Hold on. Let me get comfortable. Ahhh, there we go.

Sorry, I had to take my shoes off and put on some flip-flops. Would you care for a frosty, cold beverage? No, no, don’t get up. This round’s on me. Something about a balmy June evening and live music makes me want to cut loose.

Summer is advancing quickly, and that means that our local musicians have sufficiently defrosted, started coming out of their bedrooms and basements, and started remembering what it’s like to play gigs again. Both on the coast and farther inland, there’s a good chance that on any given night you’ll find a wealth of home-grown talent in a wide selection of venues.

Here’s a list of some of your weekly options for checking out Maine-made live music. Care for a refill on your beverage? You know that in an hour you’ll be up dancing like a fool. I promise not to tag you in any incriminating MySpace or Facebook photos. I’d never do that.

First off, in big ol’ Bangor there are now three open mike nights in town – two on the same night (Tuesday), which is sort of bad scheduling, but which also means that you can check out a full evening of diverse local talent if you time it right. Paddy Murphy’s in West Market Square offers up its stage for acoustic acts from 9 p.m. to close. It skews toward folk, indie rock and blues, it’s extremely low-key and relaxed, and it’s hosted by musical maven Myke Billings.

If you want something a little louder and more unpredictable, go check out open mike at Fuzion on Franklin Street, hosted by local rock star and all-around lovely guy Preston Jarvis, starting at 9 p.m. There’s some acoustic stuff, but there also are loads of hip hop, metal and punk, and there’s always the lure of Fuzion’s sweet back patio.

The open mike at the Union Street Brick Church is a mainstay for Thursday nights, starting at 7 p.m. It’s hosted by Flash, and you never know just what might happen there on a given evening.

Also in Bangor, bluesman Eric Green plays every other Wednesday at Christopher’s, and every other Thursday at the Whig and Courier, both in West Market Square. The swanky new downtown bar the Red Martini features local DJs most Saturday nights. Raena’s on Main Street and Carolina’s Sports and Spirits on Union always have bands, as does the Sea Dog on the waterfront. Whoa. There’s a lot of stuff to do in Bangor! Who knew?

A bit farther north, open mike night continues every Wednesday at the Bear Brew Pub in Orono, hosted by Adrian Wingard. Woodman’s sporadically has bands, as does the Riverfront Pub in Old Town. And there’s always the DADGAD coffeehouse, the first Saturday of every month at the Keith Anderson Community Center on Bennoch Road in Orono.

Parker’s in Ellsworth features bands such as the Climactics, River Bottom Funk, Eric Green, Laurie Jones, and Stiff Whisker and the Driftwood Kids on a regular basis, and also has its own open mike night every Thursday. The Lookout Pub and Club 132, both in Belfast, have live music on Thursday and weekends, as does venerable Rockland blues hangout the Time Out Pub.

Bar Harbor, of course, is packed to the gills with music during the summer season. Every Sunday, the aforementioned local legend Billings leads an ace crew of jazz musicians from 3 til 8 p.m. at Rupununi, playing jazz standards and Weather Channel-approved grooviness. Drink specials and an awesome raw bar complement it. Upstairs from Rup’s, Carmen Verandah has bands every Saturday, and the Lompoc Cafe, the Thirsty Whale, the Bar Harbor Blues Authority and Geddy’s keep their schedules full as well.

Got any other suggestions for places to check out local music? Shoot me an e-mail at eburnham@bangordailynews.net. I don’t know about you, but I am so ready for another killer Maine summer.

eburnham@bangordailynews.net

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