Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
The classic scene from “This is Spinal Tap” goes like this –
Nigel Tufnel: The numbers all go to eleven. Look, right across the board, eleven, eleven, eleven and…
Marty DiBergi: Oh, I see. And most amps go up to ten?
Nigel Tufnel: Exactly.
Marty DiBergi: Does that mean it’s louder? Is it any louder?
Nigel Tufnel: Well, it’s one louder, isn’t it? It’s not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You’re on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you’re on ten on your guitar. Where can you go from there? Where?
Marty DiBergi: I don’t know.
Nigel Tufnel: Nowhere. Exactly. What we do is, if we need that extra push over the cliff, you know what we do?
Marty DiBergi: Put it up to eleven.
Nigel Tufnel: Eleven. Exactly. One louder.
Marty DiBergi: Why don’t you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number and make that a little louder?
Nigel Tufnel: [pause] These go to eleven.
It’s one of those classic movie scenes that gets quoted over and over and over or at least it does in my world. Just the thought of being able to take one’s performance that extra notch, to have the ability to ‘Put it up to eleven’ has a mythical property that I think everyone feels they’d like to have in there arsenal.
There are those shows when the planets align, when there’s a convergence of the energy that you’re putting out and the way that the audience responds, when you as a performer seemingly can do no wrong… Those heady moments are the stuff of dreams and semi-addictive reason why many performers keep walking out on stage in the first place.
In situations like that there’s almost no need for putting it to eleven… The magic comes seemingly from no where. I’ve actually found that it’s the times when the magic isn’t flowing that having that eleven in your back pocket comes in most useful. One of those days when you’re just not ‘Feeling it’ what ever the reason. The audience doesn’t know that this day is different for you and they should still get a great show.
I’ve actually found that I learn more from my show when I do shows on days like these. Something about being in an off mood lets me look at my show in a different way and either take risks or do things that I might not otherwise do. Taking my show into new territory forces me to react differently and this breaths new life into old routines. Sometimes it’s great, sometimes it’s now, but the simple act of having to think on my feet and figure out a way to make things work usually makes the performance more immediate and spontaneous which means I’m not just dialing it in.
So… On those days when the magic isn’t coming, when you’re just not feeling it, keep a little something extra hidden a way so you can Put it to eleven and thank Nigel Tufnel for not accepting a louder ten as a substitute for those times when you need to push over the cliff!
