Last night, December 14th, 2012 - Allstage headed out to St.Thomas to check out the wealth of talent in the town. With four Venues to check out, Barb and I had a full night ahead.
First stop was Braxtons Tap & Grill at the far end of St.Thomas where John Milles was playing a solo acoustic act. Braxtons is a woody roadhouse that has really good food and very friendly and attentive staff. In the room as we walked in was the soothing sound of John playing acoustic tunes and singing to the crowd in front of him. John sang a host of great tunes that crossed the span from the Seventies to present day. His song selection was great, the perfect mix of legendary classics mixed with acoustic versions of today's tunes. On his break, John introduced himself to Barb and I - he was very friendly and his warm attitude made you feel like he had known you for a long time. The crowd certainly appreciated his talents as they sang and clapped along to his songs, seeing full well that John enjoyed playing the songs for himself, as much as he did for the crowd before him. If we didn't have more places to go we would've stayed for the entire night, it was that enjoyable.
Next on the St.Thomas Allstage Tour was Ollees where The Wrecks were playing with Shawn Buck, Rob Stokes, Flying Bob Taylor & Mike Moodie. Ollees is a neighborhood bar that draws in the local community from the adjacent residential blocks, and is situated in a commercial plaza. Complete with center pool table at the back of the bar, the band line up across the front of the venue giving full sight lines to both band and patrons. This was our 1st visit to Ollees for Barb and I so we weren't sure what to expect. Inside the place was packed, standing near the bar area was to be shoulder-to-shoulder. For Barb and I it was like a party with good friends as the crowd included Al & Katie Vaillancourt, Cathy Millar, the amazing Waitress skills of Ruth "Buzzy" McCormick, my old high school buddy Al Grech, Bill Penner, Doug Ryan, the amazing talents of Stanley Brown who jammed with the band, Len Doucette and his lovely Lady. The Wrecks were slamming out tunes 1st with Shawn, then allowing Stanley to come up and play - and the packed bar was loving the entire performance. This was my good friend Mike Moodies perpetual "Farewell Gig" with the band, but in all seriousness - if we lose Mr. Moodies talents in the sphere of Local drummers, it will be our loss for sure. The band had the demographics in the bar in their hands, young and middle aged were loving the band as they smoked thru a dozen or so songs in the set we saw.
As we again left a venue that had a local St. Thomas talent that was showcasing their skills, it occurred to me that those sitting at home on this mild Friday night were missing out on alot.
From there we went to the Midtown Tavern to see Jared Walpole & Chris Eveland who were doing their acoustic duo at the front of the bar. Jared can sing with the best of them, a young man who slammed out a rendition of "Simple Man" by Skynyrd, that bore the power and clarity of Ronnie Van Zant. And Chris who accompanied on acoustic guitar played with amazing conviction and excitement. The two of them are part of the local band, Rail City Kings, and they had the crowd who filled the bar in their hands. It made me wonder if the two of them were this good, how was the entire band when they got together. Needless to say I was very impressed.
Our last stop took us to Sunny's Bar where Arkham Dispatch was playing their debut at the bar. The band had a good crowd, and they were pumped to bring St. Thomas their style of music. The band is highly energetic onstage and provide plenty of visual acrobatics for the crowd to feed upon. From a drummers perspective, Shane Connon played like a demon onstage and his kit cut thru like a cannon all thru the set. Al Halliday and Jason Harrison led the band thru tune after tune, while their Bass player (sorry for not knowing his name here) was the most active musician I have seen onstage in a very long time. The band alternated between Covers and Originals with ease, and the uptempo tunes of both genre's had the dance floor packed.
The Final Word on our tour of St. Thomas Clubs - if you are into acoustic acts, be it solo or duo - there is venues and certainly the talent to fill the bill - it was unfortunate that Barb and I didn't have more time to hear the talented people that we did.
If you want bar-proven bands like The Wrecks, Stanley Brown Blues, Hogwild, Dave's Not Here or the many others that call St.Thomas home - there is an immense talent pool of St. Thomas musicians that are just the tip of the iceberg for London to get familiar with. Arkham debuting at Sunny's is another example of how talent moves back and forth between London & St. Thomas - but there is definitely a need for more St. Thomas bands getting a foot in the door here in London.
As for the Bar Owners in St.Thomas, they recognise that there is a hunger for "Live Music" out there, and they are due a pat on the back for doing what they can to facilitate that, for the musicians looking to play live. The bars are supplying top-notch talent for all of you to come out and see/hear - and it's home grown. Get out there and enjoy it, live music is making a revival - albeit slow and sure, but it IS coming alive after a couple of decades of being knocked down.
Be a part of the solution and enjoy the treasure that you have.
Jim
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Friday, November 9, 2012
Music in Orlando, Florida - Hard Rock Cafe Style
Well, Barb and I have been down here now for 4 days in gorgeous Orlando, Florida. And we've had a blast so far. The weather has been slowly scratching it's way up to the lower 80's, and the skies have been blue and sunny each and every day. Much nicer in shorts and tees than sweatshirts and insulated track pants back in Canada :)
On Tuesday upon arrival and checking into our Resort, we headed over to to grab bite to eat and take in one of our favorite destinations - The Hard Rock Cafe.
