When it comes to music, Nanaimo’s Amber McGrath isn’t shy about where her loyalty lies.
“I am a metal head straight up,” McGrath said. “I love all genres of music, but you know how you have a home? Well my home is metal and sometimes you gotta go back home.”
McGrath is known as the Mistress of Metal and there is a good reason for it. For decades McGrath has been a lover of metal bands and has been involved in the metal music scene, having done everything from selling merchandise at shows, to being a hostess and even a bouncer.
But for the last couple of years, McGrath has carved out a reputation for herself as a promoter, booking live shows of all genres, although mainly metal.
“I booked shows solid for two and a half years,” McGrath said.
“I did eight to 12 shows a month as the entertainment director for the Cambie.”
After taking a break last year, McGrath has returned as a private promoter and will be booking shows at venues throughout Nanaimo.
“I am really stoked to be back,” she said. “I just want to do good shows and make sure everyone has a good time.”
As a promoter, McGrath aims to ensure that her lineups work well together, or at least as best as they can, but with so many sub-genres, it isn’t always easy.
“In my opinion … there are some key aspects to metal. You have the double kick and the heavy riffs and the vocals and so metal is metal,” McGrath said. “I like to mix them up, but I am not going to put a softer band with a death metal band because of the crowd. You try to get the similar bands, but there are so many sub-genres.”
For years there very few metal shows in the city, but over the last four to five years, Nanaimo’s metal scene and the metal scene on Vancouver Island has been increasing, says McGrath. She explains that it isn’t just males who are openly engaged in metal music anymore.
“It is really awesome to see more chicks in bands and coming to shows, and they are not coming to shows because their boyfriend is dragging them out,” she said. “They are coming because they like it and that is the best part. They are wearing the shirts and getting involved … they want to be there and that is so exciting.”
There are a handful of metal bands based out of Nanaimo such as The Body Politic and Atlas Collapses and despite what some might think, other genres like jazz do influence metal bands, according to McGrath.
“We have some amazing musicians here. We really do. With the jazz program up at VIU and some of the indie-rock … amazing,” McGrath said. “The jazz musicians influence the metal musicians because a lot of them go to VIU. So they get influences and are quite talented. Nanaimo has a really cool sound right now. There are a lot of cool bands here. Metal bands and non-metal bands. It is exciting to be a part of right now.”
There are no shortage of happy moments for McGrath as a promoter, but she recalls the time she booked Victoria-based punk band No Means No shortly after being promoted to entertainment director. At the time, No Means No was scheduled to perform in Victoria and Cumberland with a day off in between when McGrath made her move.
“I contacted their agent and asked if they wanted to come play … hammered it out,” she said.
When the show took place at the Cambie, McGrath remembers feeling accomplished and proud of herself because of how packed it was.
McGrath hopes to one day organize a metal festival, or at the very least, a music festival in Nanaimo.
“We need one,” McGrath said. “I’d like to do a metal festival, but whether or not Nanaimo is ready to do it I don’t know.”
reporter2@nanaimobulletin.com
