Friday, March 30, 2007
Live music scene in Roanoke isn't dead
Ralph Berrier
Riffs, the regional music scene as heard by The Roanoke Times reporter Ralph Berrier, will appear weekly on Sundays.
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When Roanoke College released its study earlier this month showing that downtown Roanoke lacked an "urban feel" and didn't have enough nightclubs with live music, my first reaction was, "So true, so sad."
My second was, "Wait a minute. It's not that bad."
The health of Roanoke's music scene has been called into question many times over the years, including in this column. But anybody paying attention knows that the scene has improved considerably in the past year and looks like it might get even better this year.
True, Roanoke lacks the type of music halls that bring up-and-coming indie rock bands to town. In other words, we don't have our version of The Orange Peel, the Asheville, N.C., club that boasts Wolfmother, M. Ward, Clipse, Kings of Leon, Son Volt and other cool musicians on its upcoming schedule. We don't have a NorVa like they do in Norfolk, which this spring welcomes the Indigo Girls, the Decemberists and TV on the Radio.
We also don't have the 15,000- to 20,000-seat arenas or the 20,000-seat outdoor amphitheaters that surround us like schoolyard bullies and taunt us from Charlotte, N.C., to Washington, D.C.
But we DO have a live music scene that oozes creativity along the musical scale. We have quality concert halls such as the Roanoke Performing Arts Theatre and Shaftman Performance Hall. We have a network of vibrant nightclubs that provide good places to play.
And we have talent. In the coming weeks, Roanoke will pulsate with rock, funk, folk, rap, dance, classical and country, most of it played by area performers.
The question isn't "why doesn't Roanoke have a music scene?" It is "why don't Roanokers support their music scene?"
I know that you really want to do your part to keep live music a valuable piece of Roanoke's "urban feel." Therefore, I will help you in your quest by preparing a list of possible shows that you might like to see this weekend. If you don't follow local bands very closely, you might be surprised by how much music is out there.
Tonight: You're in luck. There's a good combination of early and late shows, so you might be able to double-dip. The early shows include Aaron Neville's performance with the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra. Yes, I know that the concert is at the Salem Civic Center, but we're all in this fight together, right?
If folk music is more your style, you can stay in town for the Third Street Coffeehouse showcase at Trinity United Methodist Church in Southwest.
Late night, you can hear veteran bluesmen Fat Daddy Band at Martin's Downtown Grille.
Saturday: You've got some decisions to make. Hip-hop/reggae hot shots True Sound at Martin's, jam rockers Groova Scape at Green Dolphin Grille or ska punkers The Seed (the reigning "Best Local Band" champs of The Roanoke Times Music Poll) at Awful Arthur's at Towers? Choices, choices.
Remember, these are just a few highlights for this weekend. I didn't even mention the bands at the Coffee Pot, Greystone Tavern in Salem and other bars. Music is everywhere. In five minutes of searching the roanoke.com entertainment calendar, I found places from Vinton to Floyd that host live music this weekend.
I would call this an average week on Roanoke's music scene. No huge shows, but lots of good ones. Imagine what an exceptional week is like. No, we don't have TV on the Radio or the Decemberists MapQuesting Roanoke just yet, but we're shoring up our base.
When they take that survey again in a few years, perhaps Roanoke will have a better feel for the music-loving urbanites.