For any one that has not been to a Hard Rock - they are a music Junkie's version of the Smithsonian Museum and Disneyland rolled into one. Lots and lots of memorabilia to fawn over from guitars, drums, Rock Star onstage clothes, albums, drum heads, autographed items by the dozens or hundreds - all there to be seen, photographed and stared at in awe. The Corporation of The Hard Rock Cafe has employees who scour the world, attend expensive auctions, draw on contacts/friendships made, or in the most amazing gestures of generosity - have items donated to the Cafes. The largest item in the Hard Rock Cafes inventory at the moment is the original Beatles 1967 Magical Mystery Tour Bus.
After our afternoon lunch, Barb and I hooked up with a delightful young woman named K.T Bloedorn who took us on a VIP Tour of the bowels of the massive Hard Rock Cafe here in Orlando - the biggest one of the entire chain.
We were taken thru halls adorned with rare concert posters into a locked room that was done up entirely in white - with good reason.
The room was dedicated to the late John Lennon of The Beatles. It housed Lennon's personal items such as paintings, his large piano, and most intriguing of all - the love seat that was Lennon's favorite article of furniture that he spent many, many hours on writing material. The room is offset by a massive u-shaped white sectional that is the center-piece of the entire room. The setting up of this Lennon tribute was aided by John's wife Yoko Ono herself so it would be a precise representation of Lennon's furniture tastes and general mood of his room.
The room now is used as a VIP room for celebrities such as David Lee Roth, Brett Michaels, and many others who perform at the large 3300 seat performance venue deep within the Hard Rock.
We left the Lennon room with K.T and were escorted into the actual venue where some world-famous acts have performed small and intimate shows for the fortunate 3300 guests that attend. The seating is amazing and plush, the sight lines are to kill for from any spot in the venue - and the stage is both massive in size yet retains a dimension of being just perfect for a band and audience to be "close" to one another.
From here we were taken into the "Fun Room" - the room where many a celebrity post-performance party has taken place, and the one area of the Hard Rock that is the ultimate museum of both articles and autographs. The walls are all painted white, but it is very difficult to find a bare spot - black magic marker autographs from Kiss, Metallica, Van Halen, Poison, Slayer, etc adorn the walls on all sides. It is a friendly "requirement" from all the bands/artists to leave their names inscribed on these walls during the post-concert party - and they seem to have all obliged.
As I looked around the bowels of this large concrete blocked room, my eyes darted to numerous items of rampant interest. There was a cymbal of Carl Palmer's (ELP), a cracked China belonging to Vinnie Paul (Hellyeah, Pantera) from the night he performed with his brother Dimebag, who was murdered by a deranged fan, a large replica of an Electric Chair that was used by Alice Cooper on one of his many tours and/or Quiet Riot infamous "Mental Health" LP cover. A chair that David Lee Roth and Brett Michaels enjoy sitting in every time they frequent the Cafe, a Frank Zappa guitar case, and dozens more items that were absolutely fascinating to see. K.T went into depth about anything and everything we had questions for - including the story of her mentor. A man now in his 70's who has been with the Cafe since it's humble beginnings in the Seventies, and was the individual responsible for amassing most of the cherished items in the Hard Rock Cafe world collection.
We left this magical room and proceeded down a hall which was adorned with sealed glass posters that were originals from past decades and concerts. One of which was the famous Isle of Wright poster that had The Who and Hendrix amongst other legends on it for the famous concert. The comparison hit me right away - these posters would've hung in people's bedrooms, rec rooms, garages, dorm rooms, etc - only to be either thrown away when they were of no more interest to their owner, or lost/destroyed over the years. Quite similar to those of us that collected hockey cards and baseball cards from the 1960's and 1970's - cards that would be worth thousands now in pristine shape but have long since been lost or destroyed. Here in this hallway, all these legendary posters from the Wright Concerts to Bill Grahams Fillmore East & West had been carefully framed and preserved for all to see and enjoy at some time.
As we left this hall that was a conduit to a former time, K.T led us thru a door that opened up onto the stage we had seen earlier from afar in the venue. The stage had a black floor, black drapes that rose up some 60 feet and were topped off with a massive lighting truss across the roof line that ran parallel to the stage floor. As I stood there, I could see the "x' for marks for performers, the outlines of where the numerous monitors over time have left their silhouette on the floor, a perfect line of sight to every one of the 3300 seats, above me and off in the distance in front of the stage were the massive light cannons on pedestals that were follow spots for the stage performers. As I stood where The Beast might be in my dreams, the feeling was electric. A stage that seemed to rival the one I stood on in Hollywood at the Whiskey A Go-Go. This stage had it's stellar past performers as well ranging from Elton John, Vince Neil, Aerosmith, Weezer, Primus, Brett Michaels, and the list goes on.
The talent that has and will grace this stage is almost too hard for the mind to comprehend - but it seduces you in knowing that you are following the footsteps of world famous stars as you walk across the stage.
The tour sadly ended in yet another large hall that was adorned with the photo's of all the celebrities that through performance, donation, item, had become such an intrinsic part of the magic of The Hard Rock Cafe. We gave our thanks to K.T and turned to return to the Cafe proper - our lives enlightened by the treasures we had just been shown and a brief moment in time when Carl Palmer and I had use of his cymbal and Barb sat in Alice's favorite stage chair.
