Concerts in and around Victoria

Jarrod · #1 Aug 09, 2006, 01:54 PM

Well, I'm making this thread purly because I want to go see Alexisonfire in October and no one will go with me. The're playing at Legends...

Anyway, it would be cool if people posted what was going on in here with concerts at places like Legends, Upstairs Caberat, Lucky, and Sugar aswell as SOFMC or at any other place that I missed or don't know about.

Anyone want to go see Alexisonfire with me? They're one of my favourite bands

Lover Fighter · #2 Aug 09, 2006, 03:12 PM

Some upcoming shows I'm going to...

Aug 17 Silver Mt. Zion (Godspeed You Black Emperor spin-off band) at Central Bar & Grill
Sep 03 Metric at OpenAir
Sep 22 Final Fantasy at the Metro (has anyone ever been here?? apparently is some tiny hall on the corner of Johnson and Quadra behind the Conservatory of Music)

Frampton is coming later this month as well, but I'm not planning on seeing him. Sharon Jones is great, and she's playing on September 1st, but I saw her play at Jazzfest already.

Wynton Marsalis is also coming to UVic in October but tickets are like 70$, not that I was expecting it would be cheap.

**VicHockeyFan** · #3 Aug 09, 2006, 04:26 PM

Metric, I think I like a couple of their songs.

zoomer · #4 Aug 09, 2006, 09:05 PM

I like alexisonfire, but I hate Legends as a venue...lemme think about it.

I saw Metric at Sugar last year or was it the year before? Was a good show, she's a great performer. At one point she climbed on top of the speaker stack at dove into the audience...

amazing thing was that opening up for metric was DFA1979!!

Galvanized · #5 Aug 09, 2006, 09:22 PM

I blew a lot of dough going down to the Gorge in George to see Pearl Jam so I won't be going to see any bands for a while. Too bad because I'd like to see Alexisonfire. That sucks I missed that Metric/DFA1979 show, that woulda been cool to see.

zoomer · #6 Aug 09, 2006, 09:43 PM

I don't think alexisonfire would be that expensive..

also if I recall correctly Legends would be fine for you because you're quite tall.. it's tough for us smaller guys! :cry:

Jarrod · #7 Aug 09, 2006, 10:01 PM

Legands is horrible. That's one of the reasons why I'm holding off on Alexisonfire, but I really want to go.

I'm also going to try and see Metric at Open Air.

Yeah zoomer, you should try and go!!! You too Galvanized!!!

Lover Fighter · #8 Aug 10, 2006, 12:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Galvanized

I blew a lot of dough going down to the Gorge in George to see Pearl Jam so I won't be going to see any bands for a while. Too bad because I'd like to see Alexisonfire. That sucks I missed that Metric/DFA1979 show, that woulda been cool to see.

I spend so much money down there every year.
I'm going again to see DMB in Sept for 3 concerts in a row.

Holden West · #9 Aug 21, 2006, 06:39 AM

Top names take a pass on Victoria
Arena's big-act bookings are down but things should pick up in the fall

Mike Devlin
Times Colonist

Monday, August 21, 2006

If they built it, we were told, top-tier musical acts would come.

And they did -- for a while.

But concert activity at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre, Victoria's taxpayer-funded $30-million arena, has come to a halt, just 17 months after it opened its doors. The last concert at the Blanshard Street arena was a June 23 appearance by Boston metal act Godsmack. The event drew roughly 2,500 fans to the arena, whose capacity for concerts is 7,000.

Help doesn't appear to be on the way, either. Up next on the calendar is a concert Oct. 7 by pop-rap act Black Eyed Peas. And then ... nothing, concert-wise.

The lack of activity at the arena is perplexing, said Victoria Mayor Alan Lowe.

"I am hearing from some that there are not as many concerts as they would wish," he said. "Obviously, it is up to the operator to bring concerts into town, but we did build the facility so that we could have entertainment in the city."

The venue's developer and operator, RG Properties, is not to blame, according to Paul Haagenson, regional vice-president for concert promoter House of Blues Concerts Canada. Haagenson's firm books the majority of acts at the arena, and he's happy with the pace of activity so far.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. I think it's been run well and managed well. (RG Properties) are doing a great job. You're looking at a blip in time that's not representative of how it will be."

Last year, Rod Stewart, Avril Lavigne and Black Eyed Peas performed locally for the first time, making 2005 a banner year by Haagenson's count. "(The arena) attracted tonnes of acts that otherwise never would have come to the market," he said.

The second year has seen considerably less activity, said Dave Dakers, executive director of facilities for Vancouver-based RG Properties. "Last summer, the business was incredible."

