Memphis supergroup American Fiction has a new single out. They recently finished a record with Eddie Kramer, the legendary producer for Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, the Stones and the Beatles. It doesn’t get any better. We will revisit this story at length soon.
They’re at the Poplar Lounge on Friday.
Here’s the new track, “Dumb Luck”:
American Fiction with Eddie Kramer
Do you get punked-out sometimes? Hey, that’s OK. Perfectly normal. Who’s gotcha covered? Grits & Soul.
Way Back When has an interesting line up. Kitty Dearing, Jesse Dakota, Andrew Geraci, Alex Graeber, and Jay Valentine. Expect a top-shelf take on the comfy vibe of the Grateful Dead.
Tomorrow night (Tuesday, September 10) The Poplar Lounge hosts a top-notch double-bill, pairing Nashville singer-songwriter Tim Easton with local favorite Mark Edgar Stuart.
Originally from Akron, OH, Easton is a well-established commodity on the national Americana scene, having released a string of well-respected albums (mostly for the venerable New West label) throughout the 2000s. His latest effort, Not Cool, is very Nashville-centric, evoking the spirit and twang of the city’s honky-tonks on Lower Broadway.
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Here’s Easton performing live at Nashville’s Mercy Lounge in 2011:
Memphis’ Mark Edgar Stuart – fresh off of a triumphant performance at the Levitt Shell over the weekend – will open the show. Here’s the excellent video for his song “Remote Control,” the single from his debut album Blues For Lou:
Tim Easton w/ Mark Edgar Stuart
Tuesday, September 10, 9 p.m.
The Poplar Lounge
$7 cover, 21+
In a city that’s launched several young, blues-based artists to various levels of prominence over the past decade or so — the North Mississippi Allstars, Alvin Youngblood Hart, and Valerie June, to name three — singer/songwriter/guitarist Jason Freeman has been a fixture, but one always just outside the spotlight.
He co-founded the string-band-based Bluff City Backsliders more than a decade ago, prepped Samuel L. Jackson for his bluesman role in Black Snake Moan, has played with local artists such as June and Amy LaVere, and fronted, briefly, another band, the Midtown Lowdowns. But this winter Freeman finally made his solo debut with the impressive album Hex & Hell, released via filmmaker Craig Brewer’s BR2 imprint. (The longtime collaborators also became brothers-in-law a few years ago.)
Tonight, Freeman celebrates the vinyl release of the album as well as the debut of a third video connected to the album, this one from local filmmaker Christopher Reyes, with a free record-release show at the Poplar Lounge.
J.D. Reager talked with Freeman for a feature in this week’s Flyer. I also talked to him for a profile in next month’s Memphis magazine, which should be out in a few weeks.