In the three years that The Bigfoot Lodge has hosted Rock-N-Roll karaoke on Monday nights, Bartender Carol (featured), as she is known to patrons, has seen and heard a lot. She’s seen well-known performers like Drew Carey and Joe Walsh hit the stage, gotten to know regulars’ favorite songs, and served many, many Kamikaze shots. A consummate karaoke performer herself, every eastsider’s favorite pink-haired, Girl Scout-uniformed bartender sat down with me to share some tips on how to rock the karaoke stage.
Q: What factors make for a good karaoke performance?
Willing to be a complete – I don’t want to say fool – but the people who are overly concerned and take their singing too seriously are not the singers I like. I like the singers who will go up and be funny and dance around and be a performer. We once had 3 guys who sang “Sabotage” by the Beastie Boys and they went out and bought the aviator glasses and fake mustaches and they friggin rocked it. That’s what makes karaoke fun.
Q: What songs are surefire crowd pleaser?
Any songs that people can sing along to, or dance their asses off to. One of the crowd favorites here is “Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey. Usually any anthem-y type of song does well. People also go ape-shit for any of those funny rump shaker kind of songs. “Ice Ice Baby” is always huge.
Q: Any songs you’d be happy never to hear again?
Yes! This song done right is amazing, but if you can’t hit it, don’t sing it. Lauren Hill’s “Killing Me Softly.” A girl who was really trying to sing that one a few weeks ago just wasn’t getting it and I walked by multiple patrons who were joking “You’re killing me PAINFULLY” or “Killing me not so softly.”
We also just got Amy Winehouse in the book. I like Amy Winehouse a lot, and you realize when you hear other people try to sing like her that she’s a really talented singer. Because it just doesn’t sound right when other people try.
And Bartender Bob hates “Sweet Caroline,” but that’s still a crowd pleaser, everyone-knows-it kind of song.
Q: Any personal favorites you like to sing up there?
Definitely. “I Love Rock-N-Roll” and “Do You Wanna Touch Me?” by Joan Jett, “Kiss Me Deadly” by Lita Ford, and “Sister Christian” by Night Ranger.
Q: Advice for nervous first timers?
You gotta have a little alcohol for the nerves. Bring some friends to give you the old hoot-n-holler when you’re going up to the stage. That always pumps you up. And go up there and be a rock star. I think everyone has a secret fantasy to be in a band, so just go do it.
The rush of adrenaline you get after singing karaoke, nothing beats it. And for that newbie, you’re gonna wanna sing again – I know you! I’ve never heard someone get off that stage and say “That was the most awful thing ever, I’m never gonna sing karaoke again.” They always come back and sing again.
Q: What’s the perfect number of drinks to consume before you get on stage?
It’s totally dependent on the karaoke singer. You get people who walk through that friggin’ door without a drop of alcohol and they’re ready to hit the stage. And then you have the people so intimidated by the whole situation…I would say the average person should have three. That’s my Rock-N-Roll Karaoke tip: Three drinks.
Q: Any special drinks to get people in the mood?
Shots are perfect because you want something right before you get on stage. Not that the alcohol’s going to hit you that fast, but…you pound it, you throw it on the bar, and then instant balls grow and you’re ready to sing!
And whiskey is always a good soother if you’re sick or have a scratchy throat or the weekend before you’ve been partying…but you know, there are some people who can shoot whiskey and then there are people who should stay far away from it.
Q: Are there songs that you recommend avoiding, ones that are hard to pull off or don’t go over?
There are nights that, for whatever reason it turns into adult contemporary night and as much as I love a good slow song, it just kills the mood. The thing that keeps karaoke fun is the high energy level. And you’ve got to sing songs that people know. If you come in here and sing some obscure song that nobody knows, people aren’t going to like it and they’ll just start talking to their friends. People want to be part of what you’re doing, so it’s usually best to stick with songs that everybody knows.
Q: Has anyone ever been able to pull off “Bohemian Rhapsody”?
Bartender Bob got it at Kamikaze Karaoke once. He was singing it but you could tell he getting a little nervous, so Drew Carey and a couple other guys jumped up on stage with him with flashlights and did the whole music video and sang it all together. It was fantastic. So if you try it, you need someone to back you up. You need people to go up there and at least bang their heads at the end.
Q: Tell me more about Kamikaze Karaoke.
We wanted to do something to shake up our regulars’ repertoires, you know, so people wouldn’t sing the same song week after week. So we came up with the idea where we have a bagful of numbers and you reach into a bag and unless you know your songs’ number, you have to wait until you get up on stage, and you stand there very nervously as the monitor flitters through song titles and then when your number comes up, that’s the song you have to sing.
We try to pick songs in a certain range, though every once in awhile we’ll throw something crazy in there like the Darkness. But mostly it’s the cheeky songs like “Conga,” which has started a conga line in the bar before, “Copacabana” and “YMCA” that everybody knows but aren’t likely to get picked on a regular night.
Q: And when does this happen?
The last Monday of every month.
Q: Any other special event nights coming up?
We’re doing theme nights, the next one is coming up the second Monday in February and that will be our Valentine’s theme night, “Love songs and songs of heartbreak.” Another interesting thing is that St. Patrick’s Day is on a Monday this year, so this place is going to blow up. I’m a little scared. It’s an amateur night and I worry about our karaoke host extraordinaire Jim’s equipment.
Q: How about some etiquette tips for the amateurs?
Please do not swing the microphone by its cord. The microphone has an adapter in the back that plugs into the cord, so if you swing the microphone around like a cowboy it will send it flying. And also being so rock star that you throw your mic stand down on the floor at the end of the song is not good. There was a girl who threw it down a couple weeks ago. The first time she was warned, the second time she was asked to leave the bar.
Q: With Rock Band and Guitar Hero on the market, what would you say to people who would rather stay home and rock?
Rock Band is phenomenal! Lord knows that I have stayed up until 5 in the morning playing rock band – by myself, solo tour. But the dynamic is completely different. So do both. Get your home tour done and then come out and be a superstar on a stage.
The Bigfoot Lodge is located at 3172 Los Feliz Blvd. 323.662.9227. Rock-N-Roll Karaoke happens every Monday from 10PM-2AM.
