His club is just starting to gain recognition in the area. While still located outside the immediate Plymouth area, McGee said the club's Wareham location is a 20-minute drive from Exit 4 in Plymouth. Another local club, Handlebar Harry's of Plymouth, hosts a rock showcase on Wednesday nights. The grand prize for winning the battle of the bands includes 30 hours of studio time - a valuable gift for a beginning band. However, to qualify for the Rock Slide, bands need to send a tape containing two original songs and two cover songs.
Some locals maintain that the area music scene is improving.
Morelli does offer some hope for unplugged original rock at the Book and Bean coffee shop next door. It's the best place for all-ages shows where you don't have to worry about alcohol. We could get into all-ages acoustic shows in the future. Another new venue that hopes to have music is the Plymouth Bay Brewing Company, but Landers reports they'll be looking to book mostly blues acts. Landers handles booking for Bert's Cove and allows that the only original artist to play upstairs has been Tiffany Park, and that was only after she built an audience playing the downstairs room.