Ethnography Results, Week 6

Wesley and I went to Revolutions again last night. We arrived later than usual, at 10 instead of 9, so we could see larger crowds. Shortly after we arrived, the Open Mic Night event started. They were setting up right as we walked in. No one was inside, except for people getting drinks, because of the Open Mic Night going on outside in front of the Starry Night background.

The first performer was one of the owners or workers of the bar, and was a decently talented singer. The lyrics weren't very good though. He sang three songs, then began going down the list of people who had signed up. The first was a homosexual male that Wesley and I had seen before on previous trips to the bar. He used an electric keyboard with another friend providing beats from a beat-box. In my personal opinion it was pretty awful. The songs were weird and he couldn't sing. I felt it was obvious he was trying to release some serious emotions from being outcast or not treated well, but perhaps that was just what I expected to hear. After he performed, his beat-box partner performed two "songs," and then actually sang a third song with a guitar and everything. His last song was by far the most entertaining of the night. The final performer was a very good singer and didn't use any other band members. The one song we listened to of him was again very odd, as he referred to himself as a "whore," but it was supposed to be a love song. My perception of the guy was that he was the type to bring a guitar to a party in order to woo the ladies.

The interactions with the people made it feel very much like a small town. Most of the people there knew each other, and Wesley and I recognized several faces as well. The guy who was singing next to Wesley and I the first night was there, but he was helping set up and sat with the first performer. I assume he would perform later. There was a group of twenty or so people at the far end of the seating area that I swear was no where close to 21. Most didn't even look 18. The rest of the people there was generally about college age or a little above, except for two people, a man and a woman, who were in their forties or fifties. These two seemed to be some of the most regular, and talked on first name basis with the first performer, the owner or worker of the bar. These two sat with the homosexual performer, and they were immediately behind me. There were also a few other guys who looked as though they may be homosexual, but they could have just been eccentric musicians. One girl in particular was looking our way all night, while her friend's attention was on her boyfriend or male friend.

I think that about sums up the night. All in all we were there about 75-85 minutes, and I got home around 1130-1135.