Bemidji’s Empty Cooler Band Performing 1st Ever Concert on Star Island

Live music shows and concerts are common in the summertime, but it’s a little less common for them to take place on an island.

The Empty Cooler Band has been playing gigs in and around the Bemidji area for over a decade, but they’re now looking to play a kind of show that they’ve never done before. The four-person ensemble is set to perform near Star Island in Cass Lake this upcoming Saturday, July 19th.

The band has been planning the show for months, and this will be their first ever show on the waters of Star Island. They plan on setting up on a barge there, and people can anchor their boats along the beach and enjoy the live show. The afternoon of activities is being brought about by local sponsors.

“Everybody loves music,” said Empty Cooler Band singer/guitarist Gary Yerbich. “Well, let’s just put something together. But putting it together out there to where it’s a little more organized, that’s the difficulty of it. I mean, getting a barge, getting the stage set up, the docks. It’s pretty cool to be going out there and being in the place that I kind of grew up and had fun on the lake all the time. I just want to show my appreciation, and man, after we went through the storm, they also got hit pretty, pretty rough. So I thought, ‘God, why not, you know, give them some music?'”

The concert is set to start on Saturday, July 19th at 2 p.m. Along with the music, there will be giveaways, food and drinks, and an after-party that is open to everyone. Free will donations are accepted, but the show itself is free to the public.