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Weekend Roundup 28: Keith Sweat, Bo-Keys, Dead Soldiers

Keith Sweat performs at The Horseshoe Casino in Tunica on Saturday.

Welcome to the 28th edition of my Weekend Roundup. There are a ton of great shows coming up later in August (John Wesley Coleman, Belle & Sebastian, etc.), but this weekend features some pretty good shows too. Support local music and check out as many of the shows listed below as possible! You know you want to see Keith Sweat. 

Friday, August 7th.
Steel City Jug Slammers, 8:00 p.m. at the Hi-Tone, $7.

Weekend Roundup 28: Keith Sweat, Bo-Keys, Dead Soldiers (2)

Captain Munch, 8:00 p.m. at Minglewood Hall, $10-$15.

Weekend Roundup 28: Keith Sweat, Bo-Keys, Dead Soldiers (3)

Devil Train, 10:00 p.m. at Lafayette’s Music Room.

Saturday, August 8th.
Water Spaniel, Strengths, 8:00 p.m. at the Hi-Tone, $7.

Weekend Roundup 28: Keith Sweat, Bo-Keys, Dead Soldiers

Keith Sweat, 8:00 p.m. Horseshoe Casino Tunica, prices vary.

Weekend Roundup 28: Keith Sweat, Bo-Keys, Dead Soldiers (4)

Marcella and her Lovers, 8:00 p.m. at Bar DKDC, $5.

Muck Sticky, 8:00 p.m. at Minglewood Hall, free.
(Sadly, Muck Sticky does not have a video appropriate for this blog.)

The Bo Keys, 10:00 p.m. at Lafayette’s. 

Weekend Roundup 28: Keith Sweat, Bo-Keys, Dead Soldiers (5)

Sunday, August 9th.
Fort Defiance, 8:00 p.m. at the Hi-Tone, $5.

Dead Soldiers, 8:00 p.m. at Bar DKDC, $5.

Weekend Roundup 28: Keith Sweat, Bo-Keys, Dead Soldiers (6)

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Skinny’s Birthday Bash

JD Reager

Skinny McCabe

This weekend the Hi-Tone will host a two-day, all-star celebration in honor of the birthday of the club’s new-ish owner, Brian “Skinny” McCabe.

After serving as general manager for years at the now defunct Highland Strip nightclub Newby’s, McCabe took over the Hi-Tone last December after forming an agreement to purchase it from the previous owner, Jonathan Kiersky. Since then, McCabe has made few changes to the Midtown club, preserving the aesthetics, vibes and entertainment programming that helped turn the Hi-Tone into one of Memphis’ premier music venues.
“It’s been a roller coaster, but not anything I’m not used to,” says McCabe. “It’s a lot of work but I’ve got an amazing cast and crew. It blows me away how so many people are eager to help.”

For his birthday shows (dubbed “Skinny’s Super Sexy All-Star Celebrity Weekend: Birthday Edition”) this Friday and Saturday, McCabe booked some of Memphis’ higher profile acts, including Dead Soldiers, Mark Edgar Stuart, The Memphis Dawls, and Lord T and Eloise.

“I wanted to showcase some of the insane talent our city has to offer to people that may not make it out often. I’ve also been personal friends with most of these folks for years and really dig the music,” he says.

For a complete schedule and ticket information, visit www.hitonememphis.com.

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Weekend Roundup 27: Ghostface Killah, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Lord T and Eloise

Lord T and Eloise play the Hi-Tone this Saturday.

Welcome to the 27th edition of my Weekend Roundup! August begins with a whole slew of high profile artists coming to Memphis, along with great local bands performing all weekend long. Let’s get it on…

Friday, July 31st.
Traveller, 7:30 p.m. at the Levitt Shell, free.

Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Dillon Cooper, 8 p.m. at Minglewood Hall, $15-$200.

Weekend Roundup 27: Ghostface Killah, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Lord T and Eloise

The Chris Robinson Brotherhood, 8 p.m at the New Daisy, $20.

