When I review local talent on this blog, quite often you’ll see something like this near the end of the post:
OOMPH Scale: ___
Because the OOMPH is a basically intangible factor, I readily admit this is a subjective scale and not an exact science. The OOMPH Scale is my personal assessment and opinion of the band or artist being reviewed, and shouldn’t be taken as anything other than that. Feel free to disagree. (Although if you do, you’ll be wrong. Just saying.)
I do take the following things into account when determining the OOMPH Scale rating of an act:
- Preparedness–Are they organized? Do they know their stuff? Do they conduct themselves as professionals?
- Stage presence–Are they interesting? Do they command the audience’s attention, or do they just DEmand it? Are they comfortable performing?
- Performance–Do they have command of their instrument(s) and/or voice(s)? Have they owned the material? Do they choose good songs, and play them well?
- Passion–Do they care about what they are doing? Do they make me care about it?
- Compatibility–If it’s a band, how do the bandmates gel? Are they functioning as a unit? Are they competing, or complementing? If it’s a solo artist, how do they get on with their backup musicians?
- Originality–Do they have original material? Is it well-written?
All these things contribute to an artist’s readiness to take it to the next level. But of course, beyond that…the OOMPH is the magic that takes all these other ingredients and makes them more than they are. So there will always be a part of the OOMPH Scale that can’t be based on measured criteria–either they got it or they don’t. Get it?
So…the OOMPH Scale itself:
1-2…………Waste of the cover charge (if any)–stay home.
3-4…………Should not quit their day job.
5…………….Act shows some promise, but needs work.
6-7…………Getting there…worth going to see.
8-9………..Standouts from the crowd…go out of your way to see them.
10………….Sign ’em NOW!