Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, March 22, 1990 TAG: 9003221729
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV6 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: CHRISTINA MOTLEY NEW RIVER VALLEY BUREAU
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
New bands - Rare Aquarium (previously the New Night Outlaws), Digital Witchcraft and Rake - will join some of the original six Life Fest bands at downtown Blacksburg's Buddy's.
Net proceeds will go to Tech's Student Health Services to promote AIDS awareness. Life Fest compact discs, tapes, shirts and condoms will be sold.
What began as a one-time AIDS benefit concert has blossomed into a video, lectures, new talent, an in-the-works Life Fest novel by Anne Cheney of Blacksburg, and out-of-town CD and tape sales.
Life Fest continues to grow, said Life Fest coordinator Cheney, who teaches English at Tech.
"We originally thought we could donate $8,000 immediately following the September concert, but I've learned that it takes time," she said. "It's just like the publishing business. You can't sell all your books in one week. There are bursts and there are slow times."
To date, Life Fest has donated $1,000 to local artist Tom Butterfield for designing and distributing a poster, Cheney said. The poster includes Life Fest's motto ("AIDS is everybody's problem") and is available at Tech and around Blacksburg.
That falls far short of Life Fest's original goal of $29,000 to fight AIDS. Money from tickets, contributions and sales of the $15 CDs and $10 tape have just covered expenses, Cheney said.
Life Fest failed to reach its goal for three reasons, Cheney said. "A lot of people did not deliver their pledges, production costs for the album were much higher than anticipated and we were not able to sell beer at the concert, which cut our attendance in half."
At a patron party April 1, Cheney said, she will present another $500 to $1,000 to Tech's Student Health Services for AIDS education and treatment.
On May 1, Life Fest will begin out-of-town disc and tape sales in addition to releasing the Life Fest video, "Just Like a Church But Completely Different," which focuses on a day in the life of a Blacksburg musician.
The $29,000 goal followed that of Life Fest's predecessor, Rock for Life, a record and concert produced by several Richmond bands that donated $10,000 to the Medical College of Virginia for AIDS research.
Life Fest must go on because AIDS is out there and will continue to kill people, Cheney said.
The musicians are dedicated to the cause, she said. Many believe they can make a difference. Life Fest's philosophy - AIDS awareness not only locally but nationally - is widely known and is increasing AIDS awareness every day, she said.
Cheney said she sees her students more openly talking about condom use and the interest in another big concert is enough to show that Life Fest is making a difference in Blacksburg.
Also, the Life Fest compact disc made Books Strings & Things' weekly Top 10 list twice.
"To know Life Fest sold more than the Rolling Stones says something," Cheney said.
Just last week Cheney, along with others involved in Blacksburg's music scene, went to a five-day American Culture Association conference in Toronto, Canada. Cheney presented the Life Fest story, encompassing the importance of condom use and the fatality of AIDS, to an audience of 2,000.
The National Condom Conference, sponsored by Safetex Corp., was another opportunity Cheney had to speak to thousands in Williamsburg on behalf of all those involved with Life Fest.
by CNB