I’m sitting in the backstage of the Strauss building with the rest of Dirty Diamond, backups included, but with no Sard.
“So now that the party face is gone, what the hell do we do now?”
“Why are you so glum about it, Felch? It’s not like we’re actually down a vocalist.”
“We’re not down a vocalist per se, Nork, but we are down one highly charismatic party face… as much as it pains me to call that knucklehead ‘charismatic’. The sole reason for our success is gone!”
Bell raises an eyebrow, tilting her head. “Are you telling me I can’t be sassy and charismatic? Is this because I’m a woman?”
“Well, the decision wasn’t up to me. Wick saw how lame the crowd thought we were after that bait-and-switch we had to pull back there.”
“In their defense, that might’ve been because it WAS a bait-and-switch rather than any deficiency on their part. I have to admit, though, that Sard has a swagger of his own that I’m not sure anyone could truly emulate.”
“If they were so good, the crowd would’ve had a pleasant surprise instead.” Felch grumbled, rubbing a hand against his face. “Honestly, the main problem I have is that I’m pretty sure we’re never gonna go big and become famous at this rate.”
“That looks like a pipe dream from where I’m standing. I’d figure that if you guys were willing to keep playing night by night, that you were in it because you liked doing it, not because you were chasing some sort of fame or fortune.”
“I mean, I wouldn’t be doing this if I hated it, but if I didn’t at least have that faint hope of going big one day, I’m not sure I’d be here doing this with you guys. I know Sard sure as hell wouldn’t bother if there wasn’t at least the possibility of going big like he actually did.”
“Speak for yourself, man. I know Nork and I are in it for the fun and friendship, but it would really suck to lose two friends in a row. That might make the value proposition a lot iffier for us-and I know the backup vocalists mostly got in to prove to themselves that they could pull it off. I think Bell might have some bigger aspirations as well.” Bell and Ferro made no motion to try and disprove Teller’s statement.
I smile, finally finding my opportunity to make the pitch. “Well, gentlemen, I know you got in looking for friendship, or fame and fortune, but I’ve actually been doing some hard thinking. What if we instead reached for a different aspiration entirely?”
I see Teller and Nork awaiting my explanation with bated breath. Felch appears skeptical, while Bell and Ferro are at least interested in what I had to say. “I think we can use music as a way of making the world a better place, of doing some good in the world.”
“Like what, making wishes for the Make-A-Wish foundation? We’re not famous enough for that, remember? Nobody cares enough to ask us up.”
Bell laughs, and Ferro stifles a chuckle. I feel myself heat up. “No, not the fucking Make-A-Wish-”
“As much as I want to slap Felch right now,” Nork’s voice boomed, taking command of the conversation. His voice adjusts back to its normal tone. “He has a point. How
are
we supposed to do that?”
I inhale and exhale, willing myself back towards a neutral state of mind. “I’m glad you asked. I realized today that music can be a form of escape or a way to express emotions otherwise repressed, and I think we should be looking to feed into that as a guiding force. Not that it would override simply making money or anything, but I think we can use that as a guiding principle when we’re just not sure what to do next.”
“Okay, so what would that guiding principle want us to do next? And how exactly is that really doing good?”
“Raising awareness of certain things that might stress people out. But I admit, that’s pretty indirect...” I place a hand on my chin. “Wait, I’ve got something-and this feeds into what I’ve already said-we can aim to increase people’s appreciation of the musical arts, not only through our song selection, but by working with aspiring musicians in the local area, maybe giving lessons here and there, and maybe having entire mini-concerts featuring amateur musicians.”
“So we’d basically be like jobbers but for rookie musicians?”
“Mmmh, no, Nork, I think ‘carpenters’ would be the proper term for us in this case.”
“I have no idea what either of those terms is supposed to mean, but we’d basically be giving people a hand up.”
Felch snickered, before straightening up. “That sounds like a whole lotta work with no payoff for us.”
“Are you kidding me!?” Teller looked incredulously at Felch. “That’d be fucking amazing for our public image!”
Bell was quick to follow on Teller’s heels, having finally seen the light. “Yeah… Like we’re a charity AND a rock band at the same time!”
“Well, if they see us as a charity, that means we’d be… receiving donations, right?” Felch visibly ponders the question, a hand on his chin. “Yeah, alright, maybe this idea isn’t as stupid as I thought.”
“Now that I think about it, I wouldn’t get my hopes up, but if we get big enough we can do entire tours, at least around Halych, with entire outfits of rookies assembled. I can’t imagine the results would be very good in practice, but it would keep us busy.”
“So you’re telling me we could even go on tour on other people’s money? It’s a long shot, but… I guess it’s worth a try.”
Bell crossed her arms. “I feel like it’d be super boring, but I’m not afraid to try new things either. Count me in.”
“I think it’s a route well worth experimenting with. Even if it fails, we get free publicity, which basically means we can’t lose!”
Nork slaps his hand on Teller’s shoulder. “I’m pretty much in the same boat as Teller here.”
“It wasn’t exactly easy for me to get into being an actual vocalist, so I think it would be really cool if we were, like, a charity of some sort that gave free coaching to people who couldn’t otherwise afford it. I’m all for it.”
“So it’s decided, we’ll be striving to be a little more than just another cover band from here on in. Teller, what would be our first steps to establish ourselves?”
“I think it’d be good to start the same way you got into the band-an audition, perhaps as part of a larger expo to better establish our shift in intent.”
“Then I suppose that’ll be where we start.”