Mr. Lennon - your love seat is in the right place !!
On Tuesday upon arrival and checking into our Resort, we headed over to to grab bite to eat and take in one of our favorite destinations - The Hard Rock Cafe.
For any one that has not been to a Hard Rock - they are a music Junkie's version of the Smithsonian Museum and Disneyland rolled into one. Lots and lots of memorabilia to fawn over from guitars, drums, Rock Star onstage clothes, albums, drum heads, autographed items by the dozens or hundreds - all there to be seen, photographed and stared at in awe. The Corporation of The Hard Rock Cafe has employees who scour the world, attend expensive auctions, draw on contacts/friendships made, or in the most amazing gestures of generosity - have items donated to the Cafes. The largest item in the Hard Rock Cafes inventory at the moment is the original Beatles 1967 Magical Mystery Tour Bus.
After our afternoon lunch, Barb and I hooked up with a delightful young woman named K.T Bloedorn who took us on a VIP Tour of the bowels of the massive Hard Rock Cafe here in Orlando - the biggest one of the entire chain.
We were taken thru halls adorned with rare concert posters into a locked room that was done up entirely in white - with good reason.
The room was dedicated to the late John Lennon of The Beatles. It housed Lennon's personal items such as paintings, his large piano, and most intriguing of all - the love seat that was Lennon's favorite article of furniture that he spent many, many hours on writing material. The room is offset by a massive u-shaped white sectional that is the center-piece of the entire room. The setting up of this Lennon tribute was aided by John's wife Yoko Ono herself so it would be a precise representation of Lennon's furniture tastes and general mood of his room.
The room now is used as a VIP room for celebrities such as David Lee Roth, Brett Michaels, and many others who perform at the large 3300 seat performance venue deep within the Hard Rock.
We left the Lennon room with K.T and were escorted into the actual venue where some world-famous acts have performed small and intimate shows for the fortunate 3300 guests that attend. The seating is amazing and plush, the sight lines are to kill for from any spot in the venue - and the stage is both massive in size yet retains a dimension of being just perfect for a band and audience to be "close" to one another.
From here we were taken into the "Fun Room" - the room where many a celebrity post-performance party has taken place, and the one area of the Hard Rock that is the ultimate museum of both articles and autographs. The walls are all painted white, but it is very difficult to find a bare spot - black magic marker autographs from Kiss, Metallica, Van Halen, Poison, Slayer, etc adorn the walls on all sides. It is a friendly "requirement" from all the bands/artists to leave their names inscribed on these walls during the post-concert party - and they seem to have all obliged.
As I looked around the bowels of this large concrete blocked room, my eyes darted to numerous items of rampant interest. There was a cymbal of Carl Palmer's (ELP), a cracked China belonging to Vinnie Paul (Hellyeah, Pantera) from the night he performed with his brother Dimebag, who was murdered by a deranged fan, a large replica of an Electric Chair that was used by Alice Cooper on one of his many tours and/or Quiet Riot infamous "Mental Health" LP cover. A chair that David Lee Roth and Brett Michaels enjoy sitting in every time they frequent the Cafe, a Frank Zappa guitar case, and dozens more items that were absolutely fascinating to see. K.T went into depth about anything and everything we had questions for - including the story of her mentor. A man now in his 70's who has been with the Cafe since it's humble beginnings in the Seventies, and was the individual responsible for amassing most of the cherished items in the Hard Rock Cafe world collection.
We left this magical room and proceeded down a hall which was adorned with sealed glass posters that were originals from past decades and concerts. One of which was the famous Isle of Wright poster that had The Who and Hendrix amongst other legends on it for the famous concert. The comparison hit me right away - these posters would've hung in people's bedrooms, rec rooms, garages, dorm rooms, etc - only to be either thrown away when they were of no more interest to their owner, or lost/destroyed over the years. Quite similar to those of us that collected hockey cards and baseball cards from the 1960's and 1970's - cards that would be worth thousands now in pristine shape but have long since been lost or destroyed. Here in this hallway, all these legendary posters from the Wright Concerts to Bill Grahams Fillmore East & West had been carefully framed and preserved for all to see and enjoy at some time.
As we left this hall that was a conduit to a former time, K.T led us thru a door that opened up onto the stage we had seen earlier from afar in the venue. The stage had a black floor, black drapes that rose up some 60 feet and were topped off with a massive lighting truss across the roof line that ran parallel to the stage floor. As I stood there, I could see the "x' for marks for performers, the outlines of where the numerous monitors over time have left their silhouette on the floor, a perfect line of sight to every one of the 3300 seats, above me and off in the distance in front of the stage were the massive light cannons on pedestals that were follow spots for the stage performers. As I stood where The Beast might be in my dreams, the feeling was electric. A stage that seemed to rival the one I stood on in Hollywood at the Whiskey A Go-Go. This stage had it's stellar past performers as well ranging from Elton John, Vince Neil, Aerosmith, Weezer, Primus, Brett Michaels, and the list goes on.
The talent that has and will grace this stage is almost too hard for the mind to comprehend - but it seduces you in knowing that you are following the footsteps of world famous stars as you walk across the stage.
