The dance floor at The Royal is closed for the foreseeable future (Photo courtesy of Scott Roblin)

By Scott Roblin

Missing Music

Musicians, local venues singing the blues over ban on live music

Jul 17, 2020 | 6:01 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – From the world’s largest venues to the most intimate clubs, musicians of all styles have been forced off stage over the past four months.

The shutdown of live gigs due to the pandemic is affecting dozens of local bands and performers who are still waiting for the green light from the province to get back on stage.

Medicine Hat bands like Mahoney have not only seen the shows dry up, but their primary source of income as well.

This is the longest the duo of Trent Roset and Ryan Massini have gone without playing in front of a live crowd over their careers.

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“Not playing is a weird thing,” said Roset. “We would go a week without playing back before we took this long break and a week would feel like an eternity just because we’re so used to playing every day or every other day. So, this was just unheard of.”

Weekend gigs for Mahoney have been the norm for 20 years, with Roset and Massini relying on crowd interaction and energy.

Luckily, the pair have additional streams of income besides the band, however that’s not always the case for all local musicians.

“The hardest part about it is that there’s no date where it’s going to end,” said Massini. “We can’t be like, ‘Well, at least it’s only another month.’ We have no idea when things are going to get back to normal.”

Mahoney has had to create new ways of connecting with their audience in an online format, asking fans to send in videos of themselves during listening parties over the web.

“We’ve moved onto streaming and stuff like that for our performances,” said Roset. “We’ve looked into a couple of collaborative ideas, recording ideas. A lot of other bands are honing in on their talents that way.”

The shutdown of live music is having an adverse impact on the venues that host these local musicians as well.

One of the most affected venues has been The Royal Hotel downtown, who were only able to re-open their doors to the public just last weekend after closing and laying off staff.

A staple of live music in the community for decades, it’s been a challenging four months for the downtown establishment with all live music ceasing to exist.

“There’s no point in us being open without it,” said owner Lynne Palmer. “If we were a venue that offered food or some other service that would bring people in, then we could do that. It’s still hurting because we can’t do singing.”

Musicians have been allowed to play The Royal again, as long as they stick to instrumental music that doesn’t involve any singing or dancing.

Bringing in these instrumental musicians is helping to restore some normalcy, though the heartbeat of The Royal is still missing according to Palmer.

“As much as the musicians are missing gigging, people are missing coming out and listening,” she said. “It’s one of those things that if you love it, you really love it and when it’s gone it’s really missed. So, for a lot of people I think it’s a stress relief that we really need right now and it’s not there anymore. So, we’re trying to do the best we can to bring in some acoustic acts, but again it’s not the same.”

Palmer added they’re branching out to hosting comedy acts, trivia nights, and bingo competitions with the hopes of keeping the local entertainment scene alive.

Although they aren’t able to enjoy that connection with the audience anymore, the power of song is helping Massini and other artists get through this uncertain time.

“Music is so powerful for so many people,” said Massini. “It can help change your attitude, it’s really powerful in that way. So, it’s good that we have people supporting it still.”