To cap off a week-long string of Beat Michigan events, a free concert is being held at the Newport Music Hall tomorrow night. Virginia-based Pat McGee Band will be performing along with local bands Gravy and Fate Hates Us.
Jim Allison, concert chairman of the Ohio Union Activities Board, organized the concert. He said Pat McGee Band was chosen because it seemed to be big with the O.A.R. crowd. The band, which McGee began in 1996, is known to be big at colleges.
“The band hasn’t played here much, but it seems to have a big enough fan base to attract a crowd,” Allison said.
The band, which consists of founder Pat McGee on vocals and guitars, John Small on bass, Chardy McEwan on percussion, Chris Williams on drums, Brian Fechino on guitar and Jonathan Williams on vocals, piano and keyboards, has been praised for its acoustic-based sound.
Influences for the band range anywhere from Led Zeppelin to Bob Marley, McGee said. He also said the band does not really have a jam background but more of singer-songwriter one, so it is important its music can stand on its own.
“Everything we do must be believable,” McGee said.
McGee said the band has not played in Columbus in a few years, but it used to play shows at Little Brother’s, sometimes pairing with O.A.R. He said the band was excited when it learned it would be playing a show at the Newport.
“Every time we came through Columbus, we wanted to play the Newport, but it was on a weird night of the week,” McGee said. “Now is the chance.”
Until 2000, the band self-released three albums and depended mostly on touring for success because the band received little radio play. The band decided to sign with a major label to keep the group going and released its album “Shine” under Giant Records as its major label debut, McGee said.
“We signed with a major label and took that route instead of just touring 365 days a year in a van with a trailer,” he said.
The band took time off from touring to make its second major-label album on Warner Bros. Records, due out next spring. McGee said fans would see a significant change in this record from the ones before it. He said the band was not worried about the record and felt unlimited.
“We were taking chances, really going for it,” McGee said. “We wanted to just make a record that we like at the end of the day.”
The other difference in the record will be way the band will be promoting it. As opposed to its old tour-based success, McGee said Warner Bros. will be very aggressive about getting the band radio play.
McGee said he has a lot of faith in the band and its music. He hopes students who attend the concert will just enjoy the music, and the band will develop a larger fan base in Columbus.
The concert will be at 9 p.m. at the Newport Music Hall on North High Street. Doors open at 8 p.m. Tickets are available at the Newport box office. Students can pick up two tickets each with their student ID.
