To say the least, the 140 Characters Conference was fun. I got to lead the Music panel and I was fortunate enough to convince Ariel Hyatt, Amanda Palmer, and Ted Cohen to join me. I’m so glad Jeff Pulver invited me to moderate this panel, I never thought I’d get all three names at the top of my list to sit at the table. I felt like a little fish in a very big pond, given that they’ve all dealt with major labels and real established acts in the past and I’m still working my ass off just to bring you all some tunes on a monthly basis. Still, I think each of us managed to provide some insight into the real-time web that your average corporate marketing type wouldn’t really have seen.

Honestly, though, what makes social media events like this fun aren’t really the events. It’s the socializing. Getting to talk about indie music promotion with Ariel is always a highlight. Hearing stories of touring with Van Halen and Prince and the like from Ted Cohen never gets old. And Amanda Palmer? Yeah, she’s as groovy as I anticipated. Busiest woman I’ve ever seen, though, she’s literally the CEO of her own company just like me. Her business is significantly larger, though, so I can see why she needs caffeine. What we talked about on stage mirrored what was happening backstage: Talk to people online, Don’t just promote shit, actually converse. If you’re not interacting with your fans as a human being, you’re not interacting with your fans.

And speaking of interacting with your fans, the most unexpected surprise for me was meeting Derrick, one of my VIP’s, for the first time. He’d been a VIP member since day one, but I never thought I’d actually get to meet him. Why? He lives in frickin’ Singapore. Right now he’s in the Boston area, though, and was attending the 140 Characters conference. I don’t think he knew I was going to be there, but I’m damn glad he showed up. I don’t know if many of you know how cool it feels to meet someone who’s a big supporter even though you’ve never seen them and never played a show in their country. It takes a real fan to take part in something like Matthew Ebel dot net without knowing if you’ll ever actually get to SEE the artist you’re supporting, so I considered it a stone-cold honor to bump into Derrick.

The dinner afterwards sealed the day perfectly. NY Times best-selling author Julien Smith sponsored this indie rocker’s meal that night, and man am I grateful. I got to spend the final hours of the day talking with friends like CC Chapman, Chris Penn, Chel Pixie (who organized the dinner), Jeffrey Sass and his aspiring-rock-star son, and more. These kind of people create a notable change in conversation every time I’m around them. I’m usually among folks who create or manage technology- networking, storage, programming, etc. -but the people I ate dinner with are a different kind of cutting edge. They don’t make the tools, they use them in ways nobody else imagines. It’s refreshing to hear from people who are paving new roads using the toys that my other friends are crafting. It’s a hell of a perspective and I’m thankful for the opportunity to see all sides of the picture.

So here’s to the con-goers at 140 Characters. I hope to see you all next year!

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!

Just a brief note from my morning office. Where it’s cold. And caffeinated. I want to know what kind of music YOU want to hear!

Well I had a wonderful time at the Midway Café in Boston last night. It’s always comforting when half the people in the bar came to see you play. Of course, the other half was waiting to get on stage, recovering from a lost baseball game, watching the Celtics on TV, or just plain drunk beyond all reason (yes, that guy).

Such is the life when playing in bars.

The best part of the evening, though, was just getting to play a live gig again. I love doing the UStream shows and playing impromptu concerts at New Media conventions, but doing some good old-fashioned bar gigs once in a while helps me out. It sort of rounds out the performance diet.

So to all of you who got yourselves out to Midway last night, thank you!

[tags]Matthew Ebel, piano rock, Midway Cafe, Boston[/tags]

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[tags]Matthew Ebel, piano rock, Boston, Red Sox, Texas, Rangers, Brad Bonn, Jess Kiela, Yankees Suck, baseball[/tags]

[tags]Matthew Ebel, piano rock, Boston, It Takes A Thief, craigslist.org[/tags]

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While in [tag]Boston[/tag], I got a chance to meet [tag]CC Chapman[/tag] of the [tag]Accident Hash[/tag] Podcast and hang with him for about six hours. During that time we recorded a full 45-minute interview that’s now available online!

Not only is it a whole episode of CC and I, we even played an exclusive album track that you won’t hear on any other [tag]podcast[/tag]!

If you’re not subscribed, you ought to be. You can hear the interview or add Accident Hash to your playlist HERE.
[tags]Matthew Ebel, music[/tags]