The tour sadly ended in yet another large hall that was adorned with the photo's of all the celebrities that through performance, donation, item, had become such an intrinsic part of the magic of The Hard Rock Cafe. We gave our thanks to K.T and turned to return to the Cafe proper - our lives enlightened by the treasures we had just been shown and a brief moment in time when Carl Palmer and I had use of his cymbal and Barb sat in Alice's favorite stage chair.
Mr. Lennon - your love seat is in the right place !!
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Apprehension Before Launch Date or Motivation ?
Today word was leaked out by The London Free Press that another London Club was closing it's doors very soon. The bar in question - APK Live - primarily served the Indie Band scene which is a vital cog of the London Music scene. This was news not to be happy about, as yet another channel for musicians to showcase their talent was shut down.
On my flight back from Halifax and the amazing experience of the local music scene there, I began to wonder if upon returning to London, I could make a living out of my new project that is to be launched in a few days - Allstage. Not only is it a risky financial move on my behalf, but it will entail alot of "work" to see it thru to success. Alot of A+ Level London Musicians are totally onboard and behind Allstage, which makes it a little less scary on my end, but still the apprehension of such an undertaking is somewhat daunting to say the least. Interest has been shown for Allstage from Sarnia and other city bands which is encouraging by msg to me, but there remains the one elusive factor - the warm bodies to fill the bars.
The level of musicianship in London/St. Thomas is outstanding - just as it was in Halifax. The commitment & integrity of Bar Owners in London/St. Thomas, is of the same intensity as those that own bars in Halifax - the only difference is the attitude of the people who visit the bars. And that is the one intangible that only the public - and us as musicians - have any control over.
Every band/artist has their own following in this city - which is a testimony to their talent - and that makes for a healthy base to start with. The bars are owned by owners who work long hard hours with thier life savings invested in their business - and they deserve every possible chance to survive and prosper. Alot of musicians attend shows of other bands/artists - which I feel is a great thing. Some don't get out at all to see other bands and that is a sad statement, we all depend on each other to survive and peer-support is a major boost at bars for bands and artists.
The city has long entrenched high quality music retail stores in Bellones Music, The PA Shop and Walter's Music - and the new to arrive, Long & McQuade. In addition there is The Guitar Works where high quality craftmanship to guitars is done for local musicians.
All the components are in place along with the local foundation of bars and excellent musical skill set to have a strong and vibrant music scene - and yet it seems a battle at times.
I'm hoping that aside from Allstage being a way of me to earn a living, that it is the catalyst to help garner more attention and interest in music and all the by-products that go with it from Tech Guys, Music Teachers, Audio/Video, and some of the best Photographers this city has to offer to bands.
The support so far has been good, lets see if we can make it even better so the only stories the Free Press has to run is the ones about brand new Clubs opening !!!
Jim
On my flight back from Halifax and the amazing experience of the local music scene there, I began to wonder if upon returning to London, I could make a living out of my new project that is to be launched in a few days - Allstage. Not only is it a risky financial move on my behalf, but it will entail alot of "work" to see it thru to success. Alot of A+ Level London Musicians are totally onboard and behind Allstage, which makes it a little less scary on my end, but still the apprehension of such an undertaking is somewhat daunting to say the least. Interest has been shown for Allstage from Sarnia and other city bands which is encouraging by msg to me, but there remains the one elusive factor - the warm bodies to fill the bars.
The level of musicianship in London/St. Thomas is outstanding - just as it was in Halifax. The commitment & integrity of Bar Owners in London/St. Thomas, is of the same intensity as those that own bars in Halifax - the only difference is the attitude of the people who visit the bars. And that is the one intangible that only the public - and us as musicians - have any control over.
Every band/artist has their own following in this city - which is a testimony to their talent - and that makes for a healthy base to start with. The bars are owned by owners who work long hard hours with thier life savings invested in their business - and they deserve every possible chance to survive and prosper. Alot of musicians attend shows of other bands/artists - which I feel is a great thing. Some don't get out at all to see other bands and that is a sad statement, we all depend on each other to survive and peer-support is a major boost at bars for bands and artists.
The city has long entrenched high quality music retail stores in Bellones Music, The PA Shop and Walter's Music - and the new to arrive, Long & McQuade. In addition there is The Guitar Works where high quality craftmanship to guitars is done for local musicians.
All the components are in place along with the local foundation of bars and excellent musical skill set to have a strong and vibrant music scene - and yet it seems a battle at times.
I'm hoping that aside from Allstage being a way of me to earn a living, that it is the catalyst to help garner more attention and interest in music and all the by-products that go with it from Tech Guys, Music Teachers, Audio/Video, and some of the best Photographers this city has to offer to bands.
The support so far has been good, lets see if we can make it even better so the only stories the Free Press has to run is the ones about brand new Clubs opening !!!
Jim
Saturday, October 6, 2012
East Coast vs. London Music Scene
Well it's been an interesting week here in Halifax as I delved into the Local Music Scene as compared to London's. The 1st day we arrived here at the Marriott Hotel on Upper Water Street I was looking forward to what the local Music Scene had to offer. Beside the Marriott is the successful Lower Deck Pub, known for great food, rustic wooden interior and 3 floors of food and drink.
