AIR GUITARS . . . ALIVE & SICK IN KC!

(Sick is good you know.)

Allow me just a moment. I need to turn down the volume on one of the videos Cutest shot at this weekend's local air guitar festival. Bet you didn’t know there was one, and until I spotted an announcement on social media, neither did we.

Cutest and I get a kick out of discovering or rediscovering hidden or forgotten restaurants, bars and entertainment venues. This air guitar contest checked all of those boxes.

This was not just any A.G. pop up where you can watch over- served bar flies recreating King Kong swatting airplanes from atop the Empire State building. No-sir-re!  This was the midwestern regional finals, with the winner moving on to the NATIONAL FINALS, in San-Francisco!  With a $200 cash award too.  Whoo hoo!

Where did this electrifying yet non-electric event take place you might ask. Proudly at the Brick, a KC staple on McGee for 26 years. I thought I counted about 200 airaphiles (a fire department poster recommended no more than 125) packed into the Crossroads watering hole. Witnessing the contest were folks ranging in age from being in their 20s, 30s and a few early 40s, including a performer. Then there we were, once again bringing up the average age. Tattoos adorned most everyone. Cutest and I forgot to get ours.

Our MC was a recent fourth place (Minneapolis) A.G. contest participant who laid out how the night would proceed. First each contestant had only a minute to perform to music of their choice. The top five then moved on to the second set, strumming to a previously unpracticed recording. And the third set was still being negotiated. That’s just how these AG contests roll.

Judging was by three interesting people. Number one could have stepped in to the ring with pro wrestler Randy Savage; number two is a mime who studied with Marcel Marceau but took a night off to voice her votes; and number three is a favorite at Missy Bs. (We’re going there next.)

Flying Finn, Beth Byrd-Lonski, and Annie Cherry. (Second two photos are from KC Air Guitar Facebook fan page.)

Finally the acts began with high energy, even if some either forgot to strum, or should not have when a drum solo was rolling along. The performers got better and better, even first-timers and the scores got higher and higher.

Cutest was so enthralled she took a million videos.  I’m including them because she’s the editor and thinks she takes a mean video.  She does not but I know you’d like to see some of what we saw – each individual has their own style, that’s for sure.

Definitely watch until the finale!

The MC traverses the room.

Funniest probably.

Another talented performer.

(She has seven more where females are more fully represented but I finally won when I said four are enough.)

At the close of the first set, Cutest and I headed home. After all, 11 P.M. is late by senior standards. Our conclusions: We had been truly entertained and enjoyed many laughs through the night.  We have paid much more for other ways to spend an evening and gone home less happy. The crowd was friendly and full of “spunk,” as Ed Asner used to say on the Mary Tyler Moore show.

So let us know if you get out there and unearth your own America’s Got Talent.  And by the way, some of the contestants had never done this before, including macho man above – you, too, could apply the night of the event next year.