Say Again?
Yo, barkeep! Give Ted Nugent the night off!
Posted by: John Chandler on Mar 24, 2009 at 09:15AM
9 Comments
Attention bartenders and bar managers: on behalf of everyone in the known universe, I’d like to respectfully request that you turn your music down to a conversational level.
Last night I was working my way through a pint of Hopworks Lager at Gold Dust Meridian, when it occurred to me that I was losing every other word spoken to me by my friend Anne Marie (happy birthday!). Normally, I just shrug, smile, and continue to nod my head emphatically at the appropriate dialogue gaps. See, my hearing isn’t the greatest under optimal conditions. I’ve been playing bass in bar bands for more than 20 years, and this stratagem has resulted in about a 15 percent hearing loss. Not only that, I still listen to heavy metal and punk on a daily basis. Fine. You make your choices and you live with them. Curse you, Celtic Frost!
However, Anne Marie was having trouble hearing me, too. As far as I know, her hearing is flawless. So why were we both shouting?
Because the bartender (or other authority figure in the back) was blasting the tunes. On a Monday night. I don’t know if it was the bar iPod or the jukebox, but it was effin’ cranked to eleven! And this isn’t the first time my “relaxing” evening out has been hijacked by some employee’s infinite playlist.
I understand that music adds to a convivial atmosphere and general sense of merriment that induces the clientele to roister just a a little bit harder, to perhaps throw caution to the wind and order another sazerac. On a Monday night.
However, if listening to music was my ultimate goal, I would be at a venue where rawkin’ out was the primary attraction. I would be at the Roseland having my eardrums obliterated by Motorhead, or whatever ensemble happened to be in town that night. But when I go to a neighborhood watering hole for a beer (on a Monday night), my mission is to share pleasantries with my pals. Vent. Unwind. Palaver. Shoot the bull. That sort of thing. This can be difficult to do when the bartender is going through an ironic Journey phase.
At this point, feel free to make disparaging comments about my advanced years. “Just turn down your hearing aid,” or “Don’t bring your ear trumpet to the bar with you, Grampa,” are both excellent. But I know the difference between loud music and LOUD MUSIC. This same situation came up at the Sway Bar a few weeks ago as well. Hardly anyone in the place, and the bartender (or other authority figure in the back) is laboring under the illusion that what a table full of chatty customers wants, more than another Makers and soda, more than free beer nuts, is to be introduced to the sonic wonders of Shellac or Slipknot, to the point where an amiable exchange between comrades becomes an aural impossibility. Our party of eight ended up walking down the street to the Morrison Hotel where we weren’t being pummeled by somebody’s “extreme” musical tastes.
OK, give me some feedback here. Am I being unreasonable? It wouldn’t be the first time. I was an alternate on the 1996 Olympic unreasonable team. When I get a bee in my bonnet, I’m worse than Andy Rooney after his third Red Bull. Should I simply take my business elsewhere? Or can I use this blog to make a braying ass out of myself the way God and Al Gore intended?
Tags: music Bar Culture
Hey! I told you not to use my real name! Oh, wait, you probably couldn’t hear me.
Hey John—
I hear ya. No pun intended. I recall an early evening at rontoms much the same. There was practically no one in the joint and the death metal was ear-splitting.
Besides causing further damage to my hearing, I think having to shout over the loud tunes during HH is causing nodes to form on my vocal chords.
—Aitch
I am 100% with you on this one. Like you, my hearing is paying the price for years of playing and listening to music at ill-advised volumes. And, also like you, I see no point in spending time at a bar with your friends if you can’t even hear them. I had this experience a couple of months ago at the otherwise fine Slammer Tavern.
I am all for music in bars; hell, I prefer it. It just shouldn’t be that difficult to find an agreeable volume. My only two theories as to why this happens are (a) the sound system needs to be cranked extra loud to reach certain parts of the bar, to the misfortune of the people in the parts that it reaches just fine, or (b) some sort of macho, “how much pain can you take” thing.
Amen, thanks for bringing this up.What is the deal? I’ve wondered before, when a joint is mostly empty, if it’s a tactic to draw street traffic? A better tactic would be for the frustrated bartender (no customer no $) or owner to cultivate a return clientele by creating a convivial atmoshphere in their establishment, one where people want to stay and DRINK. And sorry I like to rawk out with the best of them, but my hearing is fine and I’ve experienced this nonsense too many times. It’s an automatikc recipe for “check please” or just leaving if I’ve yet to order.
I occasionally work as a bartender, and part of your job as such is to create a mood – or “throw the party,” as someone once described it. That means keeping the music at an acceptable level. I’m totally with you – if i wanna hear me some loud music, i will go to a live show. If i want to have a civilized conversation with good pals over libations, i will go to a bar. Next time, you should ask the too-cool-for-school bartender to turn the music down – if he/she can hear you…
I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don’t know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Thanks Ruth! You’re obviously a highly evolved person with discriminating tastes.
I noticed this the last time I took my housemate on a romantic date to Pix on Williams. It was pretty early in the evening and they were practically punching people in the face with, wait for it, Sinead O’Connor! Is there proper etiquette for asking the bartender/waiter to turn down the music? I always clam up and leave, which is weird, since I’m not known for being conflict-averse. And wait, did you say you were at a bar and they were playing Shellac? Awesome.
You are not losing your mind (your hearing, yes, your perspective from having to be so “professional” when you should be at bars having fun, yes, your mind, no): We had this exact same situation come up at Crush several weeks ago during a visit with friends whom we see, maybe, once a year. Kind of put a damper on things.
It’s worse when they just play a radio station, like that classic rock one that’s always the default when you get east of 52nd. If I never hear the song Touch Me again, it’ll be too soon.