Check out images and videos of concerts from Grand Rapids to Kalamazoo, including Red Tail Ring, the fifth anniversary of Grand Rapids Soul Club and plenty more.
Festival Closer: Mustard Plug brought its ska party to the first Ice Jam at Perrin Brewing on Saturday. (Photo/Taylor Mansen)
Winter returned to West Michigan this week, but the flurry of fetching live shows continued unabated as always.
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PERRIN ICE JAM
With help from a 5K race that preceded the event, Saturday’s inaugural Ice Jam winter festival outside Perrin Brewing in Comstock Park boasted an “instant” audience of runners and beer quaffers for bands that started performing in mid-afternoon inside a mammoth heated tent.
The Mainstays, Jesse Ray & The Carolina Catfