About the jam

When

Every Tuesday, 7:30 pm Central

Where

Shoreline Brewery, 208 W. Wabash St, Michigan City, IN

Cost

Free to play, free to watch, but drinks and food not included ;)

Bring

Your instrument. Everything else is already there.

What it is

Two nights in one

The setup runs as an open mic and an open jam at the same time, and which one you get depends on who walks in. A soloist can play a short set to a backing track. A band can sit in and run their own material. Someone who just wants to play with other people can do that too, without having brought anyone with them.

What's already here

The backline is provided

The venue provides the PA. Everything else — guitar and bass amps, keys, drums, mics, mixer, and DI for bass and guitar — is provided by the house band, hauled in and set up every Tuesday.

That means a sit-in only has to bring an instrument that isn't already on stage. If you'd rather use your own amp or pedalboard, that's fine too, and the board will take a backing track off your phone or laptop.

The house band are working musicians who gig across several bands and teach locally. They know functional theory and they adapt to whoever is sitting in — so "I'm not sure I know that one" is not a problem you need to solve before you get here.

Who shows up

Regulars, students, and whoever wandered in

There's a core of regulars most weeks, which is what gives the night its continuity — and a fair amount of good-natured trash talk. Newcomers get welcomed into it rather than sized up. Some of the guest bands come through Roxy Music's student programs; others are local groups whose players know the house band.

Why anyone comes is their own business. The nights are a lot of fun regardless.