As I approached the Pub from next door at the Marriott, thru the glass pane windows I could see an acoustic guitar player beside a keyboard, the sounds of the Doobie Brothers drifted out loud and clear from the band within and I was already impressed with the level of skill coming from the band. As Barb and I came into the bar we were caught off guard by the scenario in front of us - a small area for Bar patrons to pack into - but it was PACKED, and all on a Monday night. The band was a 4pc, two acoustic guitarists, Bass player and a Drummer who was stacked on a postage stamp drum riser. The stage itself was about 4 feet deep and maybe 10 feet wide - pretty small indeed - but the entire wood interior of the bar was packed with patrons digging the band.
The band in question was Signal Hill - a local area band that seemed to have a rousing following with the patrons inside, and they LOVED what they were watching and hearing. I would maybe expect this many people on a Friday or Saturday night - but a Monday evening ?
As the band did the best cover version I have ever heard of a Journey song by a bar band - the crowd lapped it up. Barb and I were hard pressed to stand anywhere with a little elbow room, it was literally shoulder-to-shoulder within the Club.
I left without being able to get within talking distance of a member of Signal Hill, the end of each song was met with thundering appreciation from the patrons as the band seamlessly switched gears between Classic Rock, AM Pop Rock and East Coast fare with no dead time onstage, and no discussion by band members of "what are we playing next?" - they shifted from one into another with precise timing.
I left the Pub wondering if this was just a case of a local band being lucky enough to haul in a 100 or so people into a small bar on a Monday night - or if this was truly the way the local music scene in Halifax was.
The following day we had lunch at Staynors on the docks where I had a discussion with the waitress of bars and bands in the area - she said that there was lots of bars with bands each night of the week depending on what you wanted to hear. She left and returned with a copy of Coast Magazine - which was a comprehensive magazine dealing with music and entertainment in the area with all the bars. As I flipped thru the magazine, I was in awe of HOW MANY bars and pubs had live music in Halifax. We went to Durty Nelly's where we caught another 4 pc. band on a small stage - this one consisted of Acoustic Guitar with a plug-in, an Electric Guitar, Bass and Drums. The material they covered was like Signal Hill the night before, right across the board from Queen to East Coast tunes - it was varied and extremely welcomed by the crowd. We caught a few other acts around town that were single acoustic acts, the musicians were high energy, great players and commanded their small stages like pro's as they interacted with the audience in a way that I had not really seen from typical bar bands back in London. No slight intended against London bands, but these musicians down here really work the audience into a frenzy - even if it is just a solo act.
The Sea Horse Bar is the definitive A-List bar in the city - Norma Jeans/East Side stage, full production - located in the basement of a large building where the cover charges for bands is $9.00-10.00 depending on Thursday, or weekends. The bands that play there are stacked 3 to a night, back line is shared across the board with the exception of drums. The demographic of The Sea Horse is 20-35, with the women being the lure for the guys as they all are gorgeous young ladies dressed very glamorous - there was no jeans/sweatshirts to be seen on the women. The bands are Cover bands or Tribute bands, and they are the cream of the local circuit.
As our group toured around other bars, I had the chance to chat with other musicians who were only too happy to discuss music with someone from Ontario; they were extremely friendly, outgoing and happy to compare the two worlds of theirs and mine.
In Halifax it seems they have different formats depending on the bar: some bars are 9:30-1:00 time frames thru the week, but 10-2:00am on weekends, while some of the bigger bars have bands from midnight till 3:00am.
The bars that have "bands" run the old format of either Thursday - Saturday, OR Friday & Saturday. Thru the week the schedule is usually one offs with the exception being Upper Deck which books bands/artists for the entire week depending on how big a crowd the pull in. One friendly drummer (who also played Sonor like me), said that in the good bars, a Thursday to Saturday pays a 4pc band $700.00 - and in his words there is far more good bars than band ones.
The biggest thing that stuck out to me in 5 nights of travelling the bar scene aside from the huge amount of people that come out each of the 5 nights to support the live music scene - was the demographic. There was only ONE bar with a DJ, and from the word on the street from musicians and patrons attending University, it's in it's death spiral due to no interest in the canned DJ music - the age bracket of 20-35 were the ones that packed the bars to capacity for live music - and they were the University dominated crowd primarily.
Quite the reversal from London where the Students do little to support live music and tend to stay at the Canned music bars.
All in all, Halifax is leaps and bounds ahead of London in terms of supporting live music. While the 10-2:00am time slot is the preferred time for bands - people flood the bars around 9:00pm to get the best seat - by band time, the bars are crammed with patrons from front to back - and it only increases as time goes on.
From Monday on each week, the bars are filled with music loving fans who get lively, sing, dance and overall have a great time without any idiots causing a scene - the only Bar that had Wands at the door to check for weapons was the DJ Club. The women be they 20 or 50, dress like they are going to a Hollywood Premier in nice seductive clothes, and the men dress casual but don't look like bums. Everyone is friendly, polite and once you strike up a conversation with a fellow musician who finds out you are one too - you get treated like family.
In conclusion - Halifax has more bars downtown than London with Live Music - and every one of them is thriving with packed venues. People in this town embrace live music and show that support by going into the Clubs from Monday to Saturday inclusive. The Bands/Artists are top calibre musicians who know how to work a crowd, and give an audience 300% during their show - be it solo or band format.
