Vancouver-based band Marianas Trench has announced a cross-Canada tour for 2016 with the release of their newest album, Astoria. The tour has 18 stops, starting in Ontario and heading West – but not East. It’s left fans in Fredericton wondering why the cultural capital isn’t getting any concert love.
Fredericton hosts fewer arena tours than Moncton, Saint John and Halifax but has been a stop-in for bands both big and small over the years. For Storie Serres, the Marianas Trench bypass isn’t surprising. Serres is a band manager and used to work as a project manager for the band’s label, 604 Records. She said even when bands do head in this direction, it’s sometimes easier for them to skip Fredericton altogether and play a bigger city like Moncton.
“It mostly has to do with the number and size of places to play,” said Serres. “Your options are so limited at whatever level you’re at that it makes it difficult to stop in Fredericton.”
A few bars in Fredericton have been known to host smaller concerts and events. The Capital Complex bar hosts bands regularly, whether it’s local up-and-coming acts or bigger names like Yukon Blonde – who are set to play there in March. With the city’s annual Shivering Songs festival coming up, The Capital’s bill is packed.
Dave Shears is the bassist in the Newfoundland-based band, RocketRocketShip. Shears handles show bookings and publicity for the band as RocketRocketShip has yet to be signed to a label. Shears says each time the band has toured the Maritimes, they haven’t had any luck booking Fredericton.
“It’s been a combination of bad timing, and there not being a whole lot of venues that host live original music,” said Shears.
Fredericton’s Aiken Centre has a concert capacity of just over 4,000 but is significantly smaller than Moncton’s Coliseum or St. John’s Harbour Station. The Centre is 40 years old but hasn’t seen as many concerts lately. Marianas Trench played the Aitken Centre in 2013, but have no plans for 2016 on the East Coast.
Venue size continues to be an issue in the Maritimes in spite of its roaring music scene. Brent McNamara is a concert and festival producer in Newfoundland and said that St. John’s in particular is missing a medium-sized venue.
“If an act is bigger than a 300 to 350-person club there are very limited choices for venues besides moving to a stadium,” he said.
Shears agrees that the East Coast is missing something when it comes to concert venues. He said it’s not about the size of the venue, but the crowd that can fill it.
“I wish there were more places willing to do all ages events in Atlantic Canada,” said Shears. “Those are way too few and far between.”
Financial expenses for touring the East Coast are sometimes larger than expected, which only add on to the other issues at play in the smaller Maritime city.
Serres says the expense of driving to the East Coast with gear is expensive on its own, but once you factor in everything else that goes into a show, it may not be financially worth it.
“A hotel room, plus food, plus manufacturing merchandise all adds up,” said Serres. “Unless you’re touring with an established act, you aren’t going to make enough from each show to afford to tour.”
She says for smaller bands, there is no guarantee for them to receive the money they need in the Maritimes when compared to cities like Toronto.
“You get paid a percentage of the door and usually have to pay out a tech person. That happens in Toronto too, but more often than not you can at least work out a small guarantee or other deals that ensure you leave with gas money at the end of the night.”
Though it’s difficult, there are some upsides to touring East. Serres said that benefits like exposure and the perception that the band is big enough to tour the Maritimes is just the beginning to what the East Coast has to offer.
“If you can find other ways to make your trip worth it, like connections, contacts, and unique opportunities, then it’s worth it.”
