Iron Smoke Distillery Hosts Exclusive “LIVE BAND” Karaoke

Fairport, N.Y.—Rock star fantasies come to life with Iron Smoke Distillery’s “Live Band” Kickass Karaoke.  The quintessential bourbon bar is offering singers their very own opportunity to perform live with a four-piece band.  Even the slogan “KickAss Karaoke” is catching fire as word spreads and popularity grows.

“This is a dream come true for people who want to know what it feels like to be a rock star,” said Tommy Brunett, the distillery co-founder.  “You can sing, scream, play air guitar—whatever you want—and the cool thing is, everyone in the audience is cheering you on and celebrating your kick-ass-ness.”

The event has become so popular that instead of hosting it just once a month, Brunett has made it a fixture on Wednesday nights, every other week. In addition to being part owner of the distillery, Brunett is the leader of the Tommy Brunett Band and has a long history of playing music on local, national and international stages.

“No one else is doing “live band” karaoke around Rochester. We have the top musical shoguns in town backing up these singers and honestly, that really raises the whole experience up to the maximum level,” said Brunett. “The real magic comes when a karaoke singer is clearly not a pro but delivers the goods with full vigor!”

Band leader Tyler Norton serves as the emcee each week. He also plays rhythm guitar. The Fairport father of three is a fan favorite because he headlines with M80’s, a tribute band which plays at a number of local bars, including Iron Smoke.   Bottom line, Norton understands his karaoke assignment:  Make it fun for the audience, make the singers feel comfortable, and keep them on beat.

“It takes a lot of guts to stand up on stage and sing in front of a crowd.  We hear people say, ‘I’m so nervous. I’ve never done this before,’ so it’s my job to help them along.””

Norton recalls being at Iron Smoke Distillery last fall when Brunett began ruminating about “live band” karaoke, recommending musicians from local bands he played with or who played for Brunett’s own band.

“Tommy knows everybody in the local music scene and is great at bringing people together. It didn’t take him long to pull together an awesome group,” said Norton.

Joining Norton in the karaoke band is Brian Eberts who is the bassist for Tommy Brunett Band as well as Appetite For Voltage. His brother, Bill Eberts, who plays drums for the 80’s band Breakfast Club, provides percussion and Gary Rose, from the famed groups Reporter and Skycoasters, handles lead guitar and extra backing vocals.

“We have a play list of probably 250-300 songs and we add a few more each week just for fun.  You just write down the song you want to sing, your name, and your email and you wait for me to call you up on stage,” said Norton.

Kick-ass Karaoke is a simple concept. There is a microphone stand positioned in the middle of the stage.  An i-pad is attached to the mic pole and that’s where the singers can see the lyrics to their song. They scroll as they sing.

The beauty of a live back-up band is the musicians’ ability to adjust to novice performers.  If singers miss their cue, the band plays the intro again. If they fumble through a verse, the musicians fast-forward to the chorus.  Norton often sings harmony to keep the rookies on track.  If anyone freezes in front of the crowd, audience members will pick up the lyrics and the band just keeps playing in the background.

“We never let anyone hang out to dry,” said Norton.  “We want everyone going away from this saying, ‘I kicked-ass singing karaoke!’”