A Sharp

Open mic at Warehouse 21 began as a spoken-word gathering at Cathedral Park three years ago, and has been in its new digs for approximately a year. In that time, the Wednesday-night show has hosted youth acts ranging from instrumentalists and vocalists to stand-up comedians and beat poets.

While I usually don’t go for the coffee-shop vibe of open mics, I’ve recently criticized people for not using W21, and I don’t want anyone to think I’m a hypocrite.

In my younger days, I was somewhat of a prolific musician. Lately, I’ve been getting the itch to play as my all-too-weepy alter ego,

i heart metal

, so I packed up my guitar and headed to Warehouse 21 for the weekly open mic.

Attendance at the open mic can be “really great,” according to W21 Concert Coordinator Bobbie Marquez, who says as many as 40 to 50 people sometimes show up.

There was no such luck Aug. 4, the night I attended.

As you may recall, dear readers, I always take notes at events and, sometimes, share those notes with you. Enjoy!

6:48 pm

I meet up with Keyboard before the show so I don’t have to walk in alone. (Full disclosure: Keyboard is my brother, so this is the only mention he gets besides a negative one later. Sorry, dude!) We both miss the old days of W21, but figure that kids will eventually have to realize what they have and start using it.

6:52 pm

We arrive at W21 early to make sure I can sign up. I was sure there’d be tons of kids better at music than I am but, besides Marquez, there’s only a smattering of teens and they are seemingly more interested in the inter-net than tonight’s open mic. Weak.

7:01 pm

Couches and chairs are moved into the concert space, and the kids cool enough to be there converse cheerily.

7:36 pm

The uncool kids are taking forever to show up. I wonder what they’re up to. Sitting in Cathedral Park, probably.

8:15 pm

People are getting antsy and sick of waiting, so this show starts. Keyboard is to play first.

8:54 pm

Keyboard plays for far too long. Can you divorce your brother?

9:00 pm

Boy/Girl singing/spoken-word duo takes the stage. I hate spoken word. Is it the solemnity employed despite the goofy and overused cadence? The audience loves it. Though I hate it, it’s totally cool for these kids to have so much encouragement.

9:11 pm

Young stand-up comic dude: He’s kind of funny, but his jokes are either tame or stolen. Wait, never mind—he’s talking about how drunk he and his girlfriend get. Isn’t W21 anti-underage drinking? Yikes. At least they’re not censoring him, which is actually pretty cool.

9:23 pm

My turn, but I won’t tell you how bad I suck. Who am I kidding? I’m the best musician in Santa Fe, hands down.

9:47 pm

Stand-up dude’s girlfriend has some stand-up of her own. OMG! She’s a little too comfortable talking about how much she likes boning. Can I get arrested just for listening to this?!? I take back what I said about censorship being uncool. I’ve gotta get out of here. Too bad, because I was enjoying the variety.

Bottom line:

Whatever you may be into, chances are W21’s open mic will have it.

Follow SFR music news on Twitter:

Santa Fe Reporter