S.E. New England Tone Fest

[bilbal]

I am thinking about hosting a South-Eastern New England Tone Fest in the upcoming months. i plan to rent a VFW, Elks, or similar and having everyone set up there rigs in stations and have everyone just kinda hang out and try each others gear. It would be great if builders would show up but I know that's a stretch. To best of my knowledge, nothing like this has ever happened around here.

I just wanted to post this to see if any of you guys in this area of the country would be interested in attending.

As I mentioned, I have only just lately started thinking about this and so far I have some really interested parties. I have never organized anything like this before but I was hoping to get enough interest to continue thinking about it in more detail. I was also thinking that I would get it catered (food and drink). I think it would be a great afternoon of killer gear (gtrs, amps, effects) and some spirits...

I would like to just get a sense of how many, if any, would be interested in participating (bring your rig(s) and setting up). If I get a decent amount of interest I will move forward.

Thanks,
Bill

BTW, the area I am thinking about setting this up is Mystic in S.E. Connecticut

 

[Rod]

Hi Bill....Sounds like a great idea.....I could bring the 2 new Kelemen amps that have just come out for all you guys to hear....they just arrived here from Santa Fe, NM

 

[bilbal]

Cool!!! I have never heard of them Rod and would love to check them out. That would be killer. I want to get as many different amps, gtrs., effects as possible/ The place I am thinking about is a pretty decent sized banquet hall.

If I get enough interest, I will definitely do it. Once we do (get interest), I will then proceed with a tentative day and go from there. I really think it could be cool.

Thanks Rod!!!

b

 

[dukeh62]

I might be interested if I can get out of the house. I have a Clark Beaufort Premium I could bring. Just can't guarantee I can make it!

 

[RickC]

I'm interested

/rick

 

[stump]

I'm in.

 

[Rod]

Cool!!! I have never heard of them Rod and would love to check them out. That would be killer. I want to get as many different amps, gtrs., effects as possible/ The place I am thinking about is a pretty decent sized banquet hall.

If I get enough interest, I will definitely do it. Once we do (get interest), I will then proceed with a tentative day and go from there. I really think it could be cool.

Thanks Rod!!!

b

That's great Bill....The Keleman amp Co used to be Jomama amps out of Santa Fe......I could also bring my Suhr Badger 18 as well and a few cabs loaded with Scumbacks!!!! rock and roll

 

[bilbal]

Cool guys - not bad so far huh??? I can say with reasonable certainty that nothing like this has ever been done around here. I may even ask some of the local gear shops to come and set up a few rigs. Let's see how much interest is out there.

Thanks for all the positive posts so far guys!!!

Bill

 

[Jahn]

This is just a train ride up the Metro North Railway from NYC, isn't it? I'd have to look into a daytrip for this, might be cool.

 

[DEMENTED]

I would be interested in this Bill, I guess between you, me and some other local guys there would be plenty of Mystik Cabs 1x12's to play through.
Anyhow, Aiken Sabre and Victoria 20112 available here.

 

[bilbal]

Definitely Bri'. You, Dave C, and Kenny were the first guys I thought about. So far there's more interest than I expected so I'm going to continue letting people know about it. My other buddy from town, "Eat a Peach" here at TGP, has some cool stuff too.

My Mystik 1x12 will definitely be there, Brian. I have been mentioning them every chance I get so that people will give them a listen. After people hear them, the cabs will speak for themselves. My cab is BY-FAR the best I have used or heard. I even like it better than Kenny's TR with 65s which is huge because I had originally thought nothing could touch that thing.

I was thinking about having the get-together catered but I don't know how much of a PITA that would be. The club will probably be between 250 and 400 hundred to rent I would imagine. I'm thinking the Italo-American club across from Fuji (Rossolini's) on route 2 would be a good location given it's accessibility to Inter-State 95, North and South.

What I am picturing is having everyone that wants to join us bring their rig or rigs and set up. Depending on how many RSVP, we could set up against the walls of the club and people could just wander around "station to station" and give other gear a test drive. That said, it would leave the middle of the room for gathering and bulls***ing and maybe the tables for food if we all decide that would be something we want. I have never done anything like this so I am open to suggestions. I have no problem organizing it and making the necessary arrangements but I would appreciate some ideas/suggestions.

Bill

 

[DEMENTED]

Yeah, sounds cool, Tony P would go too, and I know Scott H too! That sounds like a good location, e-z access and all. Never been inside, catering might be pricey though....

 

[bilbal]

This is just a train ride up the Metro North Railway from NYC, isn't it? I'd have to look into a daytrip for this, might be cool.

Yeah depending on what club/hall the fest is held at, you could basically take the train into either Mystic, CT or Westerly, RI. If this ends up happening, I will have all the direction people will need from any location to the club. If it is decided that the Italo-American club in Pawcatuck, CT is the location, Interstate 95 will be the best way to go.

Bill

 

[bilbal]

Yeah, sounds cool, Tony P would go too, and I know Scott H too! That sounds like a good location, e-z access and all. Never been inside, catering might be pricey though....

Actually Tony P and I began talking about this a couple weeks ago. He's hoping to be able to attend.

b

 

[enocaster]

Interesting. It's a little bit of a hike for me, but maybe I can turn it into a weekend with the wife... I could bring a '68 Tele, Bad Cat Cub, and a gaggle of sweet pedals.

 

[bilbal]

That would be great enocaster.

I was thinking about whether or not I should invite some builders from the surrounding areas. How does that work? Is it just a matter of inviting them to come out and basically just creating this afternoon for them to sell their gear? I doubt I could afford to 'hire" them or pay them to come. It would be more of a chance for them to have a specifically targeted group of customers all in one place for the day. I guess I will worry about that at another time.

OK, so how about if I do this...would any of you that are interested, please send a note to me at w_ballato@yahoo.com with a brief description of what you may be able to bring? This way I will be able to get an idea of the number of interested parties and the type of gear. This will help me decide on the size of the room needed and whether or not there is enough to interest to even start planning such an event.

Again, please send a note to:

w_ballato@yahoo.com


Thanks guys,
Bill Ballato (bilbal)

 

[Rod]

Hi Bill...You wouldn't have to hire any amp builders...They'd come for the exposure of their amps alone......In fact, we could/would all chip in for the cost of of all this....

 

[ecbluesman54]

I might be in as well. I know you have an SLO, but I could bring mine as well. Also could bring Mills cab, and Trailer Trash board.

 

[bilbal]

Cool Rod thanks for addressing that. I wasn't sure how it all worked regarding asking builders to show up. I figured it would be a great place for them to display their products and I would be sure to hire a hall that could hold everything depending on the returns I get.

As far as the costs go, I was thinking that once we get to the stage where money would become an issue, I would then start discussing a small entry fee to help pay for the rental of the hall and other costs. I know that once money starts being discussed things become different. Obviously I wouldn't expect any money to be made outside of the costs I would accrue in getting everything ready for the day. I have to tell you that I am getting much more of a response than I thought i would so far.

Please "RSVP" your interest in doing this by sending me a short email to:

w_ballato@yahoo.com

This way I can get a rough estimate as to how many are into doing this and we can take it from there. There are plenty of different sized banquet halls in this area to choose from. I will start making calls for prices as soon as I get more response. I am unable to work due to my back injury so I will do all the planning in that regard but I would appreciate some ideas as well.

Thanks guys!!!

 

[bilbal]

I might be in as well. I know you have an SLO, but I could bring mine as well. Also could bring Mills cab, and Trailer Trash board.

The more SLOs the better!!! Can you ever have too many? I say "hell no!!!"