Coyote (06.26.12)

Second Life is just like real life, but with more pixels and slower frame rates. In that regard, the same kinds of mistakes happen in SL that can happen anywhere, and most mistakes begin with errors in communication. That's why despite the fact that I was booked to perform again at the Whisky a Go Go in SL, I ended up instead doing a show for a small group of friends at my and Kat's home venue, Coyote.

Hey, these things happen. It's pretty simple; the venue owner was occupied elsewhere, and the person he'd tasked with running the show didn't get the word that I was supposed to be performing there. Since he's apparently not psychic, no one was there when I and my fans (and others; it was listed correctly in the SL live music events) all showed up at about 6PM.

So, we hung out for another 15 minutes or so hoping someone would show up. When no one did, someone suggested that instead of canceling the entire show, we could go somewhere else and do it. Of course, Kat and I have our woefully underused Club at Coyote, so we quickly passed around some landmarks and headed to our home sim. Once there, I hopped up onstage and did some songs for our friends who accompanied us.

Me, on my home turf. Photo by Kat.

Bacon nipple pasties and a bong. Yup, these are my friends. Photo by Kat.

Coyote Set List...
Won't Get Fooled Again (The Who)
Sister Golden Hair (America)
*When the Music's Over (The Doors)
Woodstock (Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young)
Who Do You Love (Bo Diddley)
Carey (Joni Mitchell)
Landslide (Fleetwood Mac)
Waiting for This (Zak Claxton)
*Indicates the first time I have performed this song in SL.

Apologies to anyone who tried to see the show last night and couldn't, and massive thanks to the folks who followed us home to hang out and rock!

Key West (06.25.12)

When I get ready to play a show in Second Life, I have a simple routine. An hour before I'm scheduled to start, I stop whatever I'm doing, and do some light vocal warm-up exercises. I wash my hands and check to see if my nails are long enough to impede my playing, clipping as required. I then pick up my guitar, tune it, and run through a short section of a few the songs I've chosen to play.

At 20 minutes before the hour, I get into SL and head to the venue. After saying hello to the host and getting my avatar ready to perform, I still need to set up my real-life music stand and microphones, and get my mixer and computer ready to stream audio to the show. I also highly recommend using the bathroom at this point as opposed to holding your pee while trying to sing for an hour. When I initially arrive (assuming there's no one playing before me), it's most common that no one is there but the venue staff... who else comes to music shows 20 minutes early in SL? So there's this little moment of mystery while I finish my setup: who's going to show up? Will many of my hardcore "Zakster" fans be able to make it? Will I get some new people who haven't heard me before? Will it be a big crowd? A small one? At least in my case, you never really know for sure until the moment you begin the show.

I need to remind myself before my show that every time I play at Key West, it ends up being a good time for all. Photo by Kat.

I mentioned this to the folks at my show last night at Key West. As I came back after getting set up, near the start of the hour, there was already a good-sized crowd there, making me happy. I told them quite honestly, "I always assume that no one is going to come, and I'm pleasantly surprised when I walk in and see people there for my show." Even after more than five years comprising hundreds and hundreds of performances, I never, ever assume that folks are going to come see me. It keeps me humble, and keeps me working hard to do good shows for those who do come out.

Speaking of which, the show last night went very well. My minor self-criticism is that my voice at times was a bit rough around the edges from having done two shows the day before, but that just made me sound a little more rocking. Also, as I've done lately with all of these shows, I've been pulling out some of the older tunes that I did regularly back in 2007/2008, and finding them fun to do again.

Key West Set List...
Man on the Moon (R.E.M.)
Save It For Later (English Beat)
Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere (Neil Young)
Fade Away (Zak Claxton)
Mother (Pink Floyd)
In My Time of Dying (Traditional)
After the Goldrush (Neil Young)
The Other Way (Zak Claxton)
Save Me (Aimee Mann)
I've Been Waiting for You (Neil Young)
I Like You (Zak Claxton)
Just Like This Train (Joni Mitchell)

Big thanks to every single person who came out to my show at Key West, especially those who helped support it!
Triana Caldera, TheDove Rhode, Tjorben McKeenan, Alexis Fairlady, AMFORTE Clarity, Alltra Violet, Richy Nervous, Rosinante Vinson, Christine Haiku, TheaDee, TrillianTraal, Spiral Silverstar, and most of all, Key West owner (and true music lover) Liz Harley!

Triana's Music Trivia 7th Anniversary (06.24.12)

I really hadn't intended on doing two shows on Sunday June 24. My great friend Triana Caldera, who has become an equally good pal in real life as she has been in Second Life for many years, had booked me months ago to perform at the seventh anniversary of her Triana's Music Trivia (SL's longest-running trivia game), which I wouldn't miss for the world. And then I was nicely asked to play at a Relay for Life event which ended up being on the same day. Meh.

