The pandemic has taken away or greatly changed the livelihoods of many; and musicians may be among the hardest hit.

With no end in sight on restrictions on large gatherings, many musicians are longing for the feeling of playing in front of a live audience 鈥� something that has been basically impossible since March 2020.

Even prior to the pandemic, finding spaces to play shows in Penticton has always been a challenge, according to Stephanie Lines the lead singer of Penticton-based band Yarrows.

The diminishing number of venues in the city has long been a concern for artists in the local music scene, Lines said.

鈥淧enticton has had an ongoing venue challenge to be honest and it鈥檚 getting frighteningly worse because the small businesses are finding it so hard and shutting down,鈥� Lines said.

鈥淔or us as well, we tend to play music that is a bit more punk-rock or experimental and so having venues that will actually appreciate having us is very challenging鈥� but it continues to get worse with the housing crisis and now with COVID.

鈥淔or me, it鈥檚 pretty scary to look at the future of shows.鈥�

Despite a trying year, lines and her band managed to release the bands鈥� debut album Stardust Motor Inn this summer.

The three-piece band鈥檚 debut album 鈥� named after a now defunct Penticton motel 鈥� aims to convey Penticton鈥檚 unique dichotomy of natural beauty and 鈥渓anguid slowness鈥� through their blend of psychedelic country and existential dream rock.

In a normal year, the album鈥檚 release would have been met with a handful of local shows and likely a tour, but due to COVID-19 that wasn鈥檛 possible.

The band was able to perform a small, outdoor, socially distanced show for their album release party in August, but that was the extent of the album鈥檚 live promotion to date.

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Rob McLaren, one half of 琉璃神社 duo , has been organizing and performing concerts in Penticton for over 15 years.

While he鈥檚 been frustrated with not being able to play shows, he understand the severity of the pandemic and the importance of the public health orders. 鈥淭he last thing I personally want to do is minimize a crisis because I鈥檓 inconvenienced,鈥� McLaren said.

McLaren also said COVID-19 has brought new opportunities for creativity.

鈥淚 think as musicians we have to kind of live like this (COVID) isn鈥檛 going way鈥� I think we have to think creatively. Working in Penticton as a musician, you鈥檙e already running the gauntlet with how to be creative with like-minded people.

鈥淚鈥檝e played on-top of a parkade because that鈥檚 what somebody thought up, you have to continually evolve in this town because there鈥檚 no way you鈥檙e going to be able to present (your music) and COVID is just a new hurdle to jump over.鈥�

Many live-streamed virtual performances have taken place during the pandemic, offering at least some way for musicians to play live for their fans. But for obvious reasons the experience just isn鈥檛 the same for both fans and artists. For some musicians, virtual performances aren鈥檛 even worth the time.

McLaren himself has struggled to adapt to live-streaming performances.

鈥淭he little imperfections that make a live performance beautiful live are the same things that kill it on a stream,鈥� he said. 鈥淲hen somebody鈥檚 consuming music through a phone or a computer you鈥檙e kind of in a space where 鈥� for better or worse 鈥� you鈥檙e conditioned for perfection.鈥�

While live-streamed performances may not be the permanent answer, they do at least offer some form of interaction with bands.

In Penticton, music fans will soon have another way of catching live performances from a distance. The local community radio station, Peach City Community Radio Society 92.9 CFUZ-FM, was recently awarded a grant that will help launch a new series showcasing live, on-air performances by local musicians.

Video and audio content from the performance will then be created from the performances and shared online.

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Lines is hopeful that her band Yarrows will be able to book a slot for a live, on-air performance with CFUZ in the near future.

Having just launched an album, Lines said the pandemic has made promoting her band鈥檚 first release very challenging. 鈥淭ouring and playing shows is really when you鈥檙e able to connect with other musicians and music lovers鈥� without that we鈥檙e a little lost,鈥� she said.

Despite this, she said the local community has received the album very well and has been very supportive.

The pandemic has also been very tough financially for bands who rely on touring and merchandise sales for most of their revenue.

On top of being able to promote themselves and gain new followers at shows, many artists also generate the majority of their revenue by playing shows. Streaming services such a Spotify and Apple Music are hardly profitable for smaller artists. Spotify currently pays artists $0.004 per stream, meaning an artist would need to log 1000 streams to earn $4. Apple Music pays $0.00783 per stream.

Lines said 鈥渂uying music鈥� is the best way to support local musicians during the pandemic. is the ideal platform to purchase music through, as artists get paid directly through the website, Lines said.

Locally, she said buying records from local shops like the Grooveyard record store is a great way to get started supporting local musicians.

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jesse.day@pentictonwesternnews.com
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