Live Music Is Finally Back In Scotland!
The first indoor live music event since lockdown in March has taken place in Scotland. Torridon performed their upbeat folk to some very upbeat folk at the Ironworks in Inverness last night. Not only was this the first event since the lockdown, they sold out the venue (fair enough, that’s only 100 people in the age of COVID-19 restrictions, but it’s a start).
Despite living in one of the 11 areas currently under the strictest restrictions, I could not be more excited to see and hear the first signs of a return to gigging.
Since the introduction of the 5 tier system a few weeks ago indoor live, seated and socially distant events have been allowed to take place in areas in tiers 0 and 1 and, last night, the first such event in almost exactly eight months took place in the Highland capital.
This is a very positive thing (scratch that, it’s the best news I’ve heard this month), but, as with everything related to the pandemic, there are caveats.
With only 100 seats available, demand was high for the historic event. So high in fact those tickets sold out in 28 seconds. Inverness is definitely a party town and the reintroduction of live music was always going to create a scramble to be there. This is defiantly a “I was there” story worth the telling.
Dancing was banned. Like a modern retelling of Footloose, dancing was strictly banned at the event. Even standing for a better view was a no-no. This meant that socially distant seating bubbles, each containing no more than the regulation 6 people could be enforced.
It wasn’t just the dancefloor that was off limits. The Ironworks enforced a strict table-service only policy to ensure that guests and staff could be as safe as possible- low instances of the virus is not the same as there being no chance of infection.
Despite the restrictions, concert goers have raved about the gig, one being quoted by STV as saying “You don’t realise how much you rely on it, how much you need it”.
Things might not have been quite like they were pre-pandemic, Torridon being used to seeing standing room only at the venue, but coming from eight months of eerie silence, it’s good to hear the intro to an exciting time for live music.
While this marks the first such event in Scotland, many more are planned over the next few months with the Ironworks and other venues across the lower tiered council areas planning a range of events. As with everything else at the moment, things are liable to be cancelled at short notice, but the first signs of a proper return to gigging are clear for all to see.
Live music’s impact on the Scottish economy and cultural life has been in the limelight of late with nearly £3million set aside by the Scottish Government to help organisers get ready for the return to the fray in a responsible way. A document suggesting various “route maps” for live music, cultural and sporting events is expected to be released any day now with funding for traditional live events as well as digital and hybrid events.
For more information on how live music is bouncing back in your area, check out www.hearby.com
