Life on Mars Quality Band proves favorite at The Spot
by Eric Donaldson
It's easy nowadays to forget that there are bands that offer world-class production values and musicianship here at the local level, and can be seen and heard in this region every weekend. These groups bring a confident, professional attitude to their music and have a ton of fun while doing it.
One such band is Life On Mars, who played on a recent Saturday at The Spot Tavern in Vancouver, Wash.
These fellows are very tight, with an incredibly well-controlled stage show that is completely professional and enjoyable from the first note.
Life On Mars is Ron Hansen on bass and vocals; Allen Mattison on guitar, keys and vocals; and Brady Oglesbee on drums and vocals.
Life On Mars starts out strong and keeps the music pumping, playing classic rock, powerful dance tunes and a wide variety of other cover tunes. The crowd moves almost in unison with the infectious rhythm. These guys understand the value of a quality PA system and have everything running through the PA to ensure a controllable result. The volume level is always sensible and the punch still gets you up and dancing.
All three of these musicians have a very long history of making music all over the west coast. The band is in it's 20th year (!), and going strong, with regular club gigs and an on-going corporate event calendar, as well. (New Year's Eve will be spent at The Spot, so make your plans now.) They have a wide, multi-generational appeal, due in large part to an extensive song-list that covers several decades; it all sounds very true to the original. These guys honor the heritage involved in their music, for sure!
The Spot Tavern is owned by Alan DuBois, who can be found on premises almost every day, making sure patrons are happy and satisfied. The folks on this visit said they felt as though this is Vancouver's Cheers, evoking the iconic TV show (where everybody called you names).While there is live music every Friday and Saturday, the other nights are filled with Karaoke. It's said these nights fill-up early and are almost too much fun for all involved.
The Spot offers a full-service restaurant, including steaks, seafood, many sandwiches and burgers, all using the best in local and regional ingredients, made to order. Wednesdays are ladies nights and happy hours are Monday through Friday, 7 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 6 p.m., with food and drink specials and free pool for those who wish to challenge their geometric abilities. Speaking of pool, The Spot features an on-going pool tournament every Friday and Saturday, with lots of fun and some prizes.
DuBois mentions that The Spot is a Steelers bar! (His emphasis)! So all you Steelers fans have a place to share your football excitement!
All-in-all, The Spot is a very cool place to meet family and friends and enjoy good food and drinks, along with great weekend music; Life On Mars plays at least one weekend a month and will perform New Year's Eve; and it's one of the leading Karaoke clubs in this area.