Since its sweaty inception at the VFW more than a decade ago, some of the particulars of the Missoula institution Rock Lotto have changed, but its core operating principle has not: Dozens of local musicians (of ranging experience, since all are welcome) get randomly placed in one-off bands, learn a bunch of sweet cover songs over the course of a couple months, and then play their hearts out to an adoring crowd for one night and one night only.
And sure, we may be living through environmental end-times, and sure, Greg Gianforte may soon be the only person left in Montana who can afford a two-bedroom on the Northside, but let it all be damned: Rock Lotto ain’t goin’ nowhere.
In the past, Rock Lotto has taken place on small stages, including the VFW, the Palace (now Three in the Side), and the ZACC. This year, for the first time, Rock Lotto is coming to the Wilma. The March 23 event, billed as “44 Days,” will feature six squads of Missoula’s strummers, drummers, singers and fast fingers. Each ad-hoc ensemble will tackle songs from an assigned album, all of which were released over the course of 44 days in 1991: records by Soundgarden, Guns N’ Roses, Pearl Jam, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Metallica and even that flash-in-the-pan trio from Washington with a nose for youthful angst…or deodorant.
“Seeing those albums stacked up together, can you believe they all came out over the course of a few weeks?” Rock Lotto’s organizer, Jon Van Dyke, remarked on a recent sleepy afternoon at the Union Club. “[In 1991] I was going into my junior year of high school. It was fertile ground for me,” he added.
Van Dyke, who will serve as this year’s emcee, has been involved in Rock Lotto since he performed as a vocalist during the inaugural event, in 2013. “[The room] was full, all night long,” Van Dyke recalled with a smile.
Rock Lotto began as the brainchild of local restaurateur / pro wrestling impresario / man with a voice that carries long distances Jason McMackin. Van Dyke quickly became involved on the event production side, and eventually took over much of McMackin’s musically inclined cat-herding duties.
Each year, the assembled bands tackle different themes, as dictated by the organizers. In 2020, for instance, each group handled a different decade from the 1950s onward. At last year’s sold-out show at the ZACC—the first Rock Lotto since the COVID pandemic—the musical selections all came from 1984. (Yes, the Talking Heads cover band brought The Big Suit. I brought ear plugs.)
And each year, cash raised by Rock Lotto goes to good causes, including the archival project Lost Sounds Montana, Footloose Montana and the ZACC. This year, the money will benefit Missoula’s community radio station, KFGM, which regularly broadcasts—in addition to interviews, local news and blues, rock, funk, etc.—some of the weirdest, most abrasive shit I’ve ever heard coming out of my car speakers. May it live forever. (Van Dyke currently serves as the station’s board president.)
Beyond the rare opportunity for local musicians to take the gigantic Wilma stage, this year offers Van Dyke an additional thrill as well: a new cast of musicians willing to throw themselves into the deep end. “I didn’t recognize more than half of the people that came out. It’s not all younger people. It’s people who’ve always played guitar at home, and don’t have band experience,” he told me. “We get to create an underground community opportunity for people to get involved. I feel pretty happy about that, on its own merits.”
Rock Lotto touches down at the Wilma on Saturday, March 23. Doors at 7, show at 8. Tickets cost $20 plus fees. Advance tickets and more info here.
