faster than the speed of light to create a vast expansive universe of top original musical performances by 11pm. Quantum theory suggests turning up before 7:30pm to confirm fifteen minutes of multi-dimensional space and stage time.

Our worthy weekly raffle will behold another chance for the Lord Of Chaos to randomly choose one so fortunate enough to be allowed to dip their privileged but trembling hands into the Silver Bag Of Dreams to pull a gift of practical usage and delight into their world.

We are always looking for anyone who’s played at OOTB before who might fancy having a shot at hosting for a night or more. Many folk have given it a try over the years and some even come back for more. Worth a go! Also you are welcome to sit in front of the mixer and control the sound at our events if you are more technically mindedly orientated sort of thing. Just send an email or speak to any of us on the night and something can be arranged.

Be there or be a victim of gambleware…

TB 😀

Dear Sir/Madam. I am writing to you hoping all is well and good to attend what will be a great Saturday night of original live music coming our way.

Featured act this week is John Crawford. Usually when these write-ups are in progress the world wide web is often utilised to retrieve whatever information necessary to complete the task. Concerning the name ‘John Crawford’ and adding alongside it ‘Edinburgh music’ in the search-box I get as a result one long dead Scottish landscape painter, an accordionist, a violin professor, someone who works at Morrisons Supermarket and a person who has his vicious looking pet dog as a profile picture on Facebook. So it’s just as well I’ve seen John play several times out on the live circuit. His songs are carefully crafted works which have a folk/country influence clearly coming through. The lyrics are sensitive and take you on a rolling journey of human emotion sung with the subtle warmth of John’s confident smooth vocals. I’ve enjoyed all his performances and I’m sure you will too. Well worth seeing.

Slots for stage time are open for the taking as usual. OOTB starts at 8pm, but it’s wise to get there before 7:30pm to confirm one of those slots. Our weekly raffle will summon the famous silver bag of dreams to present the chosen one with a present of delight and wonder, to wonder over.

Played at OOTB before? Fancy a shot at hosting? Or maybe you prefer to be behind the sound-desk tweaking faders and knobs. OOTB are always looking for like-minded folks to help out. Come and speak to us any Saturday or send an email and we’ll be happy to make it happen.

“Welcome home, welcome. Come on in and close the door. You’ve been gone too long”. The warm comforting words of Peters & Lee’s hit to inspire creators such as yourselves to send lyrics, poetry and the like to this humble website for public view and maybe discussion too around a roaring digital fireplace. Just email us your works for further levels and new exploratory experiences of indulgent cosiness.

See you there, not even the chair…

Yours faithfully, TB 😀

hello or hallo, hullo

1  an expression of greeting used on meeting a person or at the start of a telephone call

2  a call used to attract attention

3  an expression of surprise

noun

4  the act of saying or calling “hello”

Well that’s enough of the pleasantries so let’s move swiftly onto the more interesting points of musical noteworthiness…

Featured act this Saturday is Nicole Strachan. Originating from North Carolina, Nicole has an alternative country influence to her song-writing style with a quirky flavour of folk/punk coming through as well. Her lyrics are poetic and deep, sung with rich three-dimensional tone which is all second nature as she is also a qualified and passionate talented artist. Rumour has it that some friends will be turning up to play trombone and cello to accompany Nicole’s unique songs. Having played at OOTB several times and has even hosted for us occasionally, you are assured to be sure it will be a sure performance from one so sure and bright. Not to be missed! Here’s a link to some of her music: Reverbnation.com/nicolestrachan

Slots to perform on stage will be available for booking on the night itself. We kick off at 8pm, but turn up before 7:30pm to confirm as they are usually all taken by then. Also we will be holding our regular raffle where for just £1 you have the opportunity to will by the force of fortune a magical prize from our silver bag of dreams.

If like Nicole, you’ve performed a number of times at OOTB and fancy having a shot at hosting then please let us know as we are always looking for like-minded folks to help out. You can even be our sound person for an evening or more if you prefer. Come and speak to us any Saturday or just send us an email.

Our ‘Lyrics & Writings‘ archive is hungry for more content. With inspiration such as Brotherhood Of Man’s lyric “Uh-oh Figaro he’s a Romeo – oh – wo, Uh-oh Figaro he’s got magico – oh – wo”, or from Neil Diamond’s hit  – “I am I said to no-one there, And no-one heard at all not even the chair”, is surely enough motivation for you to send us lyrics, poetry or any writings to our email address for public view and possible discussion on the comments tab. I’ll start proceedings and be brave (or foolish) enough to post lyrics from my own song ‘Blind’. Just click on the title of summarised postings to get full view.

See you all at OOTB this Saturday…

TB 😀

It would be too damned easy to blurb critically and endlessly on about bleedin’ Valentine’s Day. Retail assistants up and down the country have been purchasing red and pink card from their local stationers to cut into various sized heart shapes for display purposes. More symmetrical shapes are achieved by folding the card in half first, then cutting out a half heart outline half-heartedly. Blu-tacked or sellotaped inside establishment windows, the central crease is always visible making the hearts fold further inward as the adhesive melts under hot shop lights. Therefore, as a result, they look more like pink alien butterflies who are visiting Earth to nibble on some heart-shaped chocolate once a year. Stranger things have possibly happened, I think. Anyway onto musical matters…

Featured act this Saturday is Dog On A Swing. The man himself is a prolific songwriter and performer. His cleverly crafted songs have an indie pop/rock feel to them with intelligent well thought out lyrics sung by Dog On A Swing’s distinctive strong vocals. He’s well known for preferring to play on his ‘five string acoustic guitar’ as the top E-strings on regular guitars simply get in the way of his up tempo strumming. It’s a double-date this weekend as Dog On A Swing is featured act at The Listening Room on Sunday night too! No excuses, you have to witness at least one, if not both, of these performances on what should be ‘National Dog On A Swing Weekend’ every year. Here’s a link to his Soundcloud page.

Get out of the shop and put down your scissors, sellotape and glitterpens. Come along, book some stage time and sing us those retail blues. It all starts at 8pm, but get here before 7:30pm to confirm a slot.

See you there…

Fraser Drummond, a regular performer and recognised talent of the music scene in and beyond Edinburgh sadly passed away recently. He was also a member of the band ‘Confushian’ and will undoubtedly be missed by everyone who knew him.

TB.