SCENE REPORT: LAS VEGAS

RECAP OF THE SECOND SHOW ON THE EIY SPRING (INTO ACTION) TOUR

The Vans Warped Tour hasn’t been to Las Vegas in a number of years, so it was important that we brought the EIY tour through town to let people know that Warped is coming back. My friend Alex put the event together and hand-picked the bands for the showcase. Our meet-up was small, but really interesting. The all-ages scene in Vegas has been disjointed for some time, and it sounds like the scene could really use someone (or a group of people) to spearhead the effort to establish a non-profit, co-op venue that is not under the umbrella of a casino or bigger venue whose focuses shift a lot from year to year.

There are a lot of bands and a lot of music-lovers in the Vegas scene, but getting them to come together and work on re-establishing the scene will take a lot of voluntary time and effort. On behalf of the rest of the world, I’d like to say GET IT TOGETHER, VEGAS! Start a monthly meet-up of your own, and invite bands and kids from all corners of the scene to get together and figure out places for shows, ideas for your own local all-ages venue, and ways to get Vegas back on the map. There’s a real opportunity here to build something awesome from scratch, but it will take a lot of work!

Venue: Royal House inside the Royal Resort
This is a newer venue space that has a variety of shows and events in the bar area of the hotel lobby. I worked with Alex on the show, and she has been involved with the scene in Vegas for a long time. She is super passionate about her ideas for how to make it a better scene for local and touring bands. Contact her HERE to get involved!

Here’s my recap from the show:

Band: World Record from Las Vegas
This three piece rock band has a chick drummer, a barefoot bassist, and lots of desert soundscapes in their 90s-influenced jams. Watching these guys reminded me of the fact that being geographically isolated from the world is a good thing when it comes to making music or art, because you’re not as easily influenced, and you’re more likely to just create a style that’s your own. That’s always more interesting than another knock-off band. Check them out HERE.

Band: The Akashic Record from Las Vegas
These guys hung out with us at the meet-up and we got to know their story. They need a van so they can start taking weekend trips to cities in the region! They were also involved in trying to open an all-ages venue in their town, but ran into budgeting and permit problems at the last minute. Their music is a mix of melodic and heavy rock, with intertwining vocals and good musicianship to back it all up. Check them out HERE.

Band: Fredward from Las Vegas
These guys come from the world of late-nineties, black tee shirts, Hot Water Music, post-grunge rock with some interesting musical breakdowns and upbeat singalong style choruses. Definitely a crowd-pleaser, these guys have obviously been involved in the scene in Vegas for a while and will be part of whatever happens next in that community of bands. Check them out HERE.

Band: Coastwest Unrest from Las Vegas
Who knew the desert had its own country punk band? This three piece got up with a drummer who looked like he should be in The Transplants, a violinist wearing a UNLV shirt, and a singer playing acoustic guitar who definitely has relatives in the Appalachian mountains. They started things off with a quick jam session, and then kicked into a high energy foot-stomping ho-down right there in middle of a Las Vegas resort hotel lobby, with songs about punk rock days gone by. Check them out HERE.

After careful consideration, we decided that Coastwest Unrest should play the “EIY Spot” at the Las Vegas Vans Warped Tour date on the Kevin Says Stage this summer — and we hope they hit it off with Lucero!

Thanks to everyone for getting involved, and being part of the Las Vegas independent music community. Remember: the rest of the world is counting on you to give us something other than slots and sluts to come to Vegas for!

Love,
Sarah & EIY

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