Joey Krom, one half of Peak & Superlfy, a music promoter and party throwing duo based in Penticton, is passionate about music. He lives and breathes it and luckily for Pentictonites, he wants to share it with others. Back in February I had a chance to sit down with him and chat about how Peak & Superfly came to be and how it’s going.

KB: So Peak started up a few years ago?

JK: I lived in Kelowna and had a DJ friend visiting from Sydney, Australia who wanted to throw some shows while he was here. In his day job, he “brands” things, makes website and stuff like that. So we hashed things out over a couple of nights and came up with Peak. We’re in the Okanagan, there’s mountains everywhere, which is one aspect. The other, of course, is the music; the peaks in it where you feel the best.

KB: So it this a pretty big part of your life right now, or just one facet?

JK: It’s a pretty big part of my life, because I really love the music.

KB: So Peak all started from throwing parties every now and again?

JK: I had thrown a couple of parties when I lived in Kelowna. In Penticton no one’s doing anything and in Kelowna everyone’s doing everything. So when I moved to Penticton, everything was totally different. There was nothing going on. You can go to beach and such in the summer, but as soon as September hits, the whole town dies. So that’s when we threw our first official show with Peak & Superfly. A friend wanted to throw a big birthday party and Jonny [aka Superfly] knew someone at Bar One and after talking to them, the party was born. Just like that. It was a really successful party. So we decided to keep doing it and now we’re up to about 4 shows a month.

That’s what our motto is, to foster community. It’s about building ties and making this place a bit better. We recently raised $550 to go towards the South Okanagan Children’s Charity. And since then, on January 13th, Friday the 13th, we held a Halloween party at Voodoo’s where we had a big food hamper out for a food drive for the food bank.

KB: That’s a great idea as most places only do food drives before Christmas and kind of forget about the food bank until the next big holiday. So do you think this will become a fixture in your future events? Some kind of charitable component to the parties?

JK: Yeah, we’d like to. At least every once in awhile. I’d like to do one than one gala a year, cause they’re fun and because they support a good cause. And why not, if people are willing to give? 

KB: So what do you think of the venues available to you in Penticton?

JK: So far, they’ve been great. We couldn’t ask for more of our venues. I was a little unsure of how Voodoo’s would run but it’s turned out really, really well  – we do all ages events there, as their license is a bit different. Bar One is spectacular. They give us a lot of freedom with our events. We bring a lot of people in – 150 people every two weeks –  which makes us and them happy. 

KB: So what is Peak & Superfly bringing to your events that is making them so successful?

JK: I’ve been asking myself the same question because apparently people have tried to do this before but they’ve only gotten one or two shows off before it fizzled out. I like to think it’s because we don’t charge anything for our shows. It’s all by donation. In Kelowna, it’s $10, $15, $20 a show. People can’t afford that, especially in Kelowna when there’s a show every two days. 

KB: What about the music you bring? Do you think that has an effect?

JK: For sure. Our music is great. Our DJs are fantastic. We’re so lucky to have them.

KB: So how are you able to get these DJs here? Do you just email them?

JK: Yeah, actually I do. In fact, I just spent a good chunk of my morning doing just that. Sending out random messages to some of my favourite artists. I’ve already got a few responses back. I’m looking forward to the summer, cause the lineups will be good. 

KB: Who else in the Okanagan is booking artists similar to Peak & Superfly?

JK:  I believe Footwerk does most of the booking for Sapphire [in Kelowna] and Flipside does most of the booking for Level [Nightclub, also in Kelowna]. Flipside is doing well. It just started with two guys at UBCO and now it’s everywhere. Except Penticton. We’re here. No one else is really even bothering.

KB: That’s funny hey? Penticton gets really bopping in the summer and those people don’t leave. You’d think that people would realize that.

JK: Well yeah, we get 150 people to Bar One every two weeks. I’ve talked with other promoters and they say “well, it just wasn’t the right time” or “it’s was this or that”. And we just jumped in and it’s working. 

KB: How much do you think the passion of the organizers factors into the success?

JK: It’s important. My passion for music is bigger than anything. I listen to it all the time, constantly and we do this for free, because we love it. Some promoters are doing it for the money. All of our money goes back into funding the next show,and  buying new speakers which will make it cheaper for us to run the shows. 

So what kind of music can you expect a Peak & Superfly event, well check out this exclusive set from DJ Freddy J that Joey shared with oook in an oook music exclusive back in March.  Like what you hear? The next Peak & Superfly happens April 20th at Voodoo’s. Check out their facebook page for details.