Arch Allies | Time Music Agency

Arch Allies is Back!

Ryan Wachtel — Mon, 07 Oct 2024 22:18:48 +0000

You heard right! Founder Kevin Todd has come out of retirement to rejoin the legendary Arch Allies and he’s brought the band back to Time Music Agency!

A quick explanation from the man himself: “We’ve heard it from promoters, venues and most of all fans. What happened to Arch Allies. It’s not the same. We want it the way it was. Well, I tried to retire and thought that allowing the former band subcontractors and our former agent to create a “new, bigger, better Arch Allies” as they said, would be the smart play. However, their vision of Arch Allies took out what Arch Allies was all about. It was about adding in more and more bands until we were nothing but a cover bar band. It certainly wasn’t about making sure the 6-pack of rock that we were known for was still performed and done with pristine vocals and harmonies.

So, I listened. My wife said we can retire later and I’m back with some of the old members of Arch Allies, some new ones, recreating what made Arch Allies a favorite from coast to coast. We will again be playing the big 6 bands, Journey, Styx, REO, Boston, Bon Jovi and Def Leppard. Yes, we will have a chaser – depending on the night, we will have a female vocalist do 2 or 3 songs while the male vocalists changes or we will have two male vocalists.

We are adding shows to our schedule as we get up and running, but we are not going to be over-performing just to make a buck. We are not going to be playing in town all over where you get tire of seeing us. We will be playing very select shows so that when you see us, you know it will be a true SHOW. Not just another night at the bar. We were always known for our SHOW. Great vocals. Great Music. Great Fans. We want that back! I am too proud of all that Arch Allies has become in this business to walk away and let it fade out with less than enthusiastic people performing when they would rather be doing other things.

So, we hope you will give Arch Allies another chance. Think of how we were 3 or 4 years ago. High energy. Great vocals. Caring about performing so that everyone that comes out gets what they pay for. A great show and meeting and greeting you and being one big family again.

Hope to see you soon!” Todd

Star Trib interviews TMA on the popularity of tribute bands

Chad Higgins — Thu, 15 Oct 2015 22:08:40 +0000

Time Music Agency owner, Chad Higgins, was recently interviewed by the Star Tribune on the popularity of tribute bands. For the original article, click here.

The tribute band phenomenon is a sweet-smelling stew of love, memory and obsession — on both sides of the microphone.

The audience is there to recapture the emotions of youth.

“They’re thinking about their high school girlfriends and the good times they had and that time they went to state,” said Chad Ryan Higgins of Time Music Agency in Long Lake, a tribute band booker.

And the artists are driven by a need that they can’t always put into words — so they put it into performance.

“You don’t go out and play someone else’s music unless you’re really connected to it,” Higgins said. “You’re giving an homage to something that’s special to you, and sharing it with other people. Most of these artists are so dedicated that if they didn’t have the musical skills, they’d be doing it at home in the mirror.”

Higgins’s agency books an array of tribute bands, including Ladies of the ’80s (Madonna, Cyndi Lauper and Pat Benatar), Chase & Ovation (Minneapolis funk) and Arch Allies (Journey, Styx and REO Speedwagon). They get the best response at casinos, festivals and suburban bars, he said.

Tribute act audiences want to immerse themselves in their favorite music, said Michael Paepke, another local tribute band booker — especially since the original acts don’t come around often, if at all.

“They don’t want just one or two songs,” he said. “They want a whole set of Rush and a whole set of Journey.” Acts from the ’60s to the ’80s are popular now, but as those generations age, a new wave of tribute acts can’t be far behind, Paepke said.

“I’m sure there will be rap and hip-hop spinoffs,” he said. “There will be L.A. metal and grunge. You’re gonna start seeing Snoop Doggs out there.”

-JOHN REINAN