It works here because everyone is on board and appreciates what they have - it would be nice if London could get it too.
As I approached the Pub from next door at the Marriott, thru the glass pane windows I could see an acoustic guitar player beside a keyboard, the sounds of the Doobie Brothers drifted out loud and clear from the band within and I was already impressed with the level of skill coming from the band. As Barb and I came into the bar we were caught off guard by the scenario in front of us - a small area for Bar patrons to pack into - but it was PACKED, and all on a Monday night. The band was a 4pc, two acoustic guitarists, Bass player and a Drummer who was stacked on a postage stamp drum riser. The stage itself was about 4 feet deep and maybe 10 feet wide - pretty small indeed - but the entire wood interior of the bar was packed with patrons digging the band.
The band in question was Signal Hill - a local area band that seemed to have a rousing following with the patrons inside, and they LOVED what they were watching and hearing. I would maybe expect this many people on a Friday or Saturday night - but a Monday evening ?
As the band did the best cover version I have ever heard of a Journey song by a bar band - the crowd lapped it up. Barb and I were hard pressed to stand anywhere with a little elbow room, it was literally shoulder-to-shoulder within the Club.
I left without being able to get within talking distance of a member of Signal Hill, the end of each song was met with thundering appreciation from the patrons as the band seamlessly switched gears between Classic Rock, AM Pop Rock and East Coast fare with no dead time onstage, and no discussion by band members of "what are we playing next?" - they shifted from one into another with precise timing.
I left the Pub wondering if this was just a case of a local band being lucky enough to haul in a 100 or so people into a small bar on a Monday night - or if this was truly the way the local music scene in Halifax was.
The following day we had lunch at Staynors on the docks where I had a discussion with the waitress of bars and bands in the area - she said that there was lots of bars with bands each night of the week depending on what you wanted to hear. She left and returned with a copy of Coast Magazine - which was a comprehensive magazine dealing with music and entertainment in the area with all the bars. As I flipped thru the magazine, I was in awe of HOW MANY bars and pubs had live music in Halifax. We went to Durty Nelly's where we caught another 4 pc. band on a small stage - this one consisted of Acoustic Guitar with a plug-in, an Electric Guitar, Bass and Drums. The material they covered was like Signal Hill the night before, right across the board from Queen to East Coast tunes - it was varied and extremely welcomed by the crowd. We caught a few other acts around town that were single acoustic acts, the musicians were high energy, great players and commanded their small stages like pro's as they interacted with the audience in a way that I had not really seen from typical bar bands back in London. No slight intended against London bands, but these musicians down here really work the audience into a frenzy - even if it is just a solo act.
The Sea Horse Bar is the definitive A-List bar in the city - Norma Jeans/East Side stage, full production - located in the basement of a large building where the cover charges for bands is $9.00-10.00 depending on Thursday, or weekends. The bands that play there are stacked 3 to a night, back line is shared across the board with the exception of drums. The demographic of The Sea Horse is 20-35, with the women being the lure for the guys as they all are gorgeous young ladies dressed very glamorous - there was no jeans/sweatshirts to be seen on the women. The bands are Cover bands or Tribute bands, and they are the cream of the local circuit.
As our group toured around other bars, I had the chance to chat with other musicians who were only too happy to discuss music with someone from Ontario; they were extremely friendly, outgoing and happy to compare the two worlds of theirs and mine.
In Halifax it seems they have different formats depending on the bar: some bars are 9:30-1:00 time frames thru the week, but 10-2:00am on weekends, while some of the bigger bars have bands from midnight till 3:00am.
The bars that have "bands" run the old format of either Thursday - Saturday, OR Friday & Saturday. Thru the week the schedule is usually one offs with the exception being Upper Deck which books bands/artists for the entire week depending on how big a crowd the pull in. One friendly drummer (who also played Sonor like me), said that in the good bars, a Thursday to Saturday pays a 4pc band $700.00 - and in his words there is far more good bars than band ones.
The biggest thing that stuck out to me in 5 nights of travelling the bar scene aside from the huge amount of people that come out each of the 5 nights to support the live music scene - was the demographic. There was only ONE bar with a DJ, and from the word on the street from musicians and patrons attending University, it's in it's death spiral due to no interest in the canned DJ music - the age bracket of 20-35 were the ones that packed the bars to capacity for live music - and they were the University dominated crowd primarily.
Quite the reversal from London where the Students do little to support live music and tend to stay at the Canned music bars.
All in all, Halifax is leaps and bounds ahead of London in terms of supporting live music. While the 10-2:00am time slot is the preferred time for bands - people flood the bars around 9:00pm to get the best seat - by band time, the bars are crammed with patrons from front to back - and it only increases as time goes on.
From Monday on each week, the bars are filled with music loving fans who get lively, sing, dance and overall have a great time without any idiots causing a scene - the only Bar that had Wands at the door to check for weapons was the DJ Club. The women be they 20 or 50, dress like they are going to a Hollywood Premier in nice seductive clothes, and the men dress casual but don't look like bums. Everyone is friendly, polite and once you strike up a conversation with a fellow musician who finds out you are one too - you get treated like family.
