Debut tailgate party to close off the Sounds of Summer in Nanaimo’s Old City Quarter
Food and drink trucks will return for the Sounds of Summer Tailgate. (Jesse Woodward / CHLY 101.7FM)
Angie Jones at the kick off party for Sounds of Summer. (Jesse Woodward / CHLY 101.7FM)
The Old City Quarter gets funky with the debut tailgate party from the Sounds of Summer Concert Series. The event will bring a full outdoor concert experience with the help of local food trucks and vendors, celebrating Vancouver Island's music talent with a diverse lineup of live music, blues, folk funk, modern rock and DJ performances.
The Sounds of Summer began in Nanaimo in the 2010s as a small yearly summer concert series, and has grown since. The broad goal of the series is to bring together local musicians, businesses, tourists and residents in the Old City Quarter to celebrate music and community.
Angie Jones, the event producer for the Old City Quarter Business Association for this year's Sounds of Summer, is excited about the new tailgate event.
“This had never been done in this way before. So truly, we were just trying something brand new, and we were hoping that people were going to love this concept and this idea, so that it could be something that we bring back and revitalize and do better for years to come.”
This year marks the first time the concert series will close with a festival style multi-artist tailgate event. Earlier this year, the series opened up with a kick off party on Saturday June 27th, at the St. Andrews Church Events Centre. Since then, the series has been hosting weekly concerts around Nanaimo.
Jones said they were trying to showcase a wide array of music throughout the series.
“When we were picking the lineup for Sound of Summer, we really, honestly, were truly just wanting to hone in on lots of different styles of music and just showcasing people that don't always get a stage.”
Jones added that this year they wanted to highlight Vancouver Island musicians, including Myc Sherridan, The James Vickers Band and Quadra Sound. Jones explains the choice of venue for the tailgate party.
St. Andrews United Church on Wesley Street. (Luis Zablah / CHLY 101.7FM)
“Yeah, so St. Andrews United Church obviously is right smack dab in the center and heart of the old city quarter,” said Jones. “So this year, we wanted to feature and highlight another Old City Quarter organization and make sure that we had a venue that would fit all of the people attending these performances. So it was just natural to go with St. Andrews because the acoustics inside the building are so amazing. And for this particular show, for the tailgate, they have a huge, large parking lot right on Wesley Street, where we could put food trucks and the DJ and a bar and all the things to make it a really fun evening.”
She hoped the tailgate party will bring more people into the Old City Quarter, highlighting the neighborhood’s businesses and community atmosphere.
Nick Fascione is one of the headlining artists, lead singer of Campbell River group Quadra Sound who said the band plans to bring a high energy finale to the series.
Jones hope the tailgate party will bring more people into the Old City Quarter, highlighting the neighbourhood’’s businesses and community atmosphere. (Luis Zablah / CHLY 101.7FM)
“What we would bring to it is we're a great kind of final act just to really let all the rock and roll energy out, sort of high intensity, very emotional moments, and so it'll be a nice little ribbon at the end of this awesome lineup.”
Fascione described the band's sound as a blend of ‘70s classic rock, ‘90s grunge and modern influences. The band has played together since childhood, slowly building up to what they are known for today.
He explained what playing in Sounds of Summer’s Tailgate party means to him and the band.
“It's awesome to be included, and it's also great that they reached out to us because of the traction we've been gaining the last year. You know, we've been growing a lot everywhere, but specifically on the island. So to have an event reach out to us and ask us to play it really means a lot because we just want to be part of the community, so an event like this is perfect.”
Fascione said the band's reach has gone beyond Vancouver Island, with recent singles receiving radio play across Canada. Many of their songs draw from growing up in Campbell River, but he says seeing listeners elsewhere connect with them has shown him those experiences can resonate beyond the island.
As the band prepares for the event, Fascione shared what he hopes people take away from the experience.
“Be part of a community, be part of an event, a real thing outside with real people. You know, in this day and age, it's so easy just to be stuck at home or view things through your phone and through social media. But like this is a real human experience.”
Sounds of Summer’s Tailgate party is set to close off the series this coming Saturday August 29th, with the doors opening at 5 p.m and the show officially starting at 6 p.m.
Ticketing information is available on the Port Theater’s website.
Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from the Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Community Radio Fund of Canada.
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