By Brett McMahon
The Nickel and Dimes band will ring in 2023 with a special night at the Royal Community Center.
Not only will their tight harmonies be on display, but there will also be a meal, party favors, Champagne toast at midnight, and more. This will mark the second straight year the band has headlined the event.
Ten years ago, lead singer Nicole Mohr approached her dad, Gary Collett about working up a few songs in a practice setting, along with Dave Cooper on guitar, who had played in other groups. Mohr says she has been singing practically before she was talking, so her love of music is second nature. After practicing a bit, the three decided it was time to play in public. Their first shows were acoustic sets showcasing those harmonies and doing covers from all genres and eras of music.
The following year, the band released an album of their fans’ favorite covers and continued playing concerts. The group has since evolved into a band of five, adding Gary “Wally” Wallace on base and Petey Thomas on drums. With five personalities, there are moments when nerves can test their patience, but Mohr says they always work through any differences because at the end of the day, they are all family.
Although Nickel And Dimes plays primarily in the local area, they would play anywhere so long as their schedules allowed. To date, the farthest distance the band has traveled for a show was in Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri. Despite Mohr being considered the lead vocalist, she actually shares those duties with her dad, Gary Collett and they each sing lead for about half of each concert.
Thus far, the band delivers covers, but Nicole has penned some original material and has some interest in one day recording some of that material. In fact, she says the band toyed with the idea of including originals in their sets, but time constraints have made it challenging for her to gain momentum with songwriting. Another aspect she would find interesting is playing an instrument. Mohr has tinkered with the piano and ukulele but has never taken it any farther. As for her musical influences, she points to Miranda Lambert and Adele, not only for their musical talent and stage presence but also for their strength and use of their music in positive ways.
Not even the pandemic stopped the band from performing. Mohr says they faced some challenges due to restrictions set forth by venues and government officials, but they kept on playing, despite not having as many in the crowd. Even last year’s New Year’s Eve show in Royal was a bit scaled back in attendance with some of those restrictions still in place.
Ringing in 2023 is especially exciting for the band because Logan Allen of St. Joseph will be joining them to play the show as a supporting act.
Dinner will be catered by Joe’s Country Diner in Arthur and it is included in the cost of tickets, which are still available for the event. The $50 admission covers the meal and all the extras. Those tickets can be purchased on the band’s Facebook page: http://facebook.com/nickelanddimes or by contacting a band member. There will be tickets sold at the door, but not until after the meal has been served.