Dead Soldiers, Mark Edgar Stuart, 9 p.m. at the Hi-Tone, $10.

The Sheiks, Time, 10 p.m. at Bar DKDC, $5.

Saturday, August 1st.
The Oh Hellos, 7:30 p.m. at the Levitt Shell, free.

Weekend Roundup 27: Ghostface Killah, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Lord T and Eloise (2)

Lord T and Eloise, Memphis Dawls, 3rd Base Ninja, 8 p.m. at the Hi-Tone, $10.

Weekend Roundup 27: Ghostface Killah, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Lord T and Eloise (3)

Toxie, Ricky and Amy, Chandramama and Sunshine, 9 p.m. at the Lamplighter, $5.

Weekend Roundup 27: Ghostface Killah, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Lord T and Eloise (4)

Patti LaBelle, 8 p.m. at the Horseshoe Casino, prices vary. 

Weekend Roundup 27: Ghostface Killah, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Lord T and Eloise (5)

Sunday, August 2nd.
G Love and the Special Sauce, 10 p.m. at Lafayette’s Music Room.

Weekend Roundup 27: Ghostface Killah, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Lord T and Eloise (6)

Lucas Nelson and the Promise of the Real, 7:30 p.m. at the Levitt Shell, free.

Sounds Like Summer, 8 p.m. at the Hi-Tone, $10.

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KATIEE and Man Control at Amurica Studio

New York City musician KATIEE plays Amurica Studio tonight.

KATIEE is the new project of Katie Eastern, formerly of the experimental rock trio Young People. Eastern is releasing her debut 7″, PASSERSBY, via Selfish Agenda on August 7th, and tonight at Amurica she’ll be performing with a full band that includes Jim McHugh on bass, Jeff Tobias on saxophone & synth, and Jason Robira on drums.

PASSERSBY, KATIEE’s debut on Selfish Agenda, recasts the expansive clang and clatter of her musical past. Katie was vocalist, percussionist and songwriter for the Los Angeles-based experimental rock trio Young People, who toured for five years and released records on 5RC, Too Pure and Dim Mak. Kill Rock Stars also released her DVD, Starter Set: New Dance and Music for the Camera, featuring her original music and choreography. Locals >ManControl< open the show, so if experimental music is your thing, get to Amurica by 8 p.m. tonight with $5 in your hand. 

KATIEE and Man Control at Amurica Studio

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The Shoe Birds Video World Premiere

Tim Ivy

The Shoe Birds recently released their debut album.

Named after the Eudora Welty children’s book, The Shoe Birds are a Memphis/Mississippi based folk rock/pop band that recently released their debut album Southern Gothic on WaxSaw Records. Their new single, “Life on the River”, explores the dislocation of starting a new life in a new place (lead vocalist Adcox moved from the small rural Mississippi town he grew up in to Memphis). For Adcox, the one common thread running throughout this transition was the Mississippi River and how it connects everything. 

The Shoe Birds.

Lead singer and guitarist Norman Adcox had this to say about the song: 

 “The song ‘Life on the River’ is about moving to a new place that’s both familiar, yet distant all at the same time. The video, directed by Patsy Detroit, is a slice of life featuring Memphis as the backdrop. I remember when I first moved to Memphis, the river and its downtown seemed a million miles away from the small rural Mississippi town where I grew up. For me, the one common thread running throughout this transition was the Mississippi River and how it connects everything. I always find comfort in watching the river flow past the bluffs. Sometimes, I imagine it washes away my troubles just like it erodes its own banks, eventually washing the silt down to New Orleans, then out to sea. This song always makes me think about how the Mississippi river and people are never static – and always moving.”

The Shoe Birds Video World Premiere

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Chain and the Gang at Murphy’s

Michael Andrade

The impeccably dressed Chain and the Gang.

