Shams Band endures snowstorm to perform at Bear’s

Thanks to severe snowfall, The Shams Band made it to the Bear’s Place stage a day late.

The headlining band performed just after midnight Saturday, which caused cancellations of performances meant to take place a few hours before.

Chicago bands Knifey Spoonie, The Future Laureates and The Shams Band were supposed begin performances by 10 p.m., but because of the weather the show was postponed for an hour. The Future Laureates did not get to play.

“We were caught in the storm for nine hours,” said Danny Surico, The Future Laureates guitarist. “We survived multiple spin outs, and we almost died. But getting to Bloomington was worth it.”

The Shams Band received a strong audience response. From song one, the crowd was on its feet, shouting and dancing until the show’s end.

“The show was really fun,” junior Kaylee Spiveysaid. “It was really high energy.”

The Shams Band enjoyed interacting with its audience by announcing multiple
birthday wishes and encouraging audience members to get out of the seats and party.  
Many audience members were singing along, including senior Liz Keeney, who said she has followed frontman Donnie Biggins’ work for years.

“I’ve seen them play at 16 different venues,” Keeney said. “This one was really good. It was an intimate, relaxed venue that really worked well for them.”

The Band expressed gratitude to Bear’s Place repeatedly, once taking celebratory shots in honor of the venue and its servers.

“Thank you for serving the alcohol that we need,” said Brian Patterson, The Shams Band bassist. “I feel so lucky to play with these guys. We almost couldn’t.”

Once the band finished its set, the audience hollered for an encore and chanted the band’s name.

“The Shams Band was fantastic,” IU alumnus Adam Hausman said. “I actually followed them from Chicago. The band works a very authentic, original sound.”