The Medium is the Moment

In addition to a big gig last Sunday night that got everybody up and Otter Dancing, Baby Seal Club played a few songs last week at 515 Orchard, a new performance space housed in a turn-of-the-century church. It was truly lovely.

We were invited to play there by Mark Growden, an enchanting song~twister who has been the artist in residence at 515 Orchard for the last month. Check out Mark's music, or see him live, if you can. He's an absolutely mesmerizing performer.


Lovely photo by Dana Throckmorton.

Performing completely acoustically is a phenomenal experience - there is no reverb, no distortion, no wall of noise to hide behind... just raw music. A hush, candles, a crowd in awe... it's terrifying and exhilarating at the same time.

Mark said something to me last week that just burst open a door in my consciousness about being a performer. When asked why he didn't get tired of playing the same songs over and over on a tour where he had shows every night, he looked surprised and simply said "But I'm not playing the same songs at all. It's not the song that is the medium - the medium is the moment."

And a little light came through the cracks of my mind - it made perfect sense. That very moment, in that place, with those people in attendance - each one of those instances is a fresh work of art you're creating that will never happen again. Forget trying to replicate a great show, or avoid revisiting a bad one - each performance is its own new experience being born.

This theorem was beautifully illustrated this weekend, when our liquored-up alter-ego band, the Drunken Family Singers, made a guest appearance around 3:30 a.m. at a pool party - and the equally drunken audience adored us. A hip-hop version of Stairway to Heaven was performed, impromptu, with stand-up bass accompanied by a charming party guest.

The medium is the moment ~ beautiful. Thank you, Mark.