![A FOUNDATION FOR ORIGINAL MUSIC: The Safety of Life at Sea [featuring Smith and Jones] in action at the previous BMEC Monthly Band Night on Friday, September 28. Photo: PHIL BLATCH 092818pbsnap1](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/xry9xtRQu9u36zRV2j5976/55aafad5-b72f-47fb-824b-3a744f7fcb13.JPG/r0_0_5472_3648_w576_h298_fmax.webp "A FOUNDATION FOR ORIGINAL MUSIC: The Safety of Life at Sea [featuring Smith and Jones] in action at the previous BMEC Monthly Band Night on Friday, September 28. Photo: PHIL BLATCH 092818pbsnap1")
2018 has been somewhat of a breakout year for musicians performing original music in Bathurst.
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The growth in Bathurst’s original music scene has been nurtured by the inaugural year of the Bathurst Memorial Entertainment Centre’s Monthly Band Night program.
A joint initiative between BMEC and local musicians, the band nights have seen some of the finest local acts take the stage to share some of Bathurst’s unique sounds.
“The range of music has been amazing, and we know local musicians appreciate having a focused environment to play their music in,” BMEC manager Stephen Champion said.
“A key strength of the nights has been helping to develop a community of local and regional musicians.”
Although attendances haven’t yet met Mr Champion’s expectations, he says there has a been a fantastic response from those who have attended the band nights.
“We really need to get the word out a bit more and get people understanding how good the band nights really are,” he said.
Musicians often face the tough task of garnering the attention of punters in pubs and smaller venues due to the many other forms of entertainment on offer as well as inadequate performance space.
Another key issue among performing musicians is receiving adequate pay for their services; something BMEC has helped address with the band nights.
“Those who perform at the band nights always receive a fair wage,” BMEC box office supervisor Lisanne McDowell said.
Ms McDowell has been influential in putting together the last Monthly Band Night of the year, serving as a teaser for the upcoming Inland Sea of Sound festival.
The lineup includes Smith & Jones, The Orient Royal Mail Band, Gabbi Bolt, Def Yeti, The Mats and 10th Man, and will be on tomorrow night from 8pm at BMEC.
“We hope it will be a grand celebration of both the first year of the band nights and the local music scene,” Ms McDowell said.
The Monthly Band Nights will return next year for seven installments.
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Sam Bolt
"I'm not in the business of telling people what to do. I'm much more in the business of describing things, situations and stuff like that and leaving them out there, and you can make up your minds about them." -Nick Cave
"I'm not in the business of telling people what to do. I'm much more in the business of describing things, situations and stuff like that and leaving them out there, and you can make up your minds about them." -Nick Cave
