Eighties rock group, A Flock of Seagulls, took over the Fred Anderson stage at Peterborough MusicFest stage to the delight of thousands of music lovers who filled Del Crary Park on Wednesday night.
“I love my ’80s music, so I’m very excited they’re here in Peterborough today,” said Sheri Glisinski.
Glisinski took a cue from the band’s hey days and styled her hair in a sweeping up do, which she joked was not intentional.
“My hair just appeared like this today,” she said with a laugh.
Some fans, like Sandi Reid, camped out hours before the show started. Reid was in the park with a few chairs and cooler full of cold drinks at 2 p.m., staking out a prime spot for the 8 p.m. show.
“I’m in it for the long haul, and I can’t wait until it starts,” she said with a grin.
Mike Score, the longtime lead singer and founding member of the band, said he knows shows like Wednesday night’s attract a lot of longtime fans.
The band will play the hits for them, he said, adding that it’s his hope that new fans checking out the show will be inspired to explore their work a little further.
“It takes them to the next step, which is, ‘Oh, I saw them live and they were great, maybe now I’ll download some of their stuff or buy an album or something,’ and from then on, they’re hooked,” Score said.
A Flock of Seagulls is the first of two ’80s groups to play MusicFest this week, kicking off what organizers have dubbed, “Retro Week.” Singer Howard Jones plays MusicFest on Saturday.
MusicFest general manager Tracey Randall was anticipating a big crowd on both nights. The ’80s, she said, is a great era for music.
“The ’80s were pretty cool, so we’re really excited that we could bring them together in one week. We haven’t had ’80s on our stage since Platinum Blonde,” she said.
MusicFest shows begin at 8 p.m.