If you are interested in performing at Fresh n Live then this page explains everything you need to know about the night.

 

We welcome everyone from individuals looking for a chance to recite a piece of poetry, to single musicians, to groups willing to play live or perform to backing tracks, or anyone else willing to get up there and entertain, amuse, shock, or even rant.. as long as it's funny, entertaining or interesting. In the true spirit of open mic/open mind, the idea of the night is for it to evolve and develop organically, with as little control by us as possible. The only thing we ask is that at least some of your material is your own, unless you are doing a new take on something.

In terms of stage time, the general idea is to work on a first come first serve basis, allowing each performer a spot of up to 20 minutes when we are quiet, but more likely 15 as we have been very busy of late. The night generally runs in two halves, starting at 7ish until around 9pm, and then from 9.20pm until we close around 11pm. Obviously if things are a little slower, especially earlier on, then we will be flexible. Often artists who arive at the start can do two sets, early and late. Please be aware though that from January onwards, we will not be squashing people in with one song each in the last hour anymore, as its not fair. It will be first-come-first-servce, with at least 15 minutes or 3 songs for everyone, and when the list is full, you will be put on a reserve list and may not get to play.. so make sure you are there early!

We will no longer be offering pre-booked slots.

 

Technical stuff

Over the last few months we have managed to build up a very nice little set up, capable of producing a very detailed, but also a very warm acoustic sound. We use a Yamaha 01x digital mixer, using mLan and studio manager to control everything. Although we have the faciliuty to record everything into Cubase, we no longer do this unless by prior arrangement, primarily because no-one asked for the files so it was a waste of time and comnputer memory.

We do, however, record everything in stereo with an outboard Tascam HD-P2 CF recorder. From these recordings we produce a high-quality CD in our studio, of the whole night*. The CD is for sale to raise funds for us to buy equipment. A double CD costs £7.50, for the standard one, and £10 for the delux one, which has printed discs and an aluminium case.

We also record video footage of all events for the web site, but the sound is from the camera mic, which is quite a basic stereo mic. At the moment we use the video footage for the web site, and the audio is simply archived 'for future use' as it were, which basically means we might do something with it one day, such as produce DVDs, but as yet no-one has shown any interest in this.

 

Instruments

In terms of instruments, we now have an M-Audio Prokeys 88; a very nice stage piano with 88 keys and hammer action, with 14 easily selectable voices.

We don't have any drums simply because they would rarely be used and take up a lot of room on stage, but the landlord did say he had a full kit if we needed it, but please let us know in advance so we can check that out.

Gabrielle will have a spare acoustic guitar, though we recommend you bring your own. We no longer have a clip on guitar pick up, so if your not wired up, then you will have to borrow our guitar and plug in. We do not mic up guitars, as it causes too many probelms. Becuase of the short turnaround we dont have time to get it right. We are considering getting a clip on mic bracket, so we can use a good condenser mic, but again, we dont have the money yet.. so help us out by buying a CD.

 

P.A.

We have one low profile, high-end stage monitor It's a Renkus Heinz TRX 82/9 run from an MC2 T2000 which together, are very sweet sounding indeed.

Microphones are 2 Shure Beta 57A's, and a pair of Beta 58's as well, as they are more forgiving for those not familiar with microphone technique.

Most of our stage cables are currently Planet Waves professional cables, but for lead vocals and guitar we now use the Chord Company Chameleon Silver+ mic cable, and the Chord Cream Instrument Cable. Both are exceptionally high quality cables giving crystal clear definition on vocals and amazing clarity and timing on acoustic guitar. We will be looking to replace all our stage cable with the Chord equivalent as soon as we can (afford it).

The new speakers are a pair of Renkus Heinz RFX 151-E (similar to the TRX 151 and CFX151 reviewed in Sound on Sound). They give a wonderfully rich but clean sound, which is just what we like! We also have the matching 2x15" sub, but it's really not needed in the pub to be honest.. so we are saving it for the festivals!

The amplifiers are a pair of MC2 T2000.. top notch kit indeed.

 

Anything else you need to know, email or call us. For techy stuff call me (Ian) on the number below. For musicians stuff or to pre-book a time slot call Gabrielle on 07881 622 664 (no later than 10pm please).

Please spread the word to as many musicians and performers as possible.. all types, however weird and wonderful. diversity and surprise are the spices of life after all!

Fresh'n'Live is growing in popularity month by month, and has become known for it's warm and freindly atmosphere and quality acts. Even if you don't fancy playing, come down and check us out.. have a beer.. meet like minded people.. relax and enjoy.

See you there..

Ian

* becuase of the limited space on 2 CDs, we do not guarantee all songs will be on the compilation. Becuase the CDs is for sale, origiginal material, and quality perormances take priority. Obviously ask us before you buy if want to check if you are on it.