Washington D.C.’s Chain and the Gang will perform tonight (Monday, July 27th) at Murphy’s. Led by Ian Svenonius (Nation of Ulysses,The Make Up), Chain and the Gang play “minimal rock and roll,” or “crime rock” depending on who you ask, meaning that their music is stripped down, to the point, and definitely not for everyone. With decades devoted to underground music under his belt, Svenonius has a cult-like following that comes out of the woodwork any time he decides to make a regional appearance. Svenonius also hosted the talk show “Soft Focus,” where he interviewed underground icons like Jello Biafra, Henry Rollins, and Thurston Moore in his classic, deadpan style. Check out the videos below to get a better sense of what Svenonius and his band are all about, then get to Murphy’s by 9 p.m. tonight. Advance tickets are available at Goner Records for $5.

Chain and the Gang at Murphy’s

Chain and the Gang at Murphy’s (2)

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Primitive Man and Valkyrie at the Hi-Tone

Primitive Man perform tonight at the Hi-Tone.

 
Like any genre that serves as one of the primary colors of musical style, genuine metal (meaning everything but the tenuously-associated historical mainstream embarrassments like hair metal and rap/nu-metal) continues to fracture into a vast spectrum of subsets, and this bill’s co-headliners, Primitive Man and Valkyrie, come from very different places therein. However, one commonality shared here is that both bands are somewhat new additions to the Relapse Records roster, the label itself celebrating its 25th year of metal diversity and reliable quality. 
     
Primitive Man, a trio from Denver that formed in 2012, makes an admirable effort to be the heaviest, most brutal band on the planet. With an undiluted focus on consummate negativity/misanthropy as delivered through an unrelenting mix of death, sludge, doom metal, and harsh power electronics-style noise, Primitive Man deliver on the title of their recent EP, Home Is Where The Hatred Is. As on the trio’s 2013 debut album, Scorn, their four-song Relapse debut shows a proclivity for stretching the sonic punishment into endurance test territory (see the accompanying 11-minute “Loathe” single from the EP), but what a provocative endurance test it is. The band’s idea of “breather tracks” on each of these releases could easily qualify as Merzbow or Wolf Eyes’ scariest aural attacks, with an extra coating of soundbite/sample depravity. 

Sharing the latter portion of the evening with Primitive Man is Valkyrie, not to be confused with the innumerable other metal bands that have chosen the same moniker. This long-running but sporadically-active quartet is centered around brothers Jake and Pete Adams (both on guitar/vocals), the latter better known for his work as a principal (and remaining) part of the Baroness lineup for the last seven years. Valkyrie has been around since 2002, and prior to their debut with Relapse earlier this year, Shadows, the band has released three demos, three splits with other bands, and two previous full-length albums (in 2006 and 2008 respectively). While Baroness continued to move beyond its origins of pummeling heaviness and crusty His Hero Is Gone/Neurosis influence to a polished but distinct type of modern hard-rock with progressive and psych overtones, Valkyrie is a study in extracting the proto-metal ’70s hard-rock out of a doom/stoner-metal template, though both bands share a love of the more prog-rock things in life. Luckily, with so many bands mining the same territory, Valkyrie does have a very strong knack for memorable songwriting in its pocket. Still, next to Primitive Man, Valkyrie feels like the Fairport Convention or Flying Burrito Brothers, and I don’t mean that as a derogatory assessment. 

The two appropriately-sterling local openers on the bill are Gringos and Reserving Dirtnaps. Now in the middle of their 21st year, Gringos are currently recording the follow-up to 2012’s excellent Pearly Gates, though format and other release logistics are still TBA at this time. Reserving Dirtnaps continues a busy year of bringing Memphis’ heaviest metallic hardcore in the live arena and riding some certain momentum in the wake of releasing their self-titled debut CD earlier this year.

Primitive Man and Valkyrie at the Hi-Tone

Monday, July 27th @ Hi-Tone Big Room. $10 Ages: 18+ Doors: 8pm Show: 9pm      

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Weekend Roundup 26: Mary Owens, The Sheiks, Hope Clayburn

Mary Owen’s plays Otherlands on Saturday, July 25th

Welcome to the 26th edition of my Weekend Roundup! Beat the heat with one (or all) of these great local shows this weekend. From hardcore punk to folk rock, there’s something for everyone on this list, including a massive benefit show at the Buccaneer on Saturday night. 

