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54-40 rocks the fest

54-40 headlines opening night at Peachfest
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Hundreds of people packed Okanagan Lake Park Wednesday night to see 54-40 headline Penticton Peach Festival’s opening night. The fun continues with Trooper on Thursday and Aaron Pritchett Friday.

When 54-40 hit the right notes, they rocked Okanagan Lake Park for Penticton Peach Festival’s opening night.

Plenty of movement on stage from guitarist-vocalist Neil Osbourne and guitarist Dave Genn spurred the same from a crowd that ranged from 40-somethings and higher to those in their early-20s.

Hundreds of attendees packed the park for the show, between the dozens dancing up front and the dozens more who enjoyed a relaxed time in their lawn chairs.

Osbourne and Genn’s chemistry, too, was something to get excited about — a listener could sense the rhythm laid down by Osbourne’s rhythm guitar fed into the energy of Genn’s lead and vice versa.

Osbourne wasn’t shy of theatrics on stage — when he wasn’t playing his guitar, he was performing a sort of pantomime on stage, which only added to the energy of the show.

But it wasn’t all fun and games. The band tried out some new songs, to be released on an upcoming album, which the band played with an energy that seemed hollow compared to their performances of earlier releases, and lacked the more complex solos from Genn.

That was highlighted by a coinciding apparent technical difficulty in the band’s light show, which, for some time, skipped between no lights and a strobe that was unfit for the song playing at the time.

But as the band kicked back into their tried and trues, and as the lights kicked back into working action, 54-40 and the diverse crowd that came to see them appeared to regain their energy for the remainder of the night.

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54-50 guitarist-vocalist Neil Osbourne wasn’t shy of theatrics on stage on Peach Fest’s opening night Wednesday.
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There was plenty of chemistry between guitarist Dave Genn (left) and guitarist-vocalist Neil Osbourne of 54-40 Wednesday night.
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Band 54-40 rocked the opening night of the Penticton Peach Festival Wednesday night in Okanagan Lake Park. Dustin Godfrey/Western News
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Band 54-40 rocked the opening night of the Penticton Peach Festival Wednesday night in Okanagan Lake Park. Dustin Godfrey/Western News
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54-40 guitarist-vocalist Neil Osbourne was active on stage, which translated to plenty of movement from the crowd, which packed Okanagan Lake Park Wednesday night.
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Band 54-40 rocked the opening night of the Penticton Peach Festival Wednesday night in Okanagan Lake Park. Dustin Godfrey/Western News