Calgary music locale aims to keep western spirit alive

Staff at the King Eddy are all wearing facemasks, just one of the safety precautions in place at the music hall for its Boots On Stampede event.

Calgary — Calgary's King Eddy is keeping the Stampede spirit alive with its Boots On event.

Local legendary music hub is encouraging guests to dress western, listen to some live music, enjoy a meal and a drink to celebrate the Stampede spirit.

"We are western folk, we have a western culture, because there is something global going on we shouldn’t completely abandon it," said local musician Jason Valleau. "We are western people and it’s important to keep the tradition alive and keep the culture going."

The Eddy will follow heightened safety measures as set by Alberta Health Services.

"We are only performing instrumental music, no singing, no horns (on stage)," said Valleau. "There will be a guest singing today but they are in a hermetically-sealed booth so that people can sing and play in there, it feels safe."

There will be restricted capacity and guests will have access to hand sanitizer stations when entering the building.

All staff will also be wearing masks.

Boots On will run from July 2 to 11 from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m.