MASU and CHMA to host monthly shows.
It’s notoriously difficult to get students out and about Sackville on a Tuesday evening. With that in mind, the successful attendance and crowd interaction of last Tuesday’s Jon McKiel and Heaven for Real show was entirely unexpected, albeit pleasantly surprising. The free live music of a more-than-free calibre, combined with the promotion of two-dollar shots, left a daze of overwhelmed giddiness in its wake. And, according to the event organizers, this is not a one-off event.
The music itself was the main factor in the night’s success. Jon McKiel was on point, as ever, typifying all that is great about music in Sackville, and proving once again that his music is the perfect way to begin a show. His set smashed the weekday sleepiness that sometimes makes an appearance at weekday events by embracing an angst that allowed the crowd to come revel and celebrate in it. The end product was an initially hesitant crowd dancing into a frenzy.
Heaven for Real’s Stratocaster-induced euphoria, combined with the dangerously cheap liquor, turned the Pond into a waking dream. The pop and twang infused indie rock of the Halifax-based group ended the night on a positive note and left a tangible excitement for the next show, to be scheduled for the coming months.
These shows are the brainchild of CHMA’s Kevin Brasier and MASU Entertainment Director Jordan Skaarup, who “wanted to bring two groups of music lovers together, wherein CHMA prides itself on local music and the MASU generally attracts the ‘Top 40’ crowd,” said Skaarup. The show did just that by pulling in a huge crowd and proving their mix of good music and cheap drinks was too good to pass up. People showed up who had never before seen a Sackville show and got right into it.
The event appears to have a bright future ahead of it too. Skaarup and Brasier intend to make these events a monthly happening for the entire school year except for in December, due to exams, and January, because of Stereophonic and Winter Carnival already dominating the month. The self-stated goal is to put all of the great Maritime music, from all its different scenes, on display and to get people excited about local shows and local music, so as to add to Sackville’s own already booming scene. Skaarup hopes “to amp up the next event and bring even more people out to [the] events to enjoy the live concert vibes.”
The event has huge potential to pay dividends for Sackville’s music scene. It gives fans of all ages the ability to get a taste of all the local music that makes this town truly great, in a familiar place for no cost. The large crowd that came out last Tuesday and the projected larger crowds of the months to come are hopefully full of potential show-going converts.
