Issue date: 10/29/09 Section: Editorial/Opinion

When people think of attending concerts in Wisconsin, Eau Claire is generally not on the top of the "go-to" list.

For myself, at least, I tend to travel to Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Madison or even Oshkosh to catch a show.

When browsing the wall of The Cabin in Davies, it's easy to see that the campus has hosted quite an impressive list of performers in the past, including Third Eye Blind, Smash Mouth, The Wallflowers and The Verve Pipe, among countless others.

Naturally, the question arises: Why aren't there many shows nowadays?

It certainly isn't a problem with the culture of the city ­- the music scene in Eau Claire is absolutely fantastic.

I feel that the only reason for the small amount of concerts is simply the lack of a large enough venue to host bigger acts. The potential is definitely existent, but an appropriate-sized facility is sadly not.

Eau Claire native Justin Vernon, lead singer of the band Bon Iver, began selling copies of their first album, "For Emma, Forever Ago" in 2007 - since then, the band has received national and international acclaim, touring the U.S. and Europe and performing on late-night talk shows.

The band performed at a sold-out show at the State Theater in Eau Claire last December.

I studied abroad in England last semester, and when traveling in Germany, met a few people from the Netherlands, Australia and Italy - all of whom were raving about Bon Iver. I remember thinking, "Wow… I'm in a different country with complete strangers from all over the world, and they're talking about Bon Iver!" I was more than excited to let them know that I was from the same city as the band.

Getting back to the point, Bon Iver, among others, has certainly helped put Eau Claire on the music map. I feel that in a way, the curiosity to visit Eau Claire has also increased.

I understand that academic building improvements are much higher on the list of the master plan for campus renovations, but maybe someday the university will be able to construct a facility to hold larger musical acts.

Despite having a small venue, the campus does still manage to pull in some big-timers. American Idol winner David Cook took the stage of the Council Fire Room last spring, and the treadmill-dancing rockers of OKGO are scheduled to perform on campus on Nov. 12.

Aside from on campus concerts, The Blanks (more commonly known as Ted's Band from the hit ABC show Scrubs) are performing at the Eau Claire Performing Arts Center on Friday, Oct. 30.

The city and campus are slowly redeeming themselves with the amount of concerts held - the performers visiting the area continue to increase, as does the potential for bigger acts.

With such a dynamic and wonderful music scene already in existence, a larger venue would be the perfect extension to this already musical city.

Larson is a senior public relations major and a guest columnist for The Spectator.

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