By Will McGuirk
Slowcity.ca doesn’t carry much weight with the big guys, with the industry, we rarely get PR from the majors and are never offered interviews with the famous. But thats Ok because we take pride in our ability to provide a platform for new voices, for new bands trying out new sounds. We are proud of our work with acts from Durham Region and we are very proud that two artists from our beat ( we have been at this for three decades remember) are speaking up for indie venues who are suffering tremendous losses during this pandemic. Indie live venues are very much part of the fabric of a slow city. And music matters more than ever, music heals and it begins in the smallest of places first.
“I spent most of my life growing up in these smaller venues playing shows, learning how to be a better band. And I think that they’re super important for the culture landscape, of at least my own city Toronto, and many other places. I think they deserve support, we need to help our independent venues because they’ll continue to help us” – Chris Slorach of METZ
"The Ministry of Heritage needs to see this Music Industry as an important aspect of Canadian Culture, and we're just looking for some guidance, and most importantly some support.” – Brendan Canning of Broken Social Scene.
Of course there are cases where a bedsit artist uploads to Bandcamp and all of a sudden makes it huge but for most artists it is a slog from one indie venue to another, wearing the road as a badge and paying the dues. Small indie venues across Canada are where it happens. And they are under threat. Here in Durham Region the Music Hall in Oshawa has closed for good already. They are the not first and they will not be the last. We need action now.
The Canadian Independent Venue Coalition is made up of hundreds of concert venues, performance agencies, independent promoters/presenters, production companies and independent music festivals across Canada. They came together to address concerns around venue closures due to COVID-19. In collaboration with the Canadian Live Music Association and other industries, businesses and non-profit organizations, they are advocating for emergency support funding and an economic stimulus package for the independent Canadian live music and touring sector, which was the first to close and will be the last to open.
Here at Slowcity.ca we join with the CIVC in calling for the federal government to introduce specific relief and recovery assistance for the live music and touring sector.