Johnny Winter, Annabelle Road, The Crane Wives, Hammers of Misfortune, Drew Nelson: Concerts of the Week (videos)

Annabelle Road, The Wallace Collective
7 p.m. Tuesday
Free, with regular admission
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, Grand Rapids Township

What say we take a different tack this week. Pretty much everybody knows about the high-profile shows like country star Trace Adkins occupying DeVos Performance Hall on Wednesday, the Grand Rapids Symphony’s Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons Picnic Pops concerts at Cannonsburg Ski Area Thursday and Friday, and the sold-out O.A.R. appearance at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park on Sunday. (Click on the highlighted links for details.)

So let’s look at what’s simmering just below the surface (not counting free shows: Mary Rademacher Reed & the Midtown Horns playing Jazz at the Zoo in Grand Rapids tonight, Jimmie Stagger Band at Rockford’s Rogue River Blues Series and Delilah DeWylde & the Lost Boys at East Grand Rapids’ Collins Park on Tuesday, terrific Kansas City singer-guitarist Samantha Fish at Blues on the Mall at Rosa Parks Circle in Grand Rapids on Wednesday, Steve Hilger Band playing Sizzlin’ Summer Concerts in downtown Lowell on Thursday, and Randy Marsh’s organ trio playing GRAM on the Green outside the Grand Rapids Art Museum on Friday):

I’ve spotlighted Grand Rapids’ The Wallace Collective on my “Local Spins Live” show and this band has established itself as a bright spot on West Michigan’s folk-rock scene. Country-rock’s Annabelle Road, on the other hand, hails from the east side of the state with a “Carrie Underwood-meets-Johnny Cash-by-way-of-Skynyrd” vibe, according to the Detroit-area band’s website.

Glenn Bulthuis, Debra Perry
6:30 p.m. Tuesday
Free
Fuller Avenue Christian Reformed Church, Fuller Avenue SE in Grand Rapids

This is Grand Rapids-bred gospel. Glenn Bulthuis, Debra Perry and Perry’s vocal group, Majestic Praise, released their “Gloryland” album earlier this year. On Tuesday evening, the’ll host a free outdoor picnic concert outside this Grand Rapids church. Fans are encouraged to bring a lawn chair, dip into some ice cream and sit back for an inspirational night.

The Crane Wives, Ralston Bowles
Celadon Summer Concert Series
6 p.m. Thursday
Free
Celadon Amphitheater, Grand Rapids (2050 Celadon Drive NE)

Hard to beat this Grand Rapids-based roots music lineup: Grand Rapids’ award-winning The Crane Wives, fresh from an appearance at Electric Forest and preparing to release their second album, will heat up this intimate amphitheater with their rocked-up folk and Americana tunes, while local hero and fellow award winner Ralston Bowles, starts things off with his bracing singer-songwriter arsenal.

Hammers of Misfortune, Gates of Slumber, Flood the Desert
8 p.m. Thursday
$12
The Pyramid Scheme, Grand Rapids

San Francisco progressive heavy metal outfit the Hammers of Misfortune not only has an unforgettable name to pound your brain (after changing it from the almost as unforgettable Unholy Cadaver), but it’s drawn some impressive reviews for its albums, including 2011’s “17th Street,” described by one website as “blending the best elements of New Wave of British Heavy Metal, thrash, doom and American folk music while somehow sounding unlike any of these.”

And if I lose my hearing at this one, blame metal-meister John Serba, who’s been bugging me to see these guys blow the doors off The Pyramid Scheme. Get ticket information here.

Johnny Winter, Hank Mowery & the Hawktones,
Jimmie Stagger, Lou Thunder
6:30 p.m. Friday
$18 advance, $20 day of show
The Intersection, Grand Rapids

The blues wouldn’t be the same without Johnny Winter. The 68-year-old electric blues icon from Texas injected some real adrenaline into the genre starting in the late ‘60s and he’s still ripping it up after more than two dozen studio and live recordings.

Not only will he fire up The Intersection with help from some bracing local blues stars, but he’ll also stage a meet-and-greet prior to his show, from 4 to 6 p.m., at Corner Record Shop in Grandville.

The same night, West Michigan’s Valentiger, Mat Churchill, Bennett and Ann Arbor’s Chris Bathgate will play a special front lounge show starting at 7 p.m. ($5/$7).

The Intersection bookends this Friday night spectacle with two pretty darned impressive shows: At 7 p.m. Thursday tons of fun-loving folks in the know will be on hand for the return of Nashville’s vastly entertaining Here Come the Mummies (“terrifying funk from beyond the grave”) and the Delta Rhythm Kings ($20), while Saturday brings the much-hyped Pennsylvania rock band Halestorm, along with openers New Medicine and Emphatic ($15/$18) for a 7 p.m. show. Get all the details at The Intersection website.

Drew Nelson: The Pin Drop Concert
8 p.m. Saturday
$18 ($110 for private table of four)
Seven Steps Up, Spring Lake

For acclaimed Grand Rapids singer-songwriter Drew Nelson to play a special setting such as this likely makes this one of the shows of the summer for Americana fans.

Nelson’s been a busy fellow since releasing his first album, “Tilt-A-Whirl,” and things only get busier later this year with tours in different parts of the country. So catch him in Spring Lake now.

(Also, not to get too confusing numerically, but Spring Lake’s Seven Steps Up also hosts West Michigan’s Andrea Matthews and Three Way Street at 8 p.m. Friday as part of the f&3 acoustic Friday series, $5.) Get details about these concerts here.

Rock-A-Lot with Buddy Twist, Grassland, more
5 p.m. Saturday
$5
Caledonia Family Tavern, Caledonia (Main Street)

This first-ever outdoor-indoor event at Caledonia Family Tavern strikes me as a fun way to catch a bunch of West Michigan bands in one fell swoop.

Well, let’s let the organizers put it in their own words: “Grassland, Biin Daa Kwed and Buddy Twist will be the featured outdoor acts. Bands inside and outside. Inside bands starting at dusk will be Fallout Of Reason and Tru Burn, plus we have a Primus Tribute band: Frizzle Fried. We want to welcome “Moshpit Nation” with goodies.This will be an awesome party! We will also be cooking a pig.”

Yes, topping it off with a pig should make this a squealing good time.

Email: jsinkevics@gmail.com