08/05/2025
Over the years between the label and Sioux Guitars, we've worked with some of the biggest names and total legends and one thing we've learned is being easy to work with, goes a long way and being difficult goes a long way too. We have a friend in our hometown who's done sound and shows for years, is a musician himself, done some recording, and has run venues. He posted this about a band from Sioux Falls, which I'm sharing for my friends in the industry to decide if they want to work with the band mentioned.
Story time.
On Saturday, June 7, there was an incident at The Marquee with an out-of-town band, Chara. They were set to be the opening band of a three-band bill. Upon my arrival at the venue at 4:00 pm, they were already loaded on the stage and set up, before the headliner had arrived. They were young, and I just chalked it up to inexperience, so I asked them to please strike their gear so the headliner would be able to set up, which they did. During this, I noticed that not only was the band there but also several of their friends who looked very young. I asked who was in the band and who in the entire group was 21. No one, including the whole band, was of age to be in a bar. This was a 3rd party promotion, and I was unaware there was an underage band on the bill. Knowing that the band traveled from Sioux Falls to play this show, I told them they could still play; however, their friends would not be able to attend because of state and city laws prohibiting anyone under the age of 21 from being in the establishment. This was met with resistance, but ultimately their friends exited the establishment.
After soundcheck, I noticed that the band and their friends were coming in and out of the stage entrance door. I politely reiterated that no one under 21 is permitted inside the venue and shut the back door. About 15 minutes later, two of their friends tried to enter through the front door, wearing hats and sunglasses – credit where credit is due, that is pretty funny. They quickly bypassed the person at the door and tried to quickly get by where I was sitting near the end of the bar. I asked them for their IDs, and they blatantly said “No.” At this point, I am starting to get annoyed, and I kicked them out for the third time. I told a couple of the band members that it was the last warning, and if it continues to happen, they will be taken off the bill and asked to leave.
I sat back down and resumed my conversation with the several sober people who witnessed the following exchange. The drummer came up to me and stated, “If you ever talk to my guys like that, we are going to have a problem.” Clearly, we already had a problem. In response, I told them to pack up their gear, and they were no longer welcome in the venue. The drummer then started throwing chairs on his way up to the stage, which is where Apollo and I were forced to intervene. After getting on stage and telling them to pack up quickly, the band members escalated the situation with one attempting to body check me while carrying an amp, and the drummer trying to physically fight me as I was taking my mics off his drum kit. During this exchange, he grabbed my kick drum mic and threw it across the stage, so I did what any normal person would do in this situation. I threw his piece of s**t snare drum out the fu***ng door. The bass player went on to yell, “How about you pay your fu***ng bills!” which again was pretty funny if you are looking at the absurdity of this entire situation.
After this incident, the bass player’s father came up to me to apologize and stated, “I have no excuses.” I assured him it wasn’t his fault and thanked him for his apology. At this point, the young bass player came up and began to berate his father for apologizing to me. Several bystanders witnessed this exchange.
The band was kicked out of the venue, but they still would not leave the premises, pacing outside and yelling at customers. This is when I was forced to call the Sioux City Police Department and have them removed for trespassing. They have since gone to social media to drag my name, The Marquee, the staff, and the witnesses of the incident through the mud. I remained quiet about it because it wasn’t worth the time or energy to engage with children.
So why am I writing this? Two months after the incident, I am still receiving messages like the one I received earlier this afternoon. So, to set the record straight, this is the real story, with witnesses to back it up.
A friendly heads up to my industry people. I have been in this business for a long time. My track record and references speak for themselves. I have worked with everyone under the sun, and this ranks as one of the most absurdly negative experiences I have encountered in my 25 years working in the music industry.
