(Courtesy: Shane Prewire)
Four musicians taking part in “Larry in the round”.
Tonight is the fifth songwriters’ round table at Proud Larry’s, a bi-weekly, free night of music that is a little different from anything else in Oxford. Common in Nashville and other larger cities, these nights feature local artists with Q&A’s and performances, giving an in-depth and intimate view on the songwriters’ processes and their motivations for doing what they do.
Will Griffith, bartender at Proud Larry’s and local musician with “The Great Dying,” said he wanted to replicate experiences he had playing in Nashville. Griffith participated in the first songwriter round table, aptly named, “Larry in the Round,” in February with Sean Kirkpatrick of “Greater Pyrenees” (previously “Colour Revolt”), along with local singer-songwriters Austin Smith and Anne Freeman. The nights are the brainchild of Griffith and Shane Prewitt (“Reels” and “Group Text”), who organizes the lineup for each week and has orchestrated the Q&A session during each event so far.
“One thing for me, an intention for this, was that it would spark people to write more songs,” Prewitt said. “There were a few people that had never performed solo, definitely never done a writer’s round, and some people that hadn’t performed in town yet.”
This idea is a driving force behind a writers’ round, and so far it has been very successful in Oxford.
“There were some people who were like, ‘Well, I’ve got three songs written, and I guess I could write another by next week,’ and it gives them a little more inspiration and confidence to perform that song,” Prewitt said.
The setting at each session is very laid-back; the artists converse with each other onstage, answer questions and play a song each. Then, they perform individual mini-sets of three songs. It gives them a chance to connect with the crowd, and to occasionally try a song for the first time live. Though it hasn’t happened yet, another hope of Prewitt and Griffith’s is that new bands or side projects form on stage. This is a chance for artists to meet other musicians and collaborate.
“We’ve made it a goal to include at least one female songwriter, a wide age range each week and also to bring in musicians who haven’t played together,” Prewitt said.
The result of their effort is a new and distinct experience in Oxford. A colorful array of musicians have been featured, from veteran Randy Weeks to local newcomers like Kit Thorn, representing Oxford’s growing number of diverse artists. The goal is to create a collaborative and fluid environment where artists can share ideas, make music together and give local music fans a casual and up-close look into the various creative processes each artist prefers.
Tonight, Kit Thorn (“Kit Thorn Band”), Keith Sanders, Sean O’Hara (“Nadir Bliss”) and Max Hipp (“Apostles,” “E*Meters”) will all be featured. Plans for two more songwriter’s round nights are in the works for the rest of the spring before starting back up again in the fall. So far, several featured musicians have composed all four songs immediately after they were put on the schedule and then performed them for the first time live on stage. That is the spirit behind it all, and the hope is that more artists will come out and give it a try.
