How do you get to Carnage Hall? You practice. And if you’re going to take the Holland Tunnel, you can practice at a Jersey City open mic, like the one happening Friday, Jan. 21 at The Brennan Coffee House Music Series.
The series, held at the Justice William Brennan Courthouse (hence the name), runs monthly. It was started when County Executive Tom DeGise wanted to make the public building more accessible to people for cultural programming.
They began by using the rotunda for art exhibits, starting with the Urban Complex exhibit last fall. The shows are designed to give local professional and emerging artists a chance to display and perform.
According to Hudson County Director of Cultural Affairs Bill LaRosa, DeGise is a fan of acoustic folk music, often attending venues around the country.
“We’ve figured out a way of turning a working court house into a convenient and comfortable coffee house complete with tables, professional lighting, stage drapes, and a little coffee service on the side,” said LaRosa. “The most important thing is giving talent a chance to be seen on the beautiful Rotunda. Our goal in the presentation was to have at least two performers on the bill, a headliner and an opening act.”
Headlining on Friday’s show is Lui Collins, a singer songwriter from Massachusetts with whom DeGise is familiar. The opening act is Jersey City Resident Carol Lester.
Lester plays all over Jersey City and in such New York venues as the Bitter End and the C-Note. A song of hers appears on the 111 art building compilation “Mayday” album and she has been asked to sing a song she wrote commemorating 9/11, “Question of Ages,” at city events.
She got started playing with her brother, who was a professional honkytonk piano player at Lucky Pierre’s in New Orleans.
She stopped writing for a few years, then began playing open mics about 10 years ago. She started at an open mic at Grace Church in Jersey City, which eventually led to her playing at Maxwell’s in Hoboken.
“I still go to open mics whenever I have something new, to see if people want to sit through it for three minutes,” she said last week. “Every writer thinks that the last thing they wrote is the best thing they’ve written, but they need a gauge from other people. It’s important to get some perspective.”
Lester describes her act as rhythmic, with sometimes intense but often sweet original compositions mostly played on a six- or 12-string guitar and a little piano.
“I’ve been told I sound like Joni Mitchell, but I feel like Led Zeppelin. I’m not sure how those two meet,” she said.
Since she does much of her songwriting around Jersey City, Lester says local residents may recognize the topics of her songs.
“You never know who the songwriter is in the room,” she said. “You never know who’s listening in on your conversation and turning it into lyrics. I spend a lot of time in Jersey City, so I could be singing about you.”
Focus on talent
There is no fee to perform, but general admission is $10. Open mic begins after the second intermission. The first two open mics had 10 performers apiece. Each has 10 minutes to perform. The venue has boom microphones, amplifiers and a Korg electric piano.
LaRosa said that they welcome a variety of performers, and hope to recreate an atmosphere reminiscent of Vaudeville, where one bill might have such diverse acts as a concert violinist, a plate juggler, and a dog act. “The audience didn’t care; they just loved talent,” DeRosa said. “Maybe someday, someone will surprise us and come in and try juggling plates. We also have lighting and sound. We want the open mic performers to feel that they’re as much as part of the Coffee House series experience as the headliners.”