Aspiring artists, singers, and some established cover bands make the rounds through Airdrie’s restaurants, lounges, and pubs to offer a huge variety of local entertainment every week.
“Airdrie is full of very talented musicians from all ages and they come out on a weekly repeating basis,” said Gabrial Morris, who organizes several open mic events in Airdrie.
After travelling back and forth to Calgary to play gigs, Morris, who is also a musician, wanted to create a place for musicians to play in Airdrie. He connected with a few venues and they agreed to host free public jam sessions for all ages.
“I think they're important for the whole community because it gives people that have the same interest a meeting place,” he said, adding open mic events are a great place to make connections in the local music scene, as well as building a fanbase and friendships.
His open mic events allow younger aspiring musicians to get on stage, not limiting live music to bars for adults. For those learning to play an instrument, he hopes seeing others on stage is an inspiration for them to keep going.
Morris hopes to see Airdrie’s music scene continue to grow, and added he loves to be a part of it.
With a few projects on the go, Morris is plugging away at several new songs that will be released this year. The public will have a chance to hear him perform live at Airdrie’s Canada Day Festival this summer.
Morris’s all ages open mic events take place on Tuesdays at Rival Axe Throwing where guests can play games while listening to local talent, as well as Saturdays at Atlas Brewing in Airdrie.
Two more local open mic nights take place every Tuesday night at 1861 Bar & Grill and every Sunday night at Brewster's Airdrie hosted by Steve Jevne. Jevne has hosted open mic nights in Airdrie starting in 2015.
“I had always been a fan of open mics as it is a great starting point for beginners and also a great place for advanced players to test out new songs before playing them at their shows,” Jevne said.
He noted Airdrie’s music scene is alive and well with musicians, and more people seem to be coming out to support local artists.
“We have so much talent here with Hayley Isabel, Christian Hudson, Kyle McEarney, Eden Taylor, Flaysher, Brandon Lorenzo, Celine Simard and even members of Nice Horse to name a few are all actively releasing songs regularly,” Jevne said, who has met many good friends through open mic nights.
“Open Mic nights build community and culture in Airdrie. For a city with minimum live music venues (with a stage etc), there is sure a lot to talk about with this burgeoning music scene.”
Local singers of all ages can also be heard every Thursday at Glitch Gaming Lounge during their open mic jam session. Glitch also features cover bands on Fridays and Saturdays.
A weekly karaoke opportunity takes place every other Thursday at the Balzac Craft Brewing Company and on Saturday evenings singers can end their night at Wild Card Shack Pub for their weekly karaoke night.
Music entertainment can be found in Airdrie at several other places every weekend, including a DJ or live music at Old Town Pizza Bar & Grill, as well as a monthly DJ Latin night for the dancers in Airdrie.
For a list of events happening in Airdrie, go to airdriecityview.com/event-listings#/
