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From Aug. 9 to 13, 2017, 1990s tribute band My So-Called Band played 90 shows in 90 hours around central New York, attempting to set a Guinness World Record. From Syracuse to Camillus to Auburn, the band brought the sounds of grunge, pop punk and R&B to many audiences for nearly five days.

“Everyone’s interests are covered, everyone’s having a good time, and everyone’s listening to the music they want to,” said My So-Called Band drummer and vocalist Nick Streeter. “If we can get people to come out and leave the worries, the weight of the world off their shoulders while we play, then we have accomplished something.”

My So-Called Band is one of many bands who travel around the region playing the music they grew up listening to. The bands use their performances to connect with audiences and preserve the memories of past music acts. Members of the tribute bands are connected through their love of the music they play and the relationships they form with audiences who share the same sentiments, Streeter said.

Streeter said what makes My So-Called Band unique is that no member of the group is a professional musician and they don’t take their performances super seriously. This attitude lends itself perfectly to the style many tribute bands perform with. They truly embrace the artists they are honoring, hoping to give audiences a small taste of the music listened to growing up, he said.

“Our demographic is mainly people who grew up in the late ’80s and early ’90s,” Streeter said. “They want to go out, they want to have a few drinks, and if we’re playing the songs from their childhood, they’re gonna stick around.”

The members of My So-Called Band have been performing together for over 10 years and are now so connected musically they can play anything an audience member may throw at them, Streeter said. They primarily play songs from rock bands of the era like Nirvana, once playing the band’s entire “Nevermind” album front to back.

“The four of us have been playing music for so long that we know how to jam with each other and we know the style of music everyone likes we do,” Streeter said. “We will do TLC’s ‘Waterfalls,’ which is an R&B song, but we’re a four-piece rock band, so we can put our rock spin on it.”

My So-Called Band is among the many tribute bands in the CNY area that can connect generations through music. Across the region’s music scene, bands capture the essence of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and even Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack.

Donnie Buttaccio said the feeling he gets from performing covers to a raucous crowd is second to none during his career as a musician. Buttaccio, the lead guitarist for Bonfire: A Tribute to AC/DC, enjoys the energy he can feel when a crowd is using his music to reminisce about a show from their past.

Still, Buttaccio said the music of AC/DC makes for a distinctive challenge when performing. AC/DC has two distinct eras, one with vocalist Bon Scott and another with vocalist Brian Johnson. Buttaccio said this makes Bonfire’s performances a true tribute to AC/DC’s journey as a group, as lead vocalist Steve Seniuk can perform the different tones of Scott and Johnson.

Buttaccio also made it clear that Bonfire is a strict tribute band and not a cover band, which can sometimes be unclear to an audience. He said tribute bands focus more on capturing the unique essence of a group, whereas a cover band may only perform the music.

While Bonfire does take a lot of pride in paying tribute to AC/DC, Buttaccio said they still want their original music to stand on its own. The band works closely to listen to the separate guitar, bass, drum parts and vocal parts. Everybody has a job to learn how to best play the material of AC/DC properly, Buttaccio said.

“Our general creed and prime directive is to play the material as close as humanly possible,” Buttaccio said. “We are not those guys and we didn’t write the material. We are strictly trying to replicate it to be able to pay tribute to it.”

Charley Orlando, the talent buyer for Funk ‘n Waffles, said he hires these acts because tribute performers have the unique ability to play songs an audience may have been listening to for decades, but in a new way. Tribute bands extend a band’s existence and music by building on what the original group started.

“By presenting the artist being paid tribute to in a different light, but at the same time giving them the feeling of being in the presence of the band they love,” Orlando said.

There is a strong sense of familiarity with a tribute band, making them attractive acts for audiences to come and see, especially if the original group is no longer making music or touring, Orlando said.

“People are willing to go watch a tribute band because it helps them relive what they enjoyed most about those bands,” Buttaccio said. “I like to look at it as we are helping to keep that music relevant and alive.”

Published on December 5, 2023 at 10:43 pm