While all of Victoria attentively watched Dan Andrews' press conferences throughout lockdown this year, Shannon Waterworth was mainly listening to learn one important thing - when could his band start rehearsing again?
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
This Friday night, months of patience will come to an end for Mr Waterworth and the Horsham-based band SuckaPunch, as they perform at Horsham's Royal Hotel.
It will be the first performance of live music in the Wimmera since the COVID-19 pandemic begun.
"It's just super exciting to get back into it again," Mr Waterworth said.
"We've all been holding out and waiting for this - we got back into rehearsing as soon as we could - so we're super keen."
READ MORE:
In abiding by COVID-19 restrictions, the gig will be played in the beer garden at the Royal Hotel, with a maximum of 50 seated patrons in attendance.
Mr Waterworth said while it was an unusual set-up, there weren't any plans to change the band's "pub rock" vibe.
"It's going to be pretty intimate," he said.
"I think it's going to take a bit of adjusting on the run to see how it feels when we're there.
"Certainly you could look at being seated ourselves to play on that more intimate level, but in the end, that's not quite us.
"We're definitely more of a pub rock band, so hopefully people can still enjoy that."
Mr Waterworth said fortunately, the appetite for live music in the Wimmera had seemingly remained through the COVID-19 period.
"With how the year has gone, I think everyone is really looking forward to seeing some live music again, and to get out there and socialise," he said.
"They released 50 tickets for the show, and as of (Tuesday) there were only eight left. So we've had some really good interest from the public wanting to come and see us
"That was really great, because you never really know how it might go. It's great to see we've got that support.
"And when people are paying for tickets, it makes us really want to get out there and do our best."
In addition to the chance to play live music again, Friday will also allow SuckaPunch to introduce their new lead singer, Esther Fry.
"Esther is super excited to get out there and play, that's for sure," Mr Waterworth said.
"It's pretty exciting - we've really used this year to regroup, spend some time together and now get ourselves back out there.
"Hopefully it all goes well on Friday."
Did you know you can receive updates straight to your inbox? To make sure you're up-to-date with news from across the region, sign up below.
Richard Crabtree
richard.crabtree@austcommunitymedia.com.au
richard.crabtree@austcommunitymedia.com.au