A wee bit of background: as I've written about many times before, performing at TMT is always a treat for me. I can be as insanely silly as I want around this crazy collection of great friends who Kat and I see every Sunday evening at Triana's trivia game. That means I can really be experimental and play songs that I probably wouldn't do at regular shows. It also means that I have a good excuse to play special songs that I've never done before, either as some kind of themed show, or songs that have some significance to Triana and the other folks we hang out with there. It's also at my TMT shows that I can convince Kat to participate in the music (which she generally wouldn't be comfortable doing in front of strangers)... she joined me for backing vocals on a Lou Reed tune I'd never done until last night.

As usual when we have special events there, the trivia game was moved forward an hour to 6PM so I could perform during the 7PM slot. As trivia wrapped up, I was already in the upstairs club area getting set up. Then we started the show. Since I'd just done a full hour of my own music, I decided to blow off my original songs for the most part and play cover stuff that would be fun for everyone.

Triana's Music Trivia 7th Anniversary Set List...
A Day in the Life (Beatles)
Triana (Zak Claxton)
*Walk on the Wild Side (Lou Reed)
†Wrong Way (Sublime)
*Beyond the Blue (Martina McBride)
†Them Bones (Alice in Chains)
†The Rainbow Connection (Kermit the Frog)
†Take It On The Run (REO Speedwagon)
She's Leaving Home (Beatles)
†On the Way Home (Buffalo Springfield)
Summer Breeze (Seals & Crofts)
†A Case of You (Joni Mitchell)
She's Always a Woman (Billy Joel)
Tribute (Tenacious D)

*Indicates the first time I've performed this song in SL.
†These songs are extreme rarities in my set. In several cases, it's been over four years since I've performed them live, and at least three of them I've only done once previously.

Huge thanks to all of our great friends at TMT. We love you! Thanks to those who helped support the show...
Alchemy Epstein, Nakira Tennen, Rey Tardis, Jordan Hazlitt, TheaDee, Diana Renoir, MrNoCal Honey, Samantha Poindexter, Kat Claxton, Xerxes Ninetails, and most of all to the lovely lady who's brought fun to our Sunday for years and years... Triana Caldera!

Acoustic Meadow/Relay for Life (06.24.12)

My first of two shows in Second Life on Sunday June 24 was at The Republic's Acoustic Meadow, where I'd been booked by Liz Harley to perform a full hour of original music as a benefit for Relay for Life (aka RFL). As all of you should know by now, I perform several times each year for RFL, which is the fundraising arm of the American Cancer Society.

Why do I play for RFL? I think it's pretty easy to understand. First, as a musician, one can use his or her talents in many ways. Some are selfish (i.e., getting paid to perform, having praise heaped on by fans, and so on), and there's nothing wrong with that. However, the scales of karma are best when they're even, and it's long been my opinion being gifted with the ability to sing and perform on an instrument merits some payback. Second, people need help, and if I can do something for cancer patients, even something small, simply by strumming a guitar and singing every so often, then what kind of person would I be to blow that off?

How did you spend your Sunday? Me? I cured cancer. Photo by Kat.

This particular RFL event had been set up with a cool theme: a full weekend of all original music from SL's artists who are also songwriters. Saturday's event was at Key West, while Sunday's was at Acoustic Meadow, where I'd never played before. It was cool; we had a good-sized crowd, and were very successful in the goal of the event (which was raising money, of course). I chose to play a mix of songs off my current album, and new stuff that I plan on having on the next album (whenever that gets done).

Kat and I relax in pixel form after my show. With another show to do later that evening, any time to get my energy back was appreciated. Photo by Kat.

Acoustic Meadown RFL Originals Set List...
You're Like a Cloud (Zak Claxton)
Always Tomorrow (Zak Claxton)
Broken Day (Zak Claxton)
Falling Down (Zak Claxton)
I Like You (Zak Claxton)
Thanks Anyway (Zak Claxton)
Let's Pretend That Everything's Okay (Zak Claxton)
The Sands of Redondo (Zak Claxton)
Perfect Girl (Zak Claxton)
Shine (Zak Claxton)

Big thanks to everyone who came out and supported the show by donating to RFL. You're all heroes!

Whisky a Go Go in SL (06.19.12)

Enjoying the hell out of my Tuesday night show at the Whisky. Photo by Kat, who apologizes for not using an SL viewer that doesn't turn mesh wearers into jellybeans.

Well, well, well. The pendulum of life swings erratically. The patterns are unpredictable at best. So, just because I had a pretty shitty time trying to perform at SL9B on Monday, there's no guarantee that my following show would be good, bad, or simply mediocre. That's not how life works.

However, my show on Tuesday night at the Whisky A Go Go in Second Life was fucking phenomenal. It's not because of the crowd, which was pretty light through much of the show (after all, there's a ton of big events going on right now in SL, and one can't expect to compete even on a normal night during the packed 6PM time slot). However, it was still one of the better shows I've ever performed over the 5+ years I've been gigging in SL for one simple reason: the music.

