The Ultimate Rock Tribute Band (for me!)

I wanted to tell you about my new band called PLATINUM ROCKSTARS (also known as “PRS”). This is really my ultimate tribute band fantasy project: I get to do all the greatest hits of some of my favorite bands of all-time! Foreigner, Van Halen, Def Leppard, Bon Jovi and Journey. A veritable “murderers row” of classic rock!

The idea for PRS came to me while performing with Boston tribute band Smokin’. We have a constant problem of “not enough material” to fill these two and three hour shows that festivals and casinos demand. There’s just not enough known material available in Boston’s catalog, and we usually end up doing a few hits from other bands to fill up the time.

So I figured, “Why not do ONLY hits ALL the time?” That is, all killer, no filler.

Of course, the danger there is being called a “cover” band instead of a “tribute” band. Tribute bands are all the rage in the clubs and casinos these days because they’re easy for a booking agent to book. “Hey, I’ve got a Journey tribute for ya.” The talent buyer knows what they’re getting and it’s an easy show to advertise.

If you have the talent to pull off a tribute tribute to a major rock act, the multi-tribute idea becomes possible. And a multi-band tribute gives the audience so much more for their entertainment dollar; a more involving, exciting live rock experience. However, when you introduce multiple acts as part of the same tribute, the water clouds slightly for both the booking agent and the talent buyer. What is the audience going to see and hear? Then it becomes a problem of how to sell a multi-tribute act.

Well the answer is pretty simple: get out, play a bunch of shows and build a following. Just like in the “old days” of promoting our own original music (NOTE: we’ll still be doing that too, as everyone in the band is a talented writer in their own right!)

PLATINUM ROCKSTARS features pounding drummer Glenn Jost (who also sings his arse off), the mos amessing Victor Bender on keyboards and guitar and two “new guys”: Al Estrada on lead guitar and Mark Castrillon on bass. This is really the finest collection of talent with whom I’ve ever been associated and it’s a thrill to be able to take the stage with this group as PRS.

I can’t wait for everyone to see guitarist Al Estrada do his “Eddie Van Halen”. There’s no reason this guy should be under any radar. He’s a world-class shredder and the most humble and nicest cat you could ever hope to meet. Anyone who’s seen Smokin’ knows what an amazing talent Mr. Victor Bender is on keyboards and guitar. And the consummate rockstar and gentleman.

Joe Lester is the bassist for one of the longest-running and most successful tribute bands ever, the Atomic Punks. Joe brings a ludicrous amount of talent to the low-end and we are thrilled to have him on loan from The ‘Punks (at least, when they’re not playing too!)

Glenn Jost is another one of those drummers that you should have heard of a long time ago. Glenn likes to keep pretty busy, also performing with an original band as well as an Irish Folk band (are you serious?) But rock ‘n roll is in Glenn’s blood and PRS is an ideal vehicle for him to drive with his pounding rhythms.

Please have a look at the new PLATINUM ROCKSTARS website at:

www.platinumrockstars.com

Come on out and see a show! I think you’ll agree that PRS puts on a compelling show, no matter which bands we’re paying tribute to.

ATribute Band In Search Of More Songs

As some of you may know, I am the lead singer of one of the few Boston tribute bands: Smokin’. Hailing from Los Angeles, CA, Smokin’ has been around for nearly a decade in various incarnations. The band actually sounds great…we have four lead-quality vocalists and the harmonies (which are critical for reproducing Boston’s huge, very produced, sound) in this band are the best of any band I’ve ever been associated with. Everyone has great ears and we have a lot of fun when we play live! I certainly hope you can come out and see us.

While I love the music, it’s pretty tough to put together two hours of Boston hits because they really only had perhaps an hour’s worth of songs that the average fan still remembers. Thus Smokin’ has a continuous challenge of creating that extra hour of music for the lengthier two or three-hour shows. Of course, we’ve scoured the catalog for every b-side and album cut we can, but we’re still left a few songs shy of two hours due to some…ahem…internal disagreements about the best way to accomplish the two-hour mission.

Thus far we’ve reached a sort of detentes by doing as much Boston as we possibly can and by swapping in two classic rock ringers: Blue Collar Man by Styx and Highway Star by Deep Purple.

The funny thing is, these two songs always go over huge with the audience when we play them. It’s as if they’ve resigned themselves to the idea that they’re just going to have to sit through the “other stuff” before we get to More Than A Feeling, Peace Of Mind, etc. and then go nuts when they hear a certifiable hit…forget that it’s not even a Boston song. It’s a pretty strange phenomena, though I must say if I were in the audience I would feel the same way. You really need to see the show to appreciate it I think.

So I got to wondering: what if a tribute band that didn’t have quite enough songs for it’s “tributed” artist were to do a same-show tribute to another artist or two?

I can hear what you’re saying already: Hey Dave, isn’t that just called a “cover band”?

Well…not exactly. A traditional cover band does anything and everything they feel like doing. There are some really great cover bands out there, though not many of them play the bigger rooms because for whatever reason, a tribute band tends to put more butts in the seats than a “cover band”. At least, that’s according to the booking agents.

So here’s the full idea: why not create a tribute band that pays tribute to two or three major artists who had a lot of hits…but not quite enough hits individually for a two hour show? Of course, Boston fits perfectly into that category. But what other tribute would be compatible?

My thinking was some of the other larger artists from the 70’s like Foreigner, Kansas, .38 Special, Thin Lizzy, UFO…gosh, the list goes on and on. Imagine this: “Monsters Of Rock: Boston, Foreigner and .38 Special”. I think it could be a very attractive package…especially for the audience!

What do you think?

David Victor’s Blog

Yes, everyone’s doing it, now after holding out as long as I can, I am doing it too! And everyone knows…no blog is worth reading unless you say how you really feel, so I’ll try to be as candid as possible while still protecting the innocent (occasionally).

Come along for the ride!