Video game rockers who dedicate hours of practice to playing plastic guitars and drums could finally take their act to the main stage.
Rock Band Live, a multi-city tour featuring bands Panic at the Disco, Dashboard Confessional, Plain White T's and The Cab, will take over the O'Connell Center on Saturday at 7 p.m.
Before the concert, fans will be given the chance to play Rock Band 2, and the band that scores the highest will play live onstage in between bands' performances.
Even the touring musicians play after show gigs as animated rockers.
"Every single day, at the exact same time, we play," said Alex Marshall, singer, guitarist and pianist for The Cab.
"We have alter-egos, a side project that just plays Rock Band."
The band's single "Bounce" will be released soon on the free downloadable pack, Marshall said.
"I'm going to see if I can play it, but I probably can't," he laughed.
The tour, which began in early October, runs throughout the country and is booked in four cities in Florida.
Tickets for Saturday's show are on sale for $28 with a Gator 1 Card. Tickets for the general public are $35.
lthough The Cab is still touring in a van, as opposed to the buses the other bands travel in, the Rock Band Live tour has brought them to larger venues than they have played before.
The Cab has followed the rock bandwagon in a van for the past month, instead of a bus, growing from smaller venues during the summer.
"Knowing that you're coming to a huge arena show every day and there's going to be a lot of people, it pushes us," he said.
Shortly after they graduated from high school and joined a few tours, the band is returning to Gainesville for a second time after a tour with We The Kings.
"Last time we were there, it was a fun show, so it should be a good time," he said.
The Cab, a Las Vegas band, was signed to Decaydance Records in May 2007 after giving a demo to Panic at the Disco at a concert.
"Everybody on tour has just grown together and has become friends, and that's really cool," he said.
Panic at the Disco even bought The Cab costumes for its Halloween show. Like their alter egos offstage, the musicians took on new identities: a crab, a banana, a chili pepper and a rat.
Marshall said the national tour has been a bit overwhelming for the young band.
"Being on tour with all the bands you grew up listening to has been a real privilege and an honor," he said.
