Acoustic, Electric, and Everything in Between: Petoskey‘s Open Mic Scene

April 21, 2004

Picture yourself sitting at a small table in an artfully darkened coffeehouse or bar -- a place that, while perhaps familiar during the day as a spot for a coffee or a drink or maybe a quick lunch, has now taken on a very different look and feel. You‘re at your table, with a few friends, waiting for your coffee to cool down, and brushing the crumbs from your meal out of the way of your notebook. For you are a musician, a poet, a storyteller, a comic -- and this small but important oasis for performance art is where you‘re about to share your talents with all of the other people at their own little table islands.
Petoskey is fortunate enough to have several open mics, both for performers and for anyone looking for a little fresh (and usually free) entertainment. The two best-known open mics in this pretty resort town are quite different from each another, and there are also several other occasional and potential open mics that have been floating under the radar for some time, including one that is reportedly going to be part of the new Blissfest-sponsored coffeehouse in Petoskey that is set to open later this year. It‘s all good news for the area‘s amateur and professional musicians, as it gives the pros a chance to showcase new material in a low-pressure environment, and of course gives earnest newbies a chance to get experience in front of an audience and hone their skills.

ROAST & TOAST
Pumping up the volume downtown on quiet Sunday nights is Roast & Toast Cafe & Coffee‘s own open mic show on Lake Street. Dubbed “Toast & Jam,“ the show takes place every Sunday from 6 to 8 p.m., complete with its own miniature P.A. and colored lights. It‘s now entering its third year as a favorite weekly event at the cafe.
Toast & Jam is a little more intimate in feel than the other “big“ open mic in Petoskey (we‘ll get to that one in a minute) and tends to attract more acoustic, polished performers, several who return week after week with new material and who have their own little followings among the Roast & Toast audience. Poets, storytellers, and comedians are also welcome and encouraged -- even a witty puppet show has made a few appearances. Grateful Dead-style jams aren‘t really the scene here -- you‘re more likely to hear a stylish solo performer or well-practiced duet than anything else -- but the show is still open to just about anything.
The receptive, talkative audience at Toast & Jam can range anywhere from a warm dozen to around 75 people depending on the weekend and the weather. Roast & Toast is also known for giving regular “perks“ to their performers (such as their recent “Play At Toast & Jam, Get Toast & Jam“ promotion, where everyone who performed on stage got a toast-shaped coupon for a free breakfast). And they sometimes surprise the audience, too, with prize giveaways or food and drink specials -- Toast‘s dinner menu is available throughout the open mic show. This is a great spot to hear lots of eclectic original tunes plus covers along the more modern rock/retro pop/emo line (think Bright Eyes, Dido, The Verve, Dashboard Confessional, Nirvana, Weezer, Alanis Morissette, Gary Jules, Simon & Garfunkel, Ben Harper, etc.) And the coffee‘s always on.

CITY PARK GRILL
The other top open mic in town takes place on Wednesday nights just down the street from Roast & Toast at the City Park Grill, where things start a little later and take on a different tone than Toast‘s Sunday night show. Where Toast & Jam might, at times, remind you of MTV‘s “Unplugged“ series, City Park‘s open mic -- especially during their Battle of the Bands (which takes place throughout the month of April) -- is definitely more bar than barista. This is where you‘re more likely to gaze through the smoke with an imported beer in your hand (served by one of CPG‘s helpful and friendly bartenders) while you‘re listening to tunes by the Grateful Dead, Bob Seger, Bonnie Raitt, Bob Marley, Sublime, or any variation of the blues.
Obviously, being a bar, CPG‘s open mic also draws a slightly older, more seasoned crowd, which can reflect in the performers -- City Park‘s open mics often attract any number of local favorites from Petoskey‘s own resident bar and jam bands. Guitarists are pretty prevalent at this show, too, both in the form of solo performers and as full bands, complete with banging drums and wailing guitar solos. The Battle of the Bands competition can get pretty fierce and is fun to watch, and the “regular“ open mic show, which CPG will return to in May, has its own roster of regulars. It also makes for a nice evening to hit up one of City Park‘s dining rooms (there are two, one directly adjacent to the bar) for a top-notch gourmet dinner before the big open mic show.

ELSEWHERE
Although these are the two “standards,“ if you will, for open mic action in Petoskey, several other venues have begun to schedule events, as well. On Mitchell Street downtown, Horizon Books is celebrating Poetry Month in April with poetry open mics by the fireplace on Wednesday evenings, and the store is said to also be considering musical open mics in the future as well as more poetry events. A block up from Horizon Books at Leo‘s Lounge, which has started up a Thursday Night Jam Session open mic where “anything goes“ starting at 10 p.m. - whether it‘s just you and your guitar or you and your entire band, it‘s all welcome in Leo‘s down-to-earth, Cheers-like bar atmosphere.
On the outskirts of town, Victories Casino holds the occasional Open Blues Jam/Open Mic Night in their Players Sports Lounge for those of you who are either looking for folks to jam with or just looking for jams to listen to. And Blissfest and Harmony Grounds are reportedly teaming up to bring yet another jam venue to Petoskey -- although they‘ve yet to solidify a location, they are still hoping to open this summer, and their tentative plans include holding open mic shows for roots, folk, and acoustic music on Thursdays.
So whether you‘re a coffee-fueled singer, a smokin‘ blues guitarist, a talented poet, or you just want something new to do, Petoskey definitely has an open mic option for you. All of these open mics are just that -- “open“ to all kinds of performers. But it‘s not always easy for the uninitiated to get up on that stage - so keep that in mind as you grab your seat for the entertainment, and don‘t forget to applaud.