Some believe Covid killed it. The music scene, that is.
A total of 10 venues in the Wheeling area hosted live music this weekend, but that number once was much, much higher. And yes, before the pandemic.
“I think the local music scene can be saved by artists like Gage Joseph and myself because we can instigate the younger people to come out, and that will make it easier on the venue owners to decide to have live music again,” said Tyler Porter, the 21-year-old son of North Wheeling native Buck Porter, a local tradesman who has played tunes on the side for many years. “The scene has fallen off because of Covid. It’s definitely not what it used to be.”
More than a half-million cases have been recorded in the state of West Virginia since March 2020, and nearly 7,000 associated deaths have been recorded during that time period. In Ohio County, a total of 92 active cases are now under observation, and the number in Marshall County is 46.
“I believe Covid took away the want when it comes to getting out and doing something because a lot of people are still scared,” Tyler said. “That’s why I think it’s going to take new acts to get people to go out again because they have experienced what we have already. People are gun shy, and they need good reasons to go out again.”
What Was Can Be Again
The music that is popular today with people Tyler’s age is not the answer.
And that is his opinion.
“I do consider myself an old soul, and that’s because I really am not much like people my own age,” Tyler admitted. “It goes beyond music, but music is a good example because I have a lot of friends who listen to only the new stuff coming out these days, and I just can’t listen to that stuff. To me, it’s not about music. I guess I just prefer to hear the guitar.
“I go through phases when it comes to music. I listen to one artist for a while, and then I’ll switch for whatever reason,” he explained. “But when it comes to genres, I guess we decide what we like and what we don’t like, and I do not like what’s being produced today, and I doubt I ever will.”
Blame his father. Blame the Beatles. Blame the cornerstones of classic rock.
“Me, my brother, Matt, and my Dad have been listening to music together since we were really, really young, and it was the Beatles, the Stones, Elvis, music like that,” Tyler recalled. “We listened to any artist that created music. That was always the thing with my dad, and that music has stuck with all of us. That music makes me and Matt, I believe, want to succeed even more than we do because those artists were able to accomplish way more during their lifetimes against some pretty tough odds.
“I guess it’s tough to explain other than it goes behind the music,” he said. “I guess it’s more about living a certain way.”
A Country Comeback
He isn’t 100 percent positive when it took place. Somewhere between Brad Paisley’s debut (1999) and Chris Stapleton’s 2015 arrival, perhaps. Those two artists? Pure country.
Many in the middle?
“I’ve had an issue for a while with country because country went away from being country,” Tyler insisted. “Nashville has been trying to turn country music into something that it’s not. Country music has evolved more toward Hip-Hop because the producers have been catering to the new generation and getting away from the roots of country.
“The guys that still have the classic country sound today and that country feel are sticking it to Nashville because what they are putting out there is real country, and it doesn’t match that new version, thank goodness,” he said. “I love to see and hear what the Chris Stapletons and Tyler Childers are putting out there because it’s country coming back to country. Maybe the same can happen for rock and roll, too.”
