Steven Bonifazi
Fort Collins Irish rock band, the commoners, are hosting a free live-streamed broadcast featuring 18 Irish/Celtic acts from Colorado on St. Patrick’s Day, Wednesday, March 17 at 5 pm to provide fun and safe entertainment to all.
The broadcast will be streamed on YouTube and will span five hours. It will feature a total of eight full bands, five duo/trio acts, and an additional five solo artists. The idea for the broadcast came to the lead singer of the commoners Mouse, who thought it was time to give back to Colorado Irish/Celtic bands and the venues that have continued to support them.
“For Irish and Celtic bands, St. Patrick’s Day is our big holiday of the year and when we make most of our revenue and with covid going on, a lot of the places aren’t able to host live music this year whether they don’t have the money or enough room to accommodate, or they are just closed,” said Mouse. “My first thought was for the places that have consistently played us to provide something for them to put on their TVs for their audience,” Mouse said.
Mouse has been a leading member of the commoners for twenty years, playing rhythm guitar and Irish tenor banjo and providing lead vocals. After moving from Iowa, he started the band, where he was in a different band and has progressed the band’s sound from traditional acoustic folk-punk to Irish rock today.
Some of the bands featured in the free broadcast include Once Upon a Tune, Big Paddy, Avourneen, and Piscí and Luke, which is a duo act consisting of Mouse and his wife. The solo acts will feature fiddlers and bagpipe players.
“This is my first time doing something like this, so we are making it free,” said Mouse. “For each band, we will have a virtual tip jar but other than that, we are not charging just to say thanks,” Mouse said.
For more information regarding the free St. Patrick’s Day broadcast, visit https://www.facebook.com/thecommonersfortcollins.