Artists say Sandwich Town is a hidden gem for live music

Sandwich Town is very well known as a historically significant neighbourhood, but its bustling live music culture often flies under the radar.

"Part of why I love the west end, and part of why I love Sandwich Town is because we are a little underrepresented in the city," says local musician Andrew MacLeod. "But that doesn't make me bitter. It makes me feel more connected to this community."

MacLeod is a proud advocate of Sandwich's live music scene — a vibrant and active community he says is hidden in plain sight. For MacLeod, the comradery within the small community binds them closer together.

"Small and tight is community, and it works for us, not against us." MacLeod said.  

MacLeod, who is a high school English teacher, has been performing original and cover rock songs in Sandwich for over 20 years. He hosts a monthly songwriter series at Dominion House Tavern called "Strumming Through The Smog."

MacLeod credits bars such as Dominion House and MD's Sports Bar and Smokehouse for hosting and supporting musicians that perform in Sandwich, but said that the setting can be uncomfortable to some.

"Some people just don't like going to bars, and I get it, and I don't think the only place people should experience music is in a bar," MacLeod said. "So, I think the important thing is to make use of spaces like this (the John Muir Library) and Mackenzie Hall more often if we really want to develop the music culture in Sandwich."

Hugh Leal has over 40 years of experience working as a concert promoter, record label executive and musician. He currently is the producer of the Windsor Jazz Concert Series.

Leal says that part of the difficulty with local live music planning is the ease of accessibility to  mainstream music through streaming platforms like Spotify, and how it deters audiences from seeing performances live.

"I think the technology surrounding digital sharing has really clobbered music," Leal said. "It turns out that music is a real basic human expression with a lot of positive things, but it's fragile and it's been damaged in my opinion because of people's devaluing of it."

The Windsor Jazz Concert Series recently hosted the Old Town's Jazz Day in Sandwich, a music festival that highlighted local jazz talent from Windsor and Detroit.

Leal is optimistic that festivals like these in Sandwich will continue due to the benefits that live music brings to communities.

"I think anything that brings the community together, to get them out of their houses and to get them away from their iPhones, I think [live music] is good for the community," Leal said.

For the live music venues in Sandwich like Dominion House Tavern, community means everything.

Jordan "Jordo" Tough is the owner and manager of "the DH." He is also in charge of concert bookings there, which take place five to seven nights a week.

Tough expressed his deep appreciation for Windsor's music community and how the music creates a sense of togetherness.

"You don't actually realize what other people enjoy the same way you do, and music is the perfect way to understand that," Tough said. "When there's a person that you don't know or you didn't think you'd get along with, but you're singing along to the same song the musician's playing, it's fantastic and it's how you build a community."

Tough says that he has seen a decrease in attendance in comparison to previous years, noting changing interests and the lowering number of local venues that regularly host local gigs.

"The demographic of people that sought out live music, that's definitely lessened, whether they've grown out of it or it just seems like the younger generation coming into it isn't as excited about live music as they once were," Tough said.

Nonetheless, Tough says that live music is still strong in Sandwich and remains confident that the community will continue to keep on playing.

"There's a lot of support and it's still amazing to see. Even though it's not as popular of a thing as it once was, it will always be there. There's folks that will come on a Saturday night having no idea what the band is, paying their $5 cover at the door and still love the show. That is support."

This story is a part of CBC Windsor's 'Communities in Focus' initiative which highlights the topics and issues that are affecting the Sandwich Community. Read more about our first event in the community here.