This weekend Conway Seavey and his crew will put on their Soldotna concert for a second time for local fans and the community.
The band’s promise — a high-energy show that will make people want to get up and move, and a performance that few have ever caught on the Kenai Peninsula.
The free Soldotna Summer Concert will take place at 8 p.m., Saturday at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex, a shift from last year’s venue at Soldotna Creek Park. Snacks and drinks will be provided. An after party will follow the show, perhaps at the park, perhaps with a bonfire dependent on the weather, Seavey said.
“It is kind of a giving back, it’s something we want to do, just to put on a show that is about the music,” Seavey said. “It’s also about really getting to know our fans and our audience, and we get the chance to talk to them afterwards.”
The Sterling native said the location makes the most sense because it is central to where he and his three bands mates drive from to meet up for practice and performances, whose home bases are spread throughout in the area.
The group formed a little more than one year ago. Since the start of their stint, they have played at hot spots across the state and recently wrapped up a Lower 48 tour that included a stop at the Heart of Texas Rockfest, which coincides with the South by Southwest Music Festival.
That show was one sign that showed Seavey is going in the right direction, he said.
“I have been really happy with not only the progress of the band but just the learning that comes along with having a band,” he said. “There is so much human dynamic and what that dynamic has taught about music and life.”
The admiration is mutual.
Keyboard player Logan Boyle has been filling in with the band for the past few months. He met them at the beginning of the summer and quickly fit into the mix.
“I thought they were incredible musicians and I really wanted to play with them,” Boyle said. “And, they really wanted a key board player. Having a fourth member in the band much easier than having three people. It gives Conway more opportunities to solo and sing.”
For anyone who hasn’t heard the Conway Seavey Band play, Seavey recommends starting out with his track “Wrong,” which talks about how to lightheartedly cope with the fact that no matter how good things can go, there is probably always something that might be amiss.
While Boyle said he doesn’t naturally gravitate toward the raucous pop sound synonymous with the band, playing with Seavey is more than worth it for the experience, and definitely something he would put on his resume.
Seavey said his major influences are Ed Sheeran, Maroon 5 and Train, all of whom directly affect the performers’ tones and techniques.
“The way that Conway styles it and the way that he performs the songs it’s a lot of high energy and he puts his own spin on everything which is really cool,” Boyle said. “He also provides a lot of flexibility. He likes to add some funk elements too.”
The outfit has managed to gain an impressive amount of traction in a short time, Boyle said.
When the band’s bass guitar player and backup vocals Ben Sayers first started hearing Seavey play at events around the Kenai Peninsula, he was floored. Since the two have connected, they have been core members of the band, with others filling in temporarily, and have recorded two music videos together all thanks to complimentary chemistry, he said.
“I liked what Conway said recently ‘I don’t have a Plan B, all I have is Plan A, and that’s music,” Sayers said.
Sayers said it has much to do his own work ethic and commitment coupled with Seavey’s drive and determination. He is still surprised at how quickly everything has taken off.
“I just expected it to be another project,’ Sayers said. “There is so much talent just in what we have going on here that now it is just kind of mind blowing the direction it is going in.”
Seavey said he sees it all as hard work, self-promotion and “a labor of love.” It was also a long time in the making for everyone. Seavey started seriously performing when he was 11-years-old, Sayers when he was 13, and it has always been Boyle’s dream to be a studio musician.
Even though he is heading off to college at the end of the summer, Boyle said he hopes to connect and perform with the band after he gets his degree.
In the short term, Boyle said he is “looking forward to putting on a show for people,” this weekend.
It is where the band will do what they do best, and accomplish what they set out to bring to Alaska — to put on a Lower 48-style concert, complete with fog machines and flashing lights, Seavey said. They are trying to introduce more variety into the state, which is very metal heavy, he said.
“Everybody is kind of coping from each other and we are kind of looking ahead in a way,” Sayers said.
On stage, Seavey believes it is up to the performer to set the tone for the show, but then it becomes somewhat of a back-and-forth.
“Once people do react, you feed off of their energy just as much as they feed off of yours,” he said. “When audience is into it, the band works harder. What we like is an audience dancing and having a good time.”
Reach Kelly Sullivan at kelly.sullivan@peninsulaclarion.com.
