Fresh off of Friday's album announcement, punk act Bayside is taking fans by surprise again with the news of the upcoming Interrobang Tour. A series of small club shows that see the band playing some of their smallest rooms in years, The Interrobang Tour kicks off on Nov. 6 and features special guests Sincere Engineer and Capstan. Presale and VIP tickets are available now at bayside.shofetti.com. General on-sale begins this Friday, Sept. 27.
Additionally, for the first time ever, Bayside is giving fans the power to decide who will be performing alongside the legends on their upcoming tour. Over the next few days, they are inviting unsigned, non-touring bands to submit themselves for the opportunity to open at their local show date (please note that submissions will not be accepted for Huntington, NY show). Fans will then be able to vote for who they would like to see perform, with one band being selected for each show.
On the decision to put together this contest, frontman Anthony Raneri shares:
"We put this contest together to try and give 29 different bands that jolt of energy that we felt like we needed at times. A chance to play your songs and be your best in front of a room full of people
The rules are pretty simple, we are only accepting submissions from bands that are not signed and aren't touring. The definition of those things is at our discretion. That's pretty much it. We won't disqualify any bands based on genre or even our opinions of them. If you are a local, unsigned band, you are welcome to be a part of the contest.
The contest is fan voting. This means that your fans or friends will come and vote and whoever gets the most votes will open the show in their city. The contest will live on the Bayside website for everyone to see with links to all of the band's music. We encourage our fans to listen to these bands that are working hard and give them a shot. If you're a Bayside fan just heading to our site to pick up tickets or the new record, we would love for you to listen to at least the bands that are submitted for your city and vote. You may find your new favorite band right in your backyard.
'Pay to play' has become a popular term to describe the practice of local bands having to either buy on to bigger shows or sell advance tickets to earn their spot. This isn't a that. We have always tried to treat every band that opens for us as a valued member of the show or tour. Everyone deserves to be there and we are thankful for everyone there whether they are in the crowd, on the stage or working the box office. You will be paid to play. You can set up merch. You can soundcheck."
The deadline to enter is Friday, Sept. 27. Enter here. Voting lasts from Sept. 30 to Oct. 25.