It was one of those nights where everything was working well. The songs -- several of which I'd intended to play the day before, had my show not been truncated -- just seemed to be right. I've made it a point to make each of my shows at the Whisky completely unique, and have yet to repeat a song that I've done there in my three weekly shows so far. And while my guitar playing was far from perfect, the vibe was still good. Finally, my singing voice, which is as a big a mystery to me as anything in terms of why it sometimes is great and other times sucks, was as good as I've ever sounded. I don't know why. I really don't.

But the upshot of all this is that I enjoyed the hell out of my own show, and the folks who were there all seemed to appreciate it as well. I couldn't be happier. The satisfaction of a well-performed show trumps every other reason that artists like me perform in SL, in my opinion. We all know it's not about the money or "fame", if you can call any SL musician famous in any way. So it has to be about something... and that something is how well one can do a live performance one can be proud of for no other reason than that it exceeded their own hopefully high standards.

I'd also like to extend some kudos to the Whisky staff. Like a few other SL venues I can name, like Molaskey's Pub, the Whisky staff are cool and experienced people who never give any impression other than professionalism. Cameron and the staff there are friendly people who always seem to have their shit together. I like that. Also, it's been nice having this regular slot before Annan Dreamscape. While our musical and performance styles aren't very compatible, I've enjoyed relaxing after my show to see her in the 7PM slot.

Whisky Set List...
Day After Day (Badfinger)
*The Crystal Ship (The Doors)
Time Never Waits for You (Zak Claxton)
I Am A Child (Neil Young)
Always Tomorrow (Zak Claxton)
Wonderwall (Oasis)
Tangerine (Led Zeppelin)
Accidents Will Happen (Elvis Costello)
Come Around (Zak Claxton)
Help Me (Joni Mitchell)
The Sands of Redondo (Zak Claxton)
Tea in the Sahara (The Police)
What I Got (Sublime)

*Indicates my first time performing this song in SL. It was really good, too. I'll be pulling that out again soon.

Big thanks to everyone who came to the Whisky to see me, including the following who all helped support my show!
Kat Claxton, Cicadetta Stillwater, Mia Kitchensink, TheaDee, Annan Dreamscape, Whisky DJ and manager Dmitri Polonsky, and Cameron Trenchcoat!

SL9B (06.18.12)

It would be silly for me to dwell on the extreme technical difficulties experienced during the opening of SL9B. Shit happens. The obvious downsides of a) not being able to teleport to the region, b) all but a few of the Zaksters not being able to get to the show, and c) not starting the show until 30+ minutes into my set all just are what they are... stuff that happens in a world where technology isn't quite capable of handling the needs and wants of the users. Nothing new there. Second Life just simply has never lived up to the expectations it set up in its users, and there's certainly no one to blame for that outside of the Lab.

Despite all that shit, I did get some music performed to open SL9B, and at least that part mostly went okay.

SL9B Set List
This Afternoon (Zak Claxton)
Man on the Moon (R.E.M.)
Falling Down (Zak Claxton)
Things Behind the Sun (Nick Drake)
I Like You (Zak Claxton)
If It Makes You Happy (Sheryl Crow)
Thank You (Alanis Morissette)

I wish I could have seen some of this while I played. Nothing in the sim rezzed for me the entire time I played. Fortunately, Kat got some photos so I could check it out after the fact. Hopefully, I'll be able to go back and see more of SL9B after it mellows out later this week.

Thanks to the folks who tried to get to the show, and the folks who tried to put it on!

Whisky A Go Go in SL (06.12.12)

Tuesday marked my second appearance at the Whisky A Go Go in Second Life. Those of you who have been following along already know that I've got a residency there for every Tuesday evening in June at 6PM.

I have to say, it's really a good place to have a show. Cameron Trenchcoat is an experienced venue owner in SL, and he knows just how to do his part to put on an entertaining experience for the folks who come there to see their favorite performers. As I mentioned last week, the Whisky in SL is a very authentic reproduction of the famous Hollywood music club, and I enjoy tailoring my set to keep the vibe in place. Since I'm playing there weekly, I made sure to play an entirely different set of songs than I played previously. Variety is the spice of life, as they say.

"Well the clock says it's time to close.... now. Photo by Kat.

My view. Photo by Kat.

Whisky Set List...
Big Yellow Taxi (Joni Mitchell)
Broken Day (Zak Claxton)
Rikki Don't Lose That Number (Steely Dan)
Falling Down (Zak Claxton)
Ziggy Stardust (David Bowie)
Perfect Girl (Zak Claxton)
Soul Kitchen (Doors)
Man of Constant Sorrow (Traditional)
Fade Away (Zak Claxton)
Love Hurts (Everly Brothers)
You're Like a Cloud (Zak Claxton)

Massive thanks to all who came out to the Whisky, with special thanks to those who helped support the show!
Jenna Dirval, Annan Dreamscape, Triana Caldera, Diana Renoir, Aurelie Chenaux, Kat Claxton, TheaDee, Sesh Kamachi, Christine Haiku, my manager Maali Beck, and the chief rockmaster at the Whisky, Cameron Trenchcoat!