In conclusion - Halifax has more bars downtown than London with Live Music - and every one of them is thriving with packed venues. People in this town embrace live music and show that support by going into the Clubs from Monday to Saturday inclusive. The Bands/Artists are top calibre musicians who know how to work a crowd, and give an audience 300% during their show - be it solo or band format.
It works here because everyone is on board and appreciates what they have - it would be nice if London could get it too.
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Today marks the first Blog here on the new Allstage Blog site.
Since my return to the London Music Scene in December 2008 after a 25 year absence, nothing has changed while at the same time - everything has changed.
As the years progressed from the Seventies and Eighties for the London Music Scene - the landscape for venues for bands to show their craft drastically altered. Gone were the hotbeds of live entertainment: Fryfogles/Brass Rail, The Wellington, Mingles, Firehall, The Barn, City Hall, Kiplings, The Abbey, The Electric Banana, Campbells, The Wick, The Embassy, The Queens, the original Ridout - there were others as well but it was these Marquee bars that held the life blood for bands to perform live - and one by one they closed.
Seventies Rock became Disco, Disco became Punk, Punk became Glam Rock, Glam Rock became Grunge, Grunge became Alternate, Alternate Hip Hop, Hip Hop became Metal, and then the cycle beginning with the Seventies started again. Some genres like Blues and Country survived regardless, and pockets of Jazz managed to keep their own yet never became mainstream in London.
But the one common denominator was that there was far too few bars for all the bands springing up from the influences of 4 decades. The bars that remained shunned away from the Monday - Saturday night hiring's, and the "weekend" gig of Thursday to Saturday became one nighter's for bands with the odd venue still retaining Friday & Saturday night bookings. Once again, bands/artists were finding themselves with a continually shrinking means to play.
For the first while I was focused on the formation of my band Bender, and I didn't know nor have time to know, many of those in the London Music Community. As time began to pass - and thru one venue, or a conversation struck up at a bar or standing outside having a smoke - I slowly started to meet individuals, see bands and the local scene started to have a familiar sense to it as networking became the way to meet and hear musicians. The advent of social media such as Face Book became a way for musicians to interact with each other, MySpace became a launch pad for bands/artists to get their product out in the open, and You Tube became the modern day "MTV" for bands that couldn't afford high calibre Video's - all you needed was a Video Cam and a place to shoot it and you were set.
As I began getting to know local musicians and the bands they played with or as solo artists, the one thing that became VERY apparent to me was the lack of people attending local bars to see live music. I was used to the Seventies and early Eighties when bands played a 9:00pm - 1:00am set. Bars were alive at 8:30 at night with patrons who had gone out for dinner and then gone to a bar to make a night of it. People would flow in and stay until close, then more circumstances came into play. Drinking and driving along with MADD started to change how people handles themselves after a night's drinking. It was good that people were being aware of not drinking and driving, but then the Government made a ridiculous contradiction to the statement they were trying to get across to patrons - they extended the closing time of bars to 2:00am. Now you could drink longer, get more intoxicated, and when closing time came and there was no LTC bus to take you home, and a cab wait outside a closed bar in the dead of winter for an hour or so, left you pondering why you didn't drive your car - there was once again a change in people's habits. Drink at home due to cost, go out to bar later to party, and leave the bar before the 2:00am close time to catch a cab before the bar rush. When the love-in with DJ's became popular since a bar had less reason to have a stage interjecting on floor space that could have tables that would generate revenue instead - not to mention a DJ had limited equipment and could setup and tear down in far less time than a band - the constrictions of live entertainment became even more evident. While DJ's were more convenient and cost effective, the demographic of the 35-50 year olds were not in tune with DJ driven music - they wanted live bands again. Those that were students or were 30 and under, were not the demographic that was supporting live music - of course there is always exceptions - but bands were playing to those that work and have families. And those people are the ones that are too exhausted to adapt to the new 2:00 closing time.
I've heard many a discussion and point of view about the new hours being better than the 9-1:00am hours for bands and artists - but when I make my rounds of local bars on week nights or weekends - there is one indisputable fact. People file out beginning around midnight - 12:30am, it's not debate, it's a fact. The band loses a large percentage of their audience, the bar loses a large percentage of their revenue while STILL paying staff for another 2-3 hours - and everyone suffers for it.
The talent has increased dramatically, the music spectrum has increased dramatically in terms of what it is a bar patron wants to hear, technology has made artists and bands visually and audibly more appealing to their audience, and the ability to get the message out to people to attend their shows has made promoting much easier and cost effective. Add in the ability of musicians to now record their projects and convert them to CD's to sell at shows along with cost effective merch such as T-shirts - and the entire concept has taken a huge leap forward.
What we all now need is the people to attend the shows, bar owners to make enough money to keep them stable in a rocky economy and succeed, and for more individuals to be drawn to opening a bar because it is a profitable business to be involved in.
The Market in Ottawa, out east in Halifax, Newfoundland and many other eastern coast city's - all have a thriving and diversified music community that is alive and well.
What is it about London that we don't want that here.
In the coming weeks there will be a host of subjects that I will be covering and there will be Artists/Bands that are subscribed to my new "Allstage" website that will have articles written about them in the aim of getting everyone out there and stirring up interest in the music community.
