Talking during shows: the musicians’ perspective – Chris Callaway

This week’s Beatdown deals with the whole idea of talking during shows, as it seems like a fairly frequent occurrence regardless of who’s performing. I offered up a few viable theories as to why it happens and asserted that, for the most part, I sincerely don’t believe that anyone truly intends to be disruptive or disrespectful by carrying on conversations while the players are playing. Naturally, as I pondered things from the our perspective, the fans, I wondered how the chatter effects the performers, if they’re bothered by it or if they even notice at all. So in due dilligence, I asked a few musicians for their take, and I’ll be posting their thoughts on the blog throughout the week. The first response I received was from Chris Callaway, an occasional Backbeat contributor who currently plays in an outfit called Able Archer and Crash Orchid prior to that. Callaway weighs in after the jump.

“While I was in Crash Orchid and we would play quieter pieces, it would always irk me when people would have full-on conversations. It doesn’t matter the size of the venue…the Lion’s Lair to the Gothic, musicians can hear when people are not focusing on their tunes and it’s irritating, especially with the current music scene here. Most bands in Denver that play originals are not there, in their minds, to provide background music for a bar.” — Chris Callaway