Local dogs take over Broadway in May long weekend rock show
You might be one of the many people who RSVP’d for free Sheepdogs tickets for the Red Bull Tour Bus Hometown Tour. Which means you might wonder why you bothered slinging over your precious personal information needlessly.
No one actually needed a ticket for the show – the entire spectacle was free for anyone who happened to wander by. Apparently with free rock shows comes great advertising… and a caffeinated sugar buzz if you want one.
Two blocks of Broadway, and a few side streets, were cordoned off to accommodate the massive tour bus/transformer that revealed its true form to be a stage. And several thousands of people came out to rock out, show support, wear open-toed sandals, illegally sit on rooftops and extreme litter.
Opening the show were Saskatoon’s The Pistolwhips, who combine indie rock-isms along with massive blues-y guitar wizardry. Vocalist Rylan Schultz fed the crowd plenty of enthusiastic rave-ups as the rest of the four-piece stomped along.
In between sets, the crowd experienced something of a reset, with party-goers scrambling off to the nearest bar for a quick beverage before jumping back to get a primo standing spot. Totally understandable – the beer garden was something of a Chud-Stock whirlwind.
The Sheepdogs brought them all back to the front. With beards cascading in the dwindling sunlight, the Saskatoon group hit all the right notes and immediately got the crowd hopping. Bringing out a familiar cadre of ’70’s guitar worship, along with the hit “I Don’t Know”, it was one of those feel-good summer evenings all over again.
Except for all the dudes wearing opened-toed sandals stepping on the free beef jerky that was peppered throughout the audience. Mystery meat between the feet cuticles… not exactly the best way to end the evening. But with several after parties to choose from, including Tim Vaughn and The Pistolwhips, why end the evening early?
Oh yeah. Some of us have jobs to go to the next morning.