Hello again everybody.

Okay, Out of the Bedroom is an open mic night, but it isn’t JUST an open mic night. It’s a community. It’s a community that’s been changing and growing for over ten years, and it’s a community that includes a wide diversity of performers past, present, and hopefully future, that are creating stuff, and putting it in front of people that appreciate it.

But like any community it is constantly in danger of being taken for granted, and like any community, it’s often “use it or lose it” time. I’m writing to warn you that that time could be sooner than you think. We need you. It’s as simple as that. If you enjoy music, then we need you to come along to Out of the Bedroom, this week if you can, but also in the future. We try to make it a great show every single week, and whenever i go along (which is a lot), i enjoy the evening throughout, and i think you will too. So come along, not just this week, but whenever you feel like some live music in a relaxed environment. ALSO we very much need you to tell your music loving friends about OOTB. This is a capital city. There must be literally thousands of people that would love Out of the Bedroom, and we don’t have a marketing department to get the word out. This is why it’s up to you, as part of the community, to make this happen. It doesn’t have to be much, just tell your friends about it. Take them along in person if they’ve never been before, make an evening of it. You’ll enjoy it. Use it as an excuse to see friends you’ve not seen for a while, perhaps friends who might sign up and play a couple of songs, but who need a bit of encouragement.

This week at Out of the Bedroom we haven’t booked a featured act and this gives performers more of a chance to sign up and perform their material, so there’s more of an incentive for performers to come along as well, and also more of a variety for those of you who’ve come along to listen.

I think you know where i’m going with this, basically we put on a weekly open mic night, for songwriters only, and we believe it attracts a high standard of performer, which lovers of good live music will usually enjoy. But this won’t continue indefinitely if our audience numbers start to wane. When that happens the whole community starts to unravel.

We ALSO need people to volunteer, either to do compering or work the sound desk. If you would like to get involved on that front, you can let us know through our Facebook page, or send an email to reviews@outofthebedroom.co.uk – from experience i can tell you it’s very rewarding and enjoyable, but we do need a few more people doing it. Many hands make light work, after all.

So that’s it, support your local music community, because it’s well worth it.

Out of the Bedroom happens EVERY WEEK at the Montague Bar on the corner of Montague and St Leonards Streets in Edinburgh. The music starts at 8pm, and performers should arrive by 7:15/7:30pm or so to sign up for an open slot. Slots are allocated on a first come/first served basis.

See you all out there in Musicland!

Calum Carlyle
Out of the Bedroom

POST SCRIPT…

Hi everybody, well, in all the excitement of yesterday’s rallying call by email, i forgot to give you this week’s events listings.

Also, some of you may have tried to reply to yesterday’s OOTB email and been unsuccessful, due to our inbox being too full to receive emails for a few hours. This should now be fixed, please feel free to reply to this email (or email to: reviews@outofthemedroom.co.uk) if you want to get involved in Out of the Bedroom, either by hosting, running the sound desk, or promoting OOTB in the wider world.

And events-wise, Out of the Bedroom is still on every Saturday at The Montague Bar on St Leonards Street at 8pm (7:15-7:30pm performers sign up), tonight there’s NO featured act so it will be wall to wall open slots, full of Edinburgh’s most eclectic selection of performers no doubt.

Tomorrow evening at The Listening Room the featured act is Dog On A Swing, who you will have heard a taster of if you were at The Listening Room last week. And that’s in The Blue Blazer on Bread Street at 8pm on Sunday.

Plus the Leith Festival’s currently going on, so check out some of those live and exclusive events if you can.

And to finish with here are a couple of excellent looking events that i’ve been asked to make you aware of, enrich your life, check it out:

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Rude Bookings and WishingWell Production present Ruth Katerelos in ‘What’s Love Got To Do With It?’ with Monique Kenny on guitar.

In her cabaret debut, Australian actor/singer/songwriter Ruth Katerelos explores the power of love (and fear), leading her audience on a musical journey through various states of love; lost love, unrequited love, falling in love when you’re already involved …. and much more. Katerelos’ “crystalline voice” expresses every emotional nuance of her stylistically diverse songs, which are woven together with personal stories and observations of life, love and the whole damn thing, with humour and pathos. Ruth presents a memorable cabaret, beautifully supported by the dulcet tones of Monique Kenny on guitar.

“A truly compelling show.” Cabaret Confessional – Adelaide Feast

“Ruth took us on a moving journey and her very attentive audience thoroughly enjoyed the night, with a couple even flying specifically to Melbourne from Adelaide to see this friendly performer.” Theatre Press, Melbourne.

www.ruthkaterelos.com
www.rudebookings.com

More info at: http://www.facebook.com/events/264907813597067/

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Saturday 23rd June, 2pm, The Scottish Poetry Library, Free

Simon Jackson/Torpedo Buoy poetry book and album launch of Fragile Cargo by Jackson, winner of eight national and international awards for poetry, and Tomorrow when I awake as god’  the majestic mongrel of an album by his musical alter-ego, (a once often appearance at OOTB before children and proper job) Torpedo Buoy.

“A joyously eclectic experience… T.S. Eliot sound-tracked by a ramshackled, Latino, gypsy orchestra,” Manchester Evening News

Poetry, live music, booze and biscuits all provided.

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See you all out there in Musicland!

Calum Carlyle
Out of the Bedroom