Friday, July 24th.
Jason Lee McKinney Band, 7:30 p.m. at the Levitt Shell, free.

Weekend Roundup 26: Mary Owens, The Sheiks, Hope Clayburn (3)

Chaos Order, Concrete, Lowered AD, 8 p.m. at the Hi-Tone, $5. 

Weekend Roundup 26: Mary Owens, The Sheiks, Hope Clayburn (4)

Ben Callicott, Jack Moran, Will Tucker, 8:30 p.m. at Otherlands , $8.

Zigadoo Moneyclips, The Band of Ooo, Other Stories, The Aquaducks, 9 p.m. at Found Studio, $5.

Maitre D’s, 10 p.m. at Bar DKDC, $5.

American Fiction, 10 p.m. at Lafayette’s Music Room.

Saturday, July 25th.
Light up the Night, 6 p.m. at the Hi-Tone, $5.

Brad Boswell Benefit featuring Dave Cousar, Deering and Down, Detective Bureau, Marcella & Her Lovers, Devil Train, the Sheiks, Jack Oblivian, Richard James, and Midnight Fistfight, 6 p.m. at The Buccaneer, $10.

Weekend Roundup 26: Mary Owens, The Sheiks, Hope Clayburn (2)

Samantha Martin and Delta Sugar, 7:30 p.m. at the Levitt Shell, free.

Air Supply, 8 p.m. at the Horseshoe Casino, prices vary.

Mary Owens, Lauren Moscato, Jeffrey Jordan, Kris Acklen, 8:30 p.m. at Otherlands, $8.

Weekend Roundup 26: Mary Owens, The Sheiks, Hope Clayburn

Magnolia Sons, 10 p.m. at Lafayette’s Music Room.

Hope Clayburn and the Soul Scrimmage, 10 p.m. at The Cove.

Weekend Roundup 26: Mary Owens, The Sheiks, Hope Clayburn (5)

Sunday, July 26th.
Charlie and the Foxtrots, 4 p.m. at Lafayette’s Music Room.

Toad The Wet Sprocket, 7 p.m. at Minglewood Hall, prices vary.

Mark Edgar Stuart, 7:30 p.m. at the Levitt Shell, free.

Weekend Roundup 26: Mary Owens, The Sheiks, Hope Clayburn (6)

Brawful, 10:30 p.m. at the Hi-Tone, $7.

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New Music from Cities Aviv

Cities Aviv.

Yesterday Gavin Mays aka Cities Aviv dropped “Here” to accompany an article published by the online magazine Yours Truly. Mays had this to say about the “lost” song: “There was a stint during the making of Your Discretion Is Trust when Quinton [lee] and I would meet with our friend Matt [Qualls] at various locations around Memphis to set up and hash out any track ideas we had at the moment. Matt Qualls has been a friend for years and recorded all of my first material. During the several week period when this track was recorded, the three of us would jump between an empty mansion or a garage to record. ‘Here’ always stood out because it was one of the last songs I tracked from those sessions and kinda summed up that vagrant era.”

New Music from Cities Aviv (3)

Read my interview with Cities Aviv Here.

New Music from Cities Aviv (2)

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One Four Fives Reunion at Lafayette’s Music Room

John Paul Keith will reunite his old backing band The One Four Fives tonight at Lafayette’s Music Room. The band features an all-star Memphis lineup of Mark Edgar Stuart, John Argroves, Al Gamble (of St. Paul and the Broken Bones), and John Paul Keith. The show is free and starts at 8, and according to Keith, this will be the first time the band has reunited in over three years. With Mark Edgar Stuart and John Paul Keith staying busy with their solo careers, this may be one of the only chances to catch The One Four Fives for quite some time. Check out videos of John Paul Keith and The One Four Fives below, then get to Lafayette’s Music Room by 8 p.m. tonight (Monday, July 20th). 

One Four Fives Reunion at Lafayette’s Music Room

One Four Fives Reunion at Lafayette’s Music Room (2)