Beer and Karaoke

To those of my readers who know me personally, it should come as no surprise that you might find me at a few different spots in town doing karaoke every now and again.

The effects of alcohol (and good beer especially) on a successful karaoke performance cannot be overstated. That may sound ridiculous. I'll put it in starker terms still: Beer is my karaoke fuel.

Why?

Beer makes the perfect karaoke fuel because it's poured in (more or less) strictly enforced quantities. Whereas with a mixed drink you might receive a strong pour or a weak pour, with beer you know exactly what you're getting, which is vital to managing both expectations and a proper level of inebriation.

Being both shy and introverted (a subtle but important distinction, discussed rather more cogently here), getting up to sing for a barful of people isn't exactly the most appealing pastime. But with a beer or two, it starts to seem like a good idea. The social lubrication removes just enough of the nervousness to provide the impetus to grab the mic, but not so much that there's not still the rush of adrenaline and fear that makes for the best possible performance under the circumstances.

I've found, through many nights of dedicated experimentation, that IPAs work best for karaoke. I'd posit that there's something about the alpha acids that cuts through stage fright. Really, it's probably just a good idea to have something bitter to swallow after crushing (or being crushed by) a song.

Cheers to my fellow sometime-singers.