Niagara Music Part 3: Giving Back to the Community

A month ago Katie and I got out to S.C.E.N.E. Music Festival and were treated to sets from two awesome Niagara bands: Lambs Become Lions and Theatre Crisp. We shared the experience here on EmbraceNiagara.com

This is the third of 3 parts in a series of articles that explore the Niagara music scene. You can read the first part here and the second one here.

In this article we discuss the importance of giving back from the perspective of a local Niagara band.

So, you have an adult child who is living at home while he completes his education. We’ll call him “Pete”.

“Pete” is a pretty good kid who helps out around the house, he is pretty quiet and generally keeps his nose clean, but he does play in a band (nobody’s perfect, right).

Now, Pete wants to bring hundreds of people out to the peach orchard in the backyard and throw a party with beer and barbecue. Oh, and a stage with more than 10 bands rocking their asses off. So, what do you say to that?!

“Pete” is actually Peter Goertz and fortunately for all of us his parents said YES. Peter just organized the 3rd annual PETESTOCK with the proceeds from this event (around $2000) going to the local Niagara-on-the-Lake charity Red Roof Retreat.

Peter also happens to be part of the band Theatre Crisp (featured here in Embrace Niagara and this year’s winner of the 2012 Niagara Music Awards Group of the Year).

Katie and I went out to Niagara-on-the-Lake and took in PETESTOCK on Saturday, July 21 and were greeted by a great sense of community and an awesome outdoor venue featuring some of the best music in Niagara:

• Resonance & Reason
• Russian Bride,
• Xprime
• Ian Northcotte
• Kurt Frommann
• The Re-Bops
• Beth Moore
• King & Academy
• The Lucky Ones
• Vibonics
• Mrs. Johnston
• Black Majik Movement
• Theatre Crisp

The weather was perfect with the breeze coming off the shore of Lake Ontario. A hundred feet from the hand-crafted stage were dozens of tents amid the peach trees for many of the 300 people in attendance to crash for the night after dancing, eating and drinking in the hot sun all day.

Beer was flowing and the smell of barbecue lingered for much of the event.

Peter explained that the details in setting up an event like this actually starts back in December when he begins reaching out to musicians to perform.

He said that as Theatre Crisp has built a reputation and relationships with other great bands that getting commitments from great performers is becoming easier, though he was disappointed that there were more than 20 acts that he had to turn down because of the full roster he had for PETESTOCK 2012.

The reason this kind of show is so personal to Peter and Theatre Crisp is that they feel their success is attributed to the support that they have received from the friends, family and fans here in Niagara. The opportunity to create a great local show that generates money for a local charity is important to them and all of the bands who commit to being in the lineup.

All the bands love the intimate nature of their current venue and Peter is confident that they have room to fit in a bigger show there next year.

Peter also wanted to say how thankful he was for the local sponsors who stepped up and helped with the considerable expense of a show like this, particularly Enns Battery & Tire, Wall’s Brand Source and Phil’s Valu-Mart.

It is his hope that more sponsors will see the value of supporting the event to help PETESTOCK contribute even more to their chosen charity, Red Roof Retreat, and help them grow even more successful with future events.