This is the best place to see local Delaware bands & it's not a music venue or even a bar
A year ago, Mike Koh was busily running the show at the legendary Jackson Inn in Wilmington ― just about every part of it.
He booked the bands, promoted the concerts, made the flyers and engineered the live performances from his inglorious perch wedged along the back wall near the bathrooms of the bar, which dated back to the 1700s.
But then the unthinkable happened: The Jackson Inn was sold and closed for good, leaving one of the only original music barroom stages in the state dark and Koh with no place to host his indie rock-heavy slate of Delaware acts.
Instead of packing up his Koh Show production and finding another home ― a tough thing to find post-pandemic as the number of similar small Delaware venues have slowly dried up ― he decided to go digital.
Even before Jackson Inn hosted its marathon finale with Koh at the helm, he launched Koh Show Live, a weekly livestream concert from the basement of his home in Fairfax off Concord Pike.
Gone is the swirl of music fans, the clinking bar bottles and hustling bartenders. In its place emerged a one-stop shop (kohshow.live) to sample Delaware's original music world from the comfort of your sofa.
Along with Koh is a team of volunteer staff made up of fellow local musicians, all working to create the local music showcase, hosted by guitarist Chris Maloney of Wilmington progressive rock quintet MEGA.
"It's such a super warm atmosphere," says Aaron Poole, leader of Wilmington reggae/funk/hip-hop act Full Carbon Get Up, which performed on the show in August. "You can tell it's like kids in a playhouse just having a ball doing it."
Live from a Wilmington-area basement, it's Koh Show Live!
The 40-episode first season of Koh Show Live just wrapped up in December with 79 performances featuring 73 different acts, mostly from Delaware with a few from the surrounding region.
At first, the show was sparse: Two fixed webcams captured the performances in front of a set that consisted of the gray cinder block foundation of Koh's home with exposed wooden beams overhead ― a true underground show experience even if you weren't there in person.
Over the past year, the show has muscled up with eight cameras, including DSLR cameras and gimbal stabilizers with live operators covering the action. A 24-channel mixer has been paired with an OBS live switching system, allowing a producer to jump from shot to shot on the fly for the livestream.
Throw in a bunch of new lighting, soundproofing and an all-black backdrop with a snazzy black-and-white sign baring the Koh Show Live logo and the internet show now looks less "Wayne's World" and more NPR "Tiny Desk Concert."
"We've made a lot of progress," says Koh, who owns the guitar repair shop Koh Guitars and also performs in three local bands including MEGA, Mothman Properties and STRVWMVN.
Not only does he livestream the performances on Mondays at 8 p.m., but the show's YouTube channel acts as an archive for the livestream, the produced final full show and bite-sized videos broken down by song and artist.
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Among the acts who have performed so far: Grace Vonderkuhn, The Bullets, Katie Dill, Big Skull, Bright Corners, Gentle Jones, Von Holden and Death By Indie.
Following the first season's Dec. 18 finale, the second season of Koh Show Live returns Monday, March 4, at 8 p.m. with Wilmington alternative rockers Graver's Lane and Newark's Sharks With Frickin Laser Beams as the musical guests.
'Doing it for the love of original music'
Full Carbon Get Up's Poole hails Koh and his team for their efforts to help keep the independent original music scene alive and visible.
"The show is so organic," says Poole, who also hosts Canopy Crow Productions' "It's Bizness Time" music/interview/networking series at Wilmington's Stich House Brewery every Wednesday night at 6. "They are doing it for the love of original music, don't want to see that die out in our area and know there's tons of talent in this area.
"And to do it on Monday, the lamest night of the week when there's nothing else going on: You can just tune in and see what the original artists are up to in this area."
Koh, who is originally from Baltimore and moved to the state to attend the University of Delaware, doesn't make any money off the venture. But that's not what it's truly about for any of them, really.
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To help defray the costs and spread the word about the second season of the show, Koh & Co. will host a live show ― not in his basement, but at the Kennett Flash (102 Sycamore Alley, Kennett Square, Pennsylvania) as a fundraiser for the program. Tickets will cost $10.
The all-ages show will be held Saturday, March 2, from 5 to 11 p.m. with seven acts on the bill: Bad Eyesight, Think Machine, Abydos, Eastern Elk, NO SIR E, Cait. and Red Smith & Friends.
"Koh Show Live doubles as a free video recording for the bands," Koh notes, allowing bands to use the final product to show promotors when trying to book new shows at new venues and to share with fans across social media. "And it allows bands to legitimize themselves in a way that you can't do with a one-off show.
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"One night of music can be forgettable in some ways. You can have a great time and like the music, but not remember any of it. With this, one performance can ripple out."
Zo? August, singer for Elkton, Maryland-based indie folk trio Red Birds, performed at the Jackson Inn's farewell show and re-teamed with Koh just a month later for their first of two Koh Show Live appearances.
She says he's the glue that has helped keep the indie scene alive in New Castle County.
"It feels really special, like a continuation of what was happening at the Jackson Inn," she says. "It was so sad when that shut down and it felt like we were all going to be disconnected. This is a way for all of us to stay together in a way."
Have a story idea? Contact Ryan Cormier of Delaware Online/The News Journal at [email protected] or (302) 324-2863. Follow him on Facebook (@ryancormier) and X (@ryancormier).
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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Koh Show Live brings a stream of original Delaware rock bands to you