It's not an impossible task, and it's one that I intend to take to the wall to accomplish.
Talk to you soon and do yourself a favor, get out there and enjoy some great talent around town - you'll be glad you did.
Jim
Since my return to the London Music Scene in December 2008 after a 25 year absence, nothing has changed while at the same time - everything has changed.
As the years progressed from the Seventies and Eighties for the London Music Scene - the landscape for venues for bands to show their craft drastically altered. Gone were the hotbeds of live entertainment: Fryfogles/Brass Rail, The Wellington, Mingles, Firehall, The Barn, City Hall, Kiplings, The Abbey, The Electric Banana, Campbells, The Wick, The Embassy, The Queens, the original Ridout - there were others as well but it was these Marquee bars that held the life blood for bands to perform live - and one by one they closed.
Seventies Rock became Disco, Disco became Punk, Punk became Glam Rock, Glam Rock became Grunge, Grunge became Alternate, Alternate Hip Hop, Hip Hop became Metal, and then the cycle beginning with the Seventies started again. Some genres like Blues and Country survived regardless, and pockets of Jazz managed to keep their own yet never became mainstream in London.
But the one common denominator was that there was far too few bars for all the bands springing up from the influences of 4 decades. The bars that remained shunned away from the Monday - Saturday night hiring's, and the "weekend" gig of Thursday to Saturday became one nighter's for bands with the odd venue still retaining Friday & Saturday night bookings. Once again, bands/artists were finding themselves with a continually shrinking means to play.
For the first while I was focused on the formation of my band Bender, and I didn't know nor have time to know, many of those in the London Music Community. As time began to pass - and thru one venue, or a conversation struck up at a bar or standing outside having a smoke - I slowly started to meet individuals, see bands and the local scene started to have a familiar sense to it as networking became the way to meet and hear musicians. The advent of social media such as Face Book became a way for musicians to interact with each other, MySpace became a launch pad for bands/artists to get their product out in the open, and You Tube became the modern day "MTV" for bands that couldn't afford high calibre Video's - all you needed was a Video Cam and a place to shoot it and you were set.
As I began getting to know local musicians and the bands they played with or as solo artists, the one thing that became VERY apparent to me was the lack of people attending local bars to see live music. I was used to the Seventies and early Eighties when bands played a 9:00pm - 1:00am set. Bars were alive at 8:30 at night with patrons who had gone out for dinner and then gone to a bar to make a night of it. People would flow in and stay until close, then more circumstances came into play. Drinking and driving along with MADD started to change how people handles themselves after a night's drinking. It was good that people were being aware of not drinking and driving, but then the Government made a ridiculous contradiction to the statement they were trying to get across to patrons - they extended the closing time of bars to 2:00am. Now you could drink longer, get more intoxicated, and when closing time came and there was no LTC bus to take you home, and a cab wait outside a closed bar in the dead of winter for an hour or so, left you pondering why you didn't drive your car - there was once again a change in people's habits. Drink at home due to cost, go out to bar later to party, and leave the bar before the 2:00am close time to catch a cab before the bar rush. When the love-in with DJ's became popular since a bar had less reason to have a stage interjecting on floor space that could have tables that would generate revenue instead - not to mention a DJ had limited equipment and could setup and tear down in far less time than a band - the constrictions of live entertainment became even more evident. While DJ's were more convenient and cost effective, the demographic of the 35-50 year olds were not in tune with DJ driven music - they wanted live bands again. Those that were students or were 30 and under, were not the demographic that was supporting live music - of course there is always exceptions - but bands were playing to those that work and have families. And those people are the ones that are too exhausted to adapt to the new 2:00 closing time.
I've heard many a discussion and point of view about the new hours being better than the 9-1:00am hours for bands and artists - but when I make my rounds of local bars on week nights or weekends - there is one indisputable fact. People file out beginning around midnight - 12:30am, it's not debate, it's a fact. The band loses a large percentage of their audience, the bar loses a large percentage of their revenue while STILL paying staff for another 2-3 hours - and everyone suffers for it.
The talent has increased dramatically, the music spectrum has increased dramatically in terms of what it is a bar patron wants to hear, technology has made artists and bands visually and audibly more appealing to their audience, and the ability to get the message out to people to attend their shows has made promoting much easier and cost effective. Add in the ability of musicians to now record their projects and convert them to CD's to sell at shows along with cost effective merch such as T-shirts - and the entire concept has taken a huge leap forward.
What we all now need is the people to attend the shows, bar owners to make enough money to keep them stable in a rocky economy and succeed, and for more individuals to be drawn to opening a bar because it is a profitable business to be involved in.
The Market in Ottawa, out east in Halifax, Newfoundland and many other eastern coast city's - all have a thriving and diversified music community that is alive and well.
What is it about London that we don't want that here.
In the coming weeks there will be a host of subjects that I will be covering and there will be Artists/Bands that are subscribed to my new "Allstage" website that will have articles written about them in the aim of getting everyone out there and stirring up interest in the music community.
It's not an impossible task, and it's one that I intend to take to the wall to accomplish.
Talk to you soon and do yourself a favor, get out there and enjoy some great talent around town - you'll be glad you did.
Jim
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