Grand Rapids concert standouts for the week include The Soil and the Sun, andi & i, Red Sea Pedestrians and the Karisa Wilson String Ensemble. (Videos)
Go Radio’s national tour rocks its way into The Intersection.
Go Radio, Paradise Fears
Stages & Stereos, Another October
7 p.m. Tuesday
$12 advance, $14 day of show
The Intersection, Grand Rapids
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If you thought Thanksgiving was a big deal, welcome to perhaps the busiest Thursday in months, at least when it comes to live music in and around Grand Rapids. (You can check out a photo roundup of several lively concerts from Thanksgiving Day weekend by going to the “Weekend Photo Galleries” page here.) But before that …
Mayday Parade’s Jason Lancaster formed Florida pop-rock outfit Go Radio about five years ago and the band has just released its second full-length studio album, “Close the Distance,” which features the single, “Go to Hell.” Although he sounds kinda mad, you can decide for yourself by watching the video for the melodic, piano-driven tune at the band’s official website.
Opening the all-ages show will be Paradise Fears, Stages & Stereos and Another October. Get ticket information at the Intersection website.
New York’s Ari Hest returns to Spring Lake’s Seven Steps Up.
Ari Hest, Rose Cousins
7:30 p.m. Thursday
$25 advance, $28 day of show (sofa, table seating available)
Seven Steps Up, Spring Lake
New York singer-songwriter Ari Hest last played Spring Lake’s Seven Steps Up a little more than a year ago, impressing concertgoers. Now, he’s back with a brand new album – “The Fire Plays,” released earlier this month – after touring Europe. It’s the fourth stop on the tour in support of his seventh studio album, an intense, dynamic and enchanting affair spotlighting powerful vocals that fall somewhere between Gordon Lightfoot and Michael McDonald. Learn more about Hest and watch his new video at his official website.
Opening for Hest will be Canadian folk-pop artist Rose Cousins, who recently released the album, “We Have Made a Spark.” You can listen to some of her music here. Get ticket information and directions to the Pin Drop Concert at Seven Steps Up here.
Amid the lights and haze, you might think Zoso is the real deal. Really.
Zoso: The Ultimate Led Zeppelin Experience
The Love Hate, Devin & The Dead Frets
7:30 p.m. Thursday
$10.13 advance, $13 day of show
The Intersection, Grand Rapids
With all the hoopla over Led Zeppelin’s new “Celebration Day” documentary and a truly riveting interview with Jimmy Page in Rolling Stone magazine, the timing of this show sponsored by 101.3 The Fox is dead-on.
I’ve seen Zoso perform at The Intersection before, and they do a dynamite job of re-creating that classic Led Zep sound and look. Hey, they’ve been at this since 1995, so they’ve gotten pretty good at it and you’re not gonna see the real Zeppelin reunited anyway. Get more information at their official website. This is a 17-and-older show. Check out a video of Zoso below.
It’s elementary: Patrick Watson plays Ladies Literary Club.
Patrick Watson, The Crane Wives
8 p.m. Thursday
$10 ($5 for Calvin students)
Ladies Literary Club, Grand Rapids
Patrick Watson is actually Canadian singer-songwriter Patrick Watson and his indie-rock band, who are touring behind their latest album, “Adventures in Your Own Backyard.” They’ll make a stop in Grand Rapids on Thursday at downtown’s Ladies Literary Club on Sheldon Boulevard SE, part of Calvin College’s fall concert series and perhaps the ideal, intimate venue for this band’s airy and reflective pop-flavored music.
You can sample some of Patrick Watson’s songs and videos at the official website here. And this just in: Grand Rapids’ own The Crane Wives will be performing, too. Get ticket information at the Calvin website.
Karisa Wilson
Karisa Wilson String Ensemble, The Fauxgrass Quartet
9 p.m. Thursday
$5
Billy’s Lounge, Grand Rapids (Eastown)
Billy’s Lounge may set a record Thursday for most acoustic stringed instruments on stage in a single night.
Grand Rapids singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Karisa Wilson describes her string thing thusly: A “funky take on bluegrass plus vocals from outer space, augmented with the addition of newest member and honey vocalist “Garner.” As for The Fauxgrass Quartet: “Even faster bluegrass riffs and a Joey Banjo on steroids.” Sounds like something worth seeing.
