The organizers of Charlottetown, P.E.I.'s Canada Day concert got more than they bargained for when rockers Nickelback laced their performance with obscenities and poured beer on some audience members -- actions one councillor called "totally unacceptable."
The Canadian group headlined the city's Festival of Lights, an event organizers described as the largest party east of Ottawa.
But according to the Charlottetown Guardian newspaper, Mayor Clifford Lee said at a Monday night council meeting that he has been overwhelmed with complaints by people who were at the show. Organizer Tourism Charlottetown had pegged the concert as a family event and asked the bands to watch their language, but the request was apparently ignored.
"The number of emails I've got from visitors from off-Island, the number of phone calls I've gotten, the number of people who approached me on the street is just unbelievable," Lee said on Monday, as cited by the paper.
"People were really, really disappointed and really upset."
Also on the bill were Staind, Hedley, Finger Eleven, Buckcherry and Default.
Though obscenities were used throughout the event, it was the Nickelback set that most were offended by, according to reports.
In addition to frequent use of the F-word, the band also reportedly rolled out a table that was filled with beer and began throwing it on members of the audience in a non-drinking section of the crowd that included underage teens and children.
Some city councillors were enraged by the band's behaviour, and questioned the wisdom of hiring such a group for an event intended for the entire family.
Coun. Rob Lantz, who attended the concert, described it as "ridiculous" and said that asking "a bad boy rock star to not use profanity is simply adding fuel to the fire."
Others called on the band to make amends by returning to Charlottetown to perform a free show -- this time a family friendly version.
Mayor Mitchell called for a clause in future contracts that would ensure bands only get paid once the performance is finished, and only if it is profanity-free.
"I honestly think, as a city, we have to step back and determine how we want to promote Charlottetown," he said. "Is that what we want people all across the world to think of Charlottetown."
