The meal is over. It sure was great, but all things must come to an end. This weekend, local giants Fine Dining will play their last show ever, leaving a void in both the Columbus and Athens music scenes.
Together for two-and-a-half years, Fine Dining wowed the bars of Athens and later the stages of Columbus. But with the continuing polarization of Fine Dining's principle songwriters, the band could not last, said guitarist and vocalist Chris DeVille.
It just feels like we want to branch out in different directions
he said.
Vocalist, guitarist and keyboardist David Holmes, who said that he and DeVille started out with the same indie pop background, echoed those sentiments. As DeVille continued down the same road, Holmes said he wanted to try new, more dance-oriented songs on his keyboards.
The band was fun while it lasted, Holmes said, especially when they would play in Athens, where people responded much better to Fine Dining's music than audiences in Columbus. But when it came down to it, he said, nobody in the band was really having fun anymore.
With DeVille's graduation from Ohio University last year, the band sort of lost touch with the Athens crowd even though drummer Jerry Green and bassist Zach Thompson still attend OU, Holmes said.
For the past six months, Fine Dining embarked on a more ambitious practice schedule to help iron out some of the band's inconsistencies in their performances, DeVille said.
Some shows we would just kill and other shows we sounded like we just formed a month ago he said.
Holmes said he is playing keyboards with cover band The Old Dutch Mustard Company and Kessel Run, which also features former Fine Diner Doug Patterson. DeVille said he wants to start a new musical project, but is not overly anxious about it.
Both DeVille and Holmes said what they will miss most about Fine Dining is playing the songs they love for an audience. DeVille said he always enjoyed nights at Casa Cantina, 4 W. State St.; The Union, 18 W. Union St.; and the Front Room at Baker University Center and putting together sets that went well.
I'm definitely going to miss (performing)
DeVille said. That's almost tied into my whole college experience.
Red Dahlia, Miranda Sound and The Kyle Sowashes will open for the Fine Dining Farewell Show at 10 p.m. Saturday at The Union, 18 W. Union St. Cover is $3.
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Chris Yonker