Details online at this Facebook event page. (Oh and Billy’s follows this up at 10 p.m. Saturday with a DJ-filled show featuring Sango, Seventh and Super Dre.)
It’s as big and beautiful as a whale: The new album from Simien the Whale, that is.
Simien the Whale CD-Release Show
with Elliot Street Lunatic
7 p.m. Friday
$10
The Pyramid Scheme, Grand Rapids
After more than a year of toiling at Mackinaw Harvest Music studios, Grand Rapids indie-pop/alt-rock band Simien the Whale has produced its best work yet, so it’s only appropriate that it’s a self-titled affair.
With plenty of musical guests to assist them, Zachary Guy and Tory Peterson have masterminded a hook-filled pop album with soulful rock muscle, which should make the band’s CD-release show at The Pyramid Scheme a deliciously entertaining event, especially because the talented Elliot Street Lunatic opens the show. Get ticket information here and tune into my Local Spins Live show at 10 a.m. Wednesday on News Talk 1340 AM (WJRW) when Simien the Whale will be my special guest.
Check out the new video for Simien the Whale’s “Bend Not Break” below. (The Pyramid Scheme follows this up at 8 p.m. Saturday with The Coup, Japanther, LOMOBB and Punksuhate, $13.)
andi and i
andi and i
8 p.m. Saturday
$12 (with discounts for students, seniors)
Wealthy Theatre Annex, Grand Rapids (1110 Wealthy St. SE)
In the category of “good-hearted acoustic music” (as is the motto of the Grand River Folk Arts Society), the Chicago folk duo of andi and i will play the society’s Acoustic Saturday Nights series in the annex of Wealthy Theatre on Saturday night. The husband-and-wife duo of Andi and Al Tauber perform harmony-and story-driven music.
Get ticket details here at the society website.
The Soil and the Sun, A Lull
Pomegranates, Jes Kramer
9 p.m. Saturday
$5
Founders Brewing Co., Grand Rapids
If you haven’t heard The Soil and the Sun’s latest album “What Wonder is this Universe!” it’s high time you did. (And you can do so at its website.) There’s an even more angelic and spacey sort of experimental rock magic that unfolds in the band’s live shows, and this particular gig spotlights several other terrific artists, including Chicago’s A Lull.
Details about the show online here.
The Red Sea Pedestrians sail to Fennville on Sunday.
Red Sea Pedestrians
7 p.m. Sunday
$15
Salt of the Earth, Fennville
The Red Sea Pedestrians are undeniably one of West Michigan’s most talented and eclectic ensembles, delivering world music-infused folk and Americana strains that are as unique as they are delightfully entertaining. “The Electromagnetic Escape,” the most recent studio album by the six-piece band based in Kalamazoo, is a marvel. Wrap up your weekend by checking ‘em ‘em out at this cozy Fennville restaurant that boasts a truly compelling weekly concert series which you can scrutinize at the Salt of the Earth website.
UNDER-THE-RADAR PICKS
Peat in the Creel
Peat in the Creel performing at Mocha-N-Music in Hudsonville at 7 p.m. Monday – This invigorating, Celtic-hued bunch is entertaining as it is, but this show will also feature some seasonal Christmas gems to get you in the spirit. Get the full schedule of nightly entertainment at this Hudsonville coffeehouse at 5211 Cherry Ave. at its official website.
The John De Gennaro Band CD-release show at The Stache inside The Intersection at 7 p.m. Friday – A fab opportunity to support your local music scene. Singer-songwriter Mark Sala opens the evening at this CD-release party for The John De Gennaro Band, which is debuting its “No More Stories” EP, a rootsy, acoustic-driven recording ($8 advance, $10 day of show).
White Rabbit playing Tip Top Deluxe Bar & Grill at 8 p.m. Saturday – The Pete Dunning-led White Rabbit is a cover band unlike any other, delivering juicy tidbits from The Yardbirds to The Pixies ($5).
Blue Molly at One Trick Pony at 8 p.m. Saturday – I had the pleasure of featuring Blue Molly recently on my Local Spins Live radio show and I can say that this highly talented bunch meshes blues, soul, gospel and rock in way that will inspire you, especially in the intimate confines of downtown’s One Trick Pony at 136 E. Fulton St. Make reservations by calling 235-7669 or get details at onetrick.biz.
Zoso
Simien the Whale
Email: jsinkevics@gmail.com
