The open mike night: the time and place where young and old, the talented and the not-so-talented can come together and try their hands at entertaining an audience.

It’s kind of like a slot machine for music fans; sometimes all cherries line up in a neat row and – ding, ding, ding – you hit jackpot. Other times it’s a cherry and two lemons, and sometimes it’s straight lemons without any payoff.

Of course, that unpredictability when the amateurs, aspiring professionals and talented hobbyists all come together is what can make an open mike night so fun or so totally unbearable.

This week I had a chance to check out one at Benjamin’s in downtown Bangor, which is held Tuesday nights and starts around 9:30 p.m. It’s not quite your typical open mike night, as performers are booked in advance rather than the usual come-and-sign-up-before-showtime format. Also, each night is sort of headlined by a group or performer with more experience and-or seniority.

Of course, even with the more selective, more structured format of Benjamin’s open mike, it’s not without those “ouch” moments: less-than-stellar aspiring singer-songwriters, minor sound glitches and too many ubiquitous pop covers for my tastes – it’s just the nature of the beast.

Still, there were some performers who proved to be worth sticking around for. And, even though the bar was pretty busy from about 10 p.m. on, it wasn’t too crowded and the atmosphere was surprisingly laid-back and friendly.

Aaron Sines, who coordinates Benjamin’s open mike nights and serves as an emcee between acts, says that while the nights are booked in advance there is always room for new performers. Sine, a student at the University of Maine, says that since he put out a call for performers through the campus e-mail system, the volume and diversity of performers have increased – including many female musicians, a group often underrepresented in the local music scene. Sine has even scheduled a special open mike for Tuesday, March 23, that will feature just female musicians.

For more information about performing at Benjamin’s open mike night, contact Aaron at 478-0620. George Bragdon can be reached at gbragdon@bangordailynews.net.