ENN February 8, 2010 (Download MP3)

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Photo by Sebastian Mary

• Tonight’s show at the Lizard Lounge in Cambridge, MA at 10pm will be awesome! I promise! Come check it out, more details at www.matthewebel.com/tour
• February 17 I’ll be performing in Trenton, NJ at Purple Stripe Productions, again the details are at www.matthewebel.com/tour

I mention these shows because of C.C. Chapman’s latest episode of Managing the Gray. He reminded me about my dreams and my goals. Yes, I would be happy just paying my bills and feeding myself, but that’s not what I dream about. Nobody dreams about simply surviving, we all have grander visions of our futures. No one dreams of mediocrity. People in my line of work share the same goal: Playing shows in big arenas to a crowd so massive you can see it from space.

The two shows coming up this month are the first steps towards that kind of dream for me. I want to become a famous rock star like Ben Folds. There’s a reason games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero sell so well: many of us dream of doing that sort of thing. To make it reality, however, requires a combination of luck, connections, and hard work. I need to know if I am good enough.

We all want to know that we can jump over that bar when we come to it. We all want to clear the bar with two feet to spare and then set the next bar even higher. This is why we dream, this is why we set goals. My goal this year is to play more shows for more people who came to hear my music. And none of us can reach our goals without help.

I may not be an über-connected CEO, but I can help you reach your goals. Just contact me and let me know how I can help. If you can help me play new shows for new crowds of people, contact me. Even if you live a long distance away from Boston, you might be able to see a live Matthew Ebel concert anyway. Fans in Atlanta made it happen, fans in Ohio are making it happen, you can make it happen.

What are you doing to reach your goals and realize your dreams? What can guys like me do to help?

Just a quick little update with some shiny things to look at. First of all, congratulations to Ian Boswell for winning my “I Blame The Spy” Video Contest. You’ve just picked up a free All-Access Pass for one year with this video:

And then there’s a little something I put together from Megaplex 2009. The venue had a camera on me the whole time, so I threw this up on YouTube to share with the world. Feel free to spread it around!

Last night I had the best movie theater experience I can remember. Sure, the movie itself was some of the finest American cinema ever made, but that would be equally as true if we’d have waited for the DVD or iTunes download. No, this isn’t a review of Pixar’s new movie “UP”, it’s a review of the modern theater experience.
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Given the manic way the past week has unfolded (and thanks for all your thoughts and prayers, folks), I totally forgot to mention that I’m playing the Lizard Lounge in Boston tonight! If you can make it out to see me, please do! Here are the details:

• Where:
  The Lizard Lounge
  1667 Massachusetts Ave
  Cambridge, MA 02138
• When:
  Tonight at 10pm
  Part of their Monday night open mic
• Cost:
  $5 Cover
  (Totally worth it.)

I hope to see you there!

At least that’s the theory behind [tag]Microsoft[/tag]’s promise to [tag]webcast[/tag] [tag]live performances[/tag]. Given Microsoft’s track record, I’m sure they’ll find some way to botch the delivery or ensure that only geeks with Christlike patience can watch. However, it gives me hope for the future of live music that someone other than myself wants to bring the spotlight back to the live show.

This is a [tag]performance art[/tag], after all, not just a series of tracks found on [tag]torrent[/tag] sites. Behind all this music, there are humans who put on some killer public displays.

Just a reminder, I’m still hoping to showcase some live performances myself. Check this post to find out how you can help.