Cancelled gigs financially affect CHS and local bands

PHOTO COURTESY OF GIULIA DEFABRITUS

Sophomore Giulia DeFabritus of Freehold performs with her all-girl band The Bellas at The Stone Pony in Asbury Park.

Ella Lukowiak

While for some, being forced to stay home during the coronavirus outbreak may seem like a dream come true, others are restricted from being able to go out and make a living.

According to the LA Times, within those that are hit the hardest are musicians who rely on the ability to perform gigs to make an income and meet up with their fellow band members to rehearse. 

Senior Dane Tedder of Ocean is a member of the band Golf Club, which features several other MCVSD students. 

While Tedder said their band did not have to cancel any major gigs, the biggest issue for him is the inability to practice with his bandmates.

“It’s one thing to be able to practice at home by myself, but it’s a completely different thing to play in rhythm with other people and be able to hear other people’s input on your music,” Tedder said.

Sophomore Katherine Manatos of Wall, who is also a member of Golf Club, said that while they try and talk virtually, it is usually difficult to make progress while many things are still uncertain. 

“We talked about the future, but it’s like you can’t really talk about the future when you don’t know when that is going to be,” Manatos said.

While bands cannot go out and play in front of an in-person audience, technology has made it possible to find loopholes in the situation.

Sophomore Giulia DeFabritus of Freehold is the drummer in The Bellas, the all-girl band she formed with her cousins and sister. 

In addition to being unable to play at the CHS Battle of the Bands, the group had to cancel a major gig that was planned at the Brighton Bar.

DeFabritus explained that a lot of their gigs give them money based on the amount of tickets that they sell, and these cancellations were a big loss.

While she does not depend on the money made at these performances, DeFabritus still looks forward to the income.

“I know especially for me, I don’t have another job so this is how I get money to spend on other special little things that I want,” she said.

For the local Monmouth County band Deal Casino, based in Asbury Park, staying home has helped them to save money after the cancelation of their tour.

“When you’re on tour you’re paying for hotel rooms, you’re paying for gas, you’re paying for all kinds of stuff, so now that all that’s gone you’re not making money but you’re also not needing to spend as much money cause you’re just sitting in place,” Joe Parella, a member of Deal Casino, said.

After arriving in Cincinnati, they had to make the decision to cancel their last four shows due to health concerns. However, they explained that fans have been understanding of their situation, and they have been able to continue to make money by selling some of their merchandise.

“People are cool and they understand stuff like that…and also people are just really bored and that’s what they do when they’re bored they just wanna buy stuff,” Parella said.

Overall, the band has kept a positive outlook on the situation, and has tried to make the best out of a bad situation.

“We are just always creating music and that’s the good thing about this time. You are stuck in a house but that’s kind of the dream for making music,” Parella said.