Haagenson said fans who expect Victoria to attract acts such as U2 and the Rolling Stones, which make regular stops in Vancouver, have "unrealistic expectations." The Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre's capacity is small compared to the 18,000-seat Vancouver venues Pacific Coliseum and GM Place.

Still, many are left wondering why incoming Vancouver performers Elton John, Cirque du Soleil, James Blunt and the Dixie Chicks -- whose current tour includes 16 dates in Canada -- passed up what could have been a very successful Victoria stop.

In 2005, the arena hosted 26 events from March to December, not including hockey games. The 26 included 18 concerts. The schedule for 2006, still subject to change, has 19 events.

That's not to say the arena has been a failure. Kelowna's Prospera Place, an arena similar in size to the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre, has no events on deck. Its last event was a June 15 concert by toddler-friendly Dora the Explorer.

"We have received more revenue from the facility than we had projected, so we're pleased with the way it has been going," Lowe said, adding that more than 500,000 patrons attended events during the venue's first six months of operation.

A decrease in the number of events does mean a loss of potential revenue for the City of Victoria. Under an agreement with RG Properties, the city receives as much as $2 "for every bum that is in the seat," Lowe said.

The value of the arena's luxury suites, priced between $42,500 and $75,000 annually, is another concern for some.

In its contract, RG Properties makes no promises to suite-holders as to the "nature, quality and frequency" of events at the arena, outside of hockey games.

The lack of activity is nonetheless disconcerting for suite-holders like Michael Mulligan, a partner in local criminal law firm Mulligan, Tam, and Pearson, which leases one of the arena's luxury suites. "We've noticed it. Certainly, we've enjoyed it thus far. But I hope it picks up in the fall."

Things will pick up in the fall, Dakers promises. And when it does, fans will be happy with what they see, on stage and off.

"I'm really impressed with the work that has been done in the past couple of months," said arena inspector Sierd Hortsing, city manager of facilities, planning and projects.

"The first year we were overwhelmed with good concerts," Lowe said.

"It was a great start for concert-goers in the city, but yes, we're a little bit disappointed that there are no concerts in the next few months. We hope that they will be able to bring more shows into town."
© Times Colonist (Victoria) 2006

**VicHockeyFan** · #10 Aug 21, 2006, 04:57 PM

The venue's developer and operator, RG Properties, is not to blame, according to Paul Haagenson, regional vice-president for concert promoter House of Blues Concerts Canada. Haagenson's firm books the majority of acts at the arena, and he's happy with the pace of activity so far.

Everything is normal here, folks.

**G-Man** · #11 Aug 21, 2006, 05:19 PM

That's right keep walking and ignore the silly article.

aastra · #12 Aug 21, 2006, 05:43 PM

No Elton John, Cirque du Soleil, James Blunt, or Dixie Chicks???

I think this one ranks right up there with the arena parking catastrophe.

Lover Fighter · #13 Aug 22, 2006, 06:00 PM

Honestly though, the past few years have been absolutely terrible as far as big-name touring acts go, worldwide. One can probably trace it back down to internet downloading somehow, but concerts have just been held in smaller venues recently. Obvious exceptions are Rolling Stones, U2 and Coldplay.

Lover Fighter · #14 Aug 22, 2006, 06:02 PM

Oh, I'm going to see Beautiful Girls at OpenAir this Friday night. I don't know them, just that they are from the land Down Under. I won tickets for the show, one of the opening acts is Kuba from local band Velvet.

Jada · #15 Aug 29, 2006, 12:38 PM

Check it out.. its a Dub performance of Radioheads' "OK Computer" as well as Pink Floyds' "Dark Side Of The Moon."

If smoke and blacklights are your kinda thing, then you'd enjoy this show.

[img]http://www.skyscraperpage.com/~jada/poster7.jpg[/img]

**G-Man** · #16 Aug 29, 2006, 02:39 PM

What kind of smoke?

Jada · #17 Aug 29, 2006, 03:37 PM

The kind of smoke that you like.

**G-Man** · #18 Aug 29, 2006, 07:41 PM

Ahhhh

Holden West · #19 Sep 11, 2006, 08:07 PM

Did no-one see "De La Soul"?

Jada · #20 Oct 03, 2006, 10:43 AM

Hey, here's a show featuring The Skatomatics. I know that some of you guys met Derf's friend Corinne at a forum meet once or twice, and she's in this band. Looks like a good show, and Chris Murray is always great.

[img]http://www.skyscraperpage.com/~jada/poster11.jpg[/img]