B.C. band aims to break world record with 9 concerts in 12 hours across Lower Mainland
Rocker duo LooPS travelled 550 kilometres in one day to play 9 shows for charity
Kamloops, B.C., musical duo LooPS have never started, nor ended, any of their concerts so quickly.
Certainly not nine of their shows. In a single day. Across multiple cities.
"OK, I got the 15-minute timer," singer Kevin Roy shouted from the stage, after his band mate Jon Fennell and several fans scampered frantically into the downtown Vancouver bar to set up. "3, 2, 1 ... and go!"
The Blarney Stone was to be their second of nine venues on Saturday.
Roy and guitarist Fennell were attempting to break a world record for the most ticketed concerts performed in multiple cities in a 12-hour period. The previous record-holder played eight separate shows in that time frame.
Outside the venue, a supporter was trying to get enough unsuspecting passersby to become paid ticket-holders.
"Round 'em up, make sure they get a ticket," Roy said, noting Guinness World Records requires record-hopefuls to play real shows with an actual paying audience.
WATCH | B.C. pop band attempts to break world record by playing 9 shows in 12 hours
The tickets were $1 each, with all proceeds going to the B.C. Children's Hospital Foundation. LooPS' hope is that their record attempt will generate far more for the charity than just ticket revenues.
"It's been an absolutely amazing response we've had from everybody in the community helping us out," Fennell told CBC News from the Blarney Stone stage.
According to the British private records-keeper, the previous record for most live music concerts in 12 hours in separate cities was U.K.-based indie-pop singer Minhee Jones, who played eight shows on Dec. 7, 2019.
To break that record, Guinness World Records stipulates the cities must have populations more than 15,000, be at least 50 km apart, concerts must sell at least 10 tickets and sets need to be 15 minutes long without any breaks longer than 30 seconds.
For smaller towns, the record for most concerts was also set in England by pop singer Tom Grennan, who played 10 shows over 12 hours in 2018, but in communities that had populations under 15,000.
'Laser focused' on record attempt
On Saturday, LooPS began their whirlwind tour at 10 a.m. in Squamish, B.C., then drove to Vancouver, followed by Abbotsford, Burnaby, Chilliwack, Richmond, Mission, Delta, before finally closing-out the night at Langley's Poseidon Restaurant and Bar. They finished the set with 20 minutes to spare.
In total, the band's micro-tour crisscrossed more than 550 km of the Lower Mainland's roads.
"It is a big stress-relief now," Roy said on Sunday. "It was a huge adrenaline dump at the end, but it was pretty fun the whole day.
"We were pretty dialled in, we were laser-focused on what we had to do," he said.
Roy said the band's next step is to submit their filmed and time-recorded evidence they played nine shows within the strict guidelines, but said without paying a rush premium, they likely won't hear confirmation from Guinness World Records for a while.
In the meantime, the band's next show is in Prince George, B.C., where door ticket proceeds will also go to B.C. Children's. Roy said they will continue collecting donations for the rest of the month through their website.
As Roy and Fennell belted out the harmonies of the final chorus of the duo's new single, "Last Goodbye," in Vancouver, he ended the set in a way one could only expect from a band on a whirlwind, one-day, nine-stop tour spanning an entire region.
"We're done, that's 15 minutes," Roy told the audience as Fennell swiftly wrapped up audio cables and began packing up their gear. "Thank you so much, we've got to get to the next stop."
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