The deeper I get into Greensboro’s music scene, the more I hear musicians complaining about the propensity of support for cover bands over original acts. And while it’s true that some local bands enjoy a steady following — The Mantras, Old Stone Revue, The Urban Sophisticates, to name a few — it’s a fact that most venues can’t consistently draw a crowd to check out (read: pay a cover) original bands, unless they’re retreads from the eighties like Pat Benetar or Van Halen.
And at that point, that’s kinda like listening to a cover band, you know?
There’s no silver bullet out there that will radically increase Greensboro’s patronage of original music to reflect, say, a Chapel Hill or Asheville, but I do believe in the power of cross-promoting community — from artists collaborating on projects to jamming together at shows to showing up as a band to listen to and support other acts, bringing new fans with them.
More can be done; I’m sure of it.
Here I’m stating how long I’ve been here, but in the 90’s Greensboro had a passionate love for original music and it was something special. I’d have to blame the clubs for not taking chances on original music. They will say we tried but once the other clubs brought in cover bands we had to do the same to keep the crowds in. I think that is a lazy approach. There are a ton of talented bands all over the state. Maybe someone will change this community to appreciate original music once again.