Preamble: I used to live in Thunder Bay in the early 2000's. It was at a time when there was a LOT of local show attendance. From what I understand that has dropped off a lot there.
However, once a year a local promoter would put on a Cover Show. It was a two-night event where local bands (or just random musicians forming a band for a single show) would learn a set worth of a famous band and then play as that band.
The thing is it was always so popular and the biggest party of the year.
The other thing is...this is STILL going on there. Every year they have a two-day cover show with about 20 bands. 10 bands per night each with 40 minute sets. (So they end up picking about 10 of that band's best songs). There is no restrictions on genre except that it should be a band with a big following so that enough locals are interested in going.
These nights are ALWAYS packed. Locals who usually dont go to shows end up there in order to see a cover band do their favourite songs and it also ends up getting that band some extra fans.
I am wondering if something like that would go over well in Brandon. If we got about 20 groups together to do a cover show. It would be interesting to know which bands would be interested.
They've had bands cover just about everything. Off the top of my head I remember
-Journey
-Oasis
-Lady Gaga
-Gwar
-Ozzy Osbourne
-Weezer
-Jack White/White Stripes
-U2
-Blink 182
-John Mayer
-The Beatles
-Rage Against The Machine
-Kiss
-Presidents of the United States of America
-Pearl Jam
-Thursday
-Rise Against
-No Doubt
-Metallica
-Green Day
You get the idea. Anything goes as long as you pick a band, pick their best songs, and that band has enough singles to fill out the show.
As far as pay, I would want to split the profits evenly amongst every group. However I would also want every group to work their butts off helping with promotion. I would like to target this for July-August because it's a great time for a party, but also because it gives bands time to learn and perfect their act, while not completely taking over what they're trying to do with their own material.
Message me if you are interested in:
A. Being a band
B. You're a bar/venue wanting to host the event
C. You're a local promoter realizing how awesome this could be and you'd rather take it over
send me a message. I just REALLY REALLY love these things and would love to see them here in Brandon.
p.s. While show attendence in Thunder Bay has drastically declined, this night is so much fun that it's never declined. It is always a PACKED event.
Edited by admin, 2018-01-28 18:51:21. Reason: Title