While there have been some fall concert announcements in British Columbia, don’t expect there to be any big shows at Sandman Centre any time soon.
Bill Jaswal with Jelly Events tells NL News he’s looking to book shows in Kamloops early next year, given the fluid COVID-19 situation.
“We’re still not fully committed to doing fall shows until we know that we’re not going to get bumped. It is best to make sure that we’re closer to clearing the path to putting on shows,” he said. “We don’t want to have further cancellations or postponements.”
“There are a lot of expenses that people don’t realize when you out together a tour and you put it out on sale, and then you got to move the date. People go, ‘well, the show didn’t happen so there’s no expenses’ but trust me there’s still lots of expenses.”
Jaswal, a concert promoter, has been responsible for booking many of the major events held in Kamloops for a number of years. With no large live events for the past 16 months, he thinks many concert venues will also be looking to ease back into things.
“For everybody from ushers to security, it will be two years almost for some of them since they’ve worked a live event, so you want to make sure your sub-contractors are all in position to host an event,” he added.
“Most of the buildings that we are going into are municipally owned, so they have to follow all guidelines. You have got to to make sure that it is all lined up properly so that the show happens successfully. ”
Prior to COVID-19 restrictions, Gord Bamford was the last major act to make a stop in Kamloops as part of the #REDNEK Music Fest in February 2020, the same weekend the Kamloops Blazers celebrated the 25th anniversary of their last Memorial Cup win in 1995.
Smaller venues like the Blue Grotto in Kamloops are going ahead with shows starting in September after even more COVID-19 restrictions are eased as part of Step 4 of B.C.’s COVID-19 restart plan.
“I’ve talked to a lot of other nightclub owners around the Interior and the Lower Mainland, and we’re all pretty confident that September 7 is the better day to open,” owner Pup Johnston told NL News. “It is no fun only being 50 people in the building.”
Jaswal didn’t say who he was in discussion about playing in Kamloops though he noted there are some U.S. bands in the mix.
Last month, American country singer Eric Church announced plans for a Vancouver stop at Rogers Arena on October 29, while Canadian bands Headstones, Moist, Sloan, and The Tea Party will be playing the South Okanagan Events Centre in Penticton on November 6.
Kamloopsians already have one show to look forward to next year with ZZ Top and Cheap Trick set to play Sandman Centre on April 26. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees were initially set to play the city on May 2020.
“We want to see what the confidence will be because most of the shows are indoors. If you watch the NBA or the NHL, you see people in the US inside arenas near full capacity, and people aren’t backing away,” Jaswal added.
“They’ve been tired of being bundled up and they want to go out and experience live events and live their lives.”
