The Sept. 11, 2015 edition of Local Spins on WYCE focused on regional bands performing at this weekend’s Wheatland and Eastown Street Fair events, including in-studio ska guests The Sailor Kicks.
There’s something inexplicably stirring about a band that’s found the joy of playing together as a “first band,” especially when the assembled musicians have hit upon something sonically unique.
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Such is the case with Grand Rapids’ The Sailor Kicks, whose retro-sounding, Americana twist on ska music shines through on the group’s third studio album, “High Tide,” released earlier this year after being recorded at Cold War Studios.
“It just kind of came together as a melting pot,” guitarist and ukulele player Ben Wonder (aka Pozniak or Poz) said of the band that also features Sean Neely on stand-up bass, Mike Balmer on trumpet and Mike Santarelli (aka Santos) on drums (with brand new member, Steve Cummings, on tenor saxophone).
The Sailor Kicks will perform during the Eastown Street Fair on Saturday, taking the Main Stage at 6 p.m. (Read the Local Spins story about Eastown Street Fair with a full schedule online here.)
The band also made an appearance during this week’s edition of Local Spins on WYCE, performing two songs from the new album as a trio — “Hot Mess” and “Low Profile.” Listen to the entire podcast here.
PODCAST: Local Spins on WYCE (Sept. 11, 2015)
The 54th episode of Local Spins on WYCE also boasted the debut of new songs by Toby Bresnahan (of Peat in the Creel) and The Lake Effects (who host an EP-release party at 6:30 p.m. Friday at Camp H Skate Park in Comstock Park). The show also featured songs by The Real Lazy Genius, Brother Adams and Jesse Ray & The Carolina Catfish, all of whom play the Eastown Street Fair, and The Legal Immigrants (who play the Perrin Backyard Beer Bash later this month) as well as tunes from three regional acts playing this weekend’s Wheatland Music Festival: Gifts or Creatures, Lindsay Lou & The Flatbellys and Joshua Davis.
Get the full Wheatland schedule, a playlist of songs by featured performers and more online here.
Copyright 2015, Spins on Music LLC