Despite the promise of effortless cool from magazines, red carpets and videos, nerds of all shapes, sizes and persuasions have long found a home in pop music.  

On the other side of the speaker, shiny page, or fan forum we have been there, together alone as Crowded House once put it. 

Now we have a new patron saint, Astrid Jorgensen.

The founder, leader and lead nerd of Pub Choir, she is now the author of Average At Best. Part memoir, part self-help, part instruction manual, here’s five things we learned from the book and Astrid’s journey with Pub Choir.

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Music Is A Cult – In The Best Way

After thinking that she might want Jesus to be her boyfriend (aka, trying to become a nun), Astrid worked out that the Sound Of Music appeal was not the habit and the super glamorous conditions, but rather Julie Andrews and the tunes. 

Her description of the way communal singing made her feel – a type of being lost – was a spiritual awakening. No one cared in church if they were singing Ave Maria in the right key, the important part was that they were banging it out loud and proud as part of a group. 

To paraphrase The Smiths, it was a light that never goes out. Extra points if you get to reinvent a song while you’re at it. 

It’s OK Not To Be The Best

Sorry, Tina and Jimmy lied to you. Most of us are simply OK, and that’s totally fine. 

The quest to be The Best (better than all the rest, better than anyone) sells lots of stuff but it’s not where the majority of people are or can ever be. Being just OK should not be seen as a deficit or a barrier to taking part. 

According to Astrid in sung and written word and deed, average is the way to go. Complete with rejections from fancy music schools, abandoned high school music teaching careers and a few personal faux pas, her way has been to just get in and do it anyway. 

And make sure it’s fun – if it’s not fun it’s not worth it.

Diverse Brains Deserve Space

You, or someone you know, might feel like they see or understand things differently to the pack. Is it at a faster rate? Or a slower one? Or, are you focused not just on the wood on the trees, but the bugs on the grass near the wood? 

So much of our day to day is set up with the assumption that all brains work the same way – so that those with diverse brains can feel left out, left behind, or just wrong in some way. Astrid’s brain is clearly diverse, wonderful and has found its place. 

Musically, her brain shows and sounds music in a way that is unusual – at once part of her ‘averageness’ – now her strength. Astrid created a place. If in doubt, fellow diverse darlings, that’s the way to do it. 

Unfortunately, The Music Industry Is Still Dominated By Dudes

There’s a bit in the book where Astrid mentions that sound techs and other Industry Types would repeatedly overlook or talk down to her. 

Basically, they saw her and assumed she must be an assistant of some sort, so instead were waiting to ‘speak to the manager’ of the Pub Choir. You know the guy (emphasis deliberate) who knew about the tech requirements and the money etc. 

Except that girl in front of them, Astrid, was and is the manager. And the choir master. And the CEO. Aka the person who does all that stuff just as well as anyone else. Astrid’s solution was to hire her own Dude – a man that other music men could talk to. 

He’s a muso and awesome himself so not shade on him (John Patterson from The Grates). And to be fair there was just a need for extra arms and legs generally – the Pub Choir was getting too big for any one person. But how are we still in the 2020s and in a situation where this is necessary?

Singing Pop Music Is One Of Life’s Greatest Pleasures And Should Not Be Gatekept In Any Way

The point of Astrid’s Average At Best  book and Pub Choir as an experience is sharing pop music. Astrid’s not interested in high art, elite, expensive to access experiences. She’s interested in mainstream, run of the mill, middle of the road glorious popular music. 

She grew up religiously listening to American Top 40 and I dare you not to love the crap out of that – even if you feel you should do so secretly. 

Pop is beautiful and playful and silly and for everyone – and that means you don’t need skill or to have done your homework. Pop music’s worth is in how easy it is – something Astrid works on to make even easier with charts and singalongs that happen in pubs with liquid courage and cheat sheets. 

Yes, this is music your mum and your uncool co-worker will have heard of. And that’s the point of it. Get off your high horse and just bloody have fun.

Astrid Jorgensen’s Average At Best is out now, and Pub Choir is currently on national tour, with tickets on sale now.