Live Music is Dead

BY STAFF WRITER JELLIE ARROWMINT

Live music can be great depending on your preferred genre and the quality of the perfomer. For a while I used to go and see a guy perform, his Barry White-like voice and his all-round friendliness kept me going time and again; and I missed his sets earlier this year when real life was such that my internet access was very limited . . . so, when all things were up and running once more I was delighted to hear that the gentleman was still playing, and even more so when I heard his sets were more regular. I became quite disappointed on arriving at his set, however, as it was clear he was playing his album in the background while ad-libbing the ‘Oh yeah’, ‘Huh’, ‘Get oooonn dooowwwn’ etc. I was prepared, though, to stick around for a while, as this singer/musician is a genuinely nice guy and pretty talented. I was thinking maybe next time it would be different–but it wasn’t, and this has made me question the so-called ‘live music’ requirements in Second Life.

On another occasion I was at a music shack where the performer didn’t even bother to try to hide the fact he was playing a pre-recorded show. There he was apparently singing away, and then he would greet people who weren’t even there, time and again. I was truly shocked he was able to get away with this, and haven’t returned to the location since.

Is this what we are to expect in Second Life? I hope not. There are no doubt some wonderful performers who genuinely sing live and care about their audience rather than palm them off on pre-recorded stuff in the effort to make extra Lindens, but for now I only trust a certain guitar-wielding toast-loving Aussie lady until someone can prove that they themselves are the real-deal too.