CASTLETON—Castleton’s neighborhood hot spot, Blue Cat Bistro, has partnered with George Nostrand of Rutland’s A Sound Space to bring 10 shows to their venue, every Friday through the end of the year, starting Nov. 3.
The bar/ bistro is owned by John Rehlen, who also ownsthe Castleton Pizza Place & Deli, the Castleton Village Store, and the Birdseye Diner. Rehlen reached out to George Nostrand of A Sound Space after hearing about his successful bookings at Scotch Hill Brewing and Poultney Pub.
“We heard good things about George and have been wanting to do more music here,” said Rehln. “There are so many things to manage around here that having someone who knows a lot of musicians is really helpful.”
The series features a different local solo artist every Friday, who will be playing from 6-9 p.m.
“I’m really excited about this line-up,” said Nostrand. “It’s the most diverse I’ve booked so far, as far as age, genre and style goes. I have some veterans I’ve known for years, but also some young artists I’m really excited to be able to showcase.”
Patrick Sargent of Arlington, opened the first night of the event.
“I met Patrick at a record store day event and he oozed charisma,” said Nostrand. “He backed it up when he got on stage and I’ve been trying to find a place to book him ever since.”
Nostrand started booking musicians under the label of “Trust Us Music” in recent years in an effort to support the local music scene.
“I had seen some shady deals with another booking agent and I wanted to show people the right way to do it. I work very closely with both the venues and the artists to facilitate shows with low drama that run smoothly. I don’t take a dime from the artists. I get paid by the venue and offer them a number of services beyond just lining up artists.”
Nostrand, who used to work for the Rutland Herald, puts his writing skills to work, writing press releases and putting together promotional materials for the venues. He also helps make sure there’s a quality house p.a. system.
“Having a house p.a. system makes life so much easier for musicians,” says Nostrand. “Rather than having to haul all their gear around, they can show up and know they can plug-in and play without a lot of fuss or extra time.”
There are 10 musicians in all, representing a wide variety of styles and coming from all walks of life.
Full schedule:
Nov. 3 – Bob Recupero
Nov. 10th – Rebecca Padula
Nov. 17th – Carl Antone
Nov. 24th – George Nostrand
Dec. 1 – Cammy Errington
Dec. 8th – Mitch Terricciano
Dec. 15th – Erin Powers
Dec. 22nd – Silas Hamilton
Dec. 29th – Liz Reedy
