The weather wasn’t the only thing steaming up West Michigan: Tons of big events and big shows — from Andrew McMahon to REO Speedwagon — dotted the landscape from Grand Rapids to Kalamazoo.
Ann Arbor’s Laith Al-Saadi is home.
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After an impressive run on NBC’s “The Voice,” where the Michigan native wowed a national audience and three celebrity judges, Al-Saadi has returned to his home state as somewhat of a celebrity himself. After selling out Ann Arbor’s Michigan Theater on Friday, the blues troubadour traveled to Bell’s Brewery Eccentric Cafe in Kalamazoo, where he played to a full audience Saturday on the outdoor beer garden stage.
“You guys are making us feel good up here,” he said over the microphone at one point, casting his infectious smile.
In a dazzling display, Al-Saadi delivered two roaring, full-band sets, filled with a plethora of mesmerizing solos and his distinct growl. Included in the set were a handful of covers which, only a few months ago, Al-Saadi was performing on national TV for “The Voice.”
“The Letter” and “With a Little Help from My Friends” were among the well-known, crowd-pleasing covers.
“I got to experience a lot of cool things on ‘The Voice.’ There were a few good performances that got some good exposure,” Al-Saadi said on stage. “But I think I got to stay pretty true to myself.”
Throughout the evening, Al-Saadi — who showed love for his home state by wearing “Pure Michigan” and Michigan Highway M-119 T-shirts — played a number of cuts from his most recent album, “Real,” including “What I Mean,” “Gone” and “Last Time You’ll See Me Cry.”
His tenure on “The Voice” and increased popularity certainly have helped Al-Saadi share with the world what he does best: the blues. It’s the same Laith, just a new audience. — Ricky Olmos
PHOTO GALLERY: Laith Al-Saadi at Bell’s Brewery
Photos by Derek Ketchum
The festival once again garnered a huge audience, all hungry for copious amounts of the blues. Chicago-based Cashbox Kings gave a wild performance, featuring a lively upright bass player, and an entertaining harmonica player. Royal Southern Brotherhood then brought down the house with its funky and rollicking blues-rock. Blazing guitar solos, the pounding of auxiliary percussion and the overall wall of sound coming from the New Orleans group was enough to quell more than a few of the crowd’s inhibitions, inspiring a number of festival-goers to make their way to the front to let loose and dance the blues away.
Other acts performing during the festival included Karen Lovely, Sugar Ray & The Bluetones and Michigan acts such as Steve Hilger Band, James Reeser, Laura Rain & The Caesars, and young blues guitar phenom Jake Kershaw. — Ricky Olmos
PHOTO GALLERY: Kalamazoo Blues Fest 2016
Photos by Derek Ketchum and Dennis Tuttle
Bell’s Brewery’s busy week also featured The Gin Blossoms and Jake Simmons and the Little Ghosts firing up a capacity crowd on Wednesday night — a show that had to be moved indoors due to the threat of severe storms. The Gin Blossoms trotted out their hits (along with Johnny Cash’s “Folsom Prison Blues”), making fans feel like they were “stepping into a time machine,” according to Local Spins photographer Derek Ketchum. Bell’s followed that on Thursday with the funk attack of Here Come the Mummies, a show that opened with sets by Mungion and Grand Rapids’ own Desmond Jones.
PHOTO GALLERY: Gin Blossoms, Here Come the Mummies at Bell’s
Photos by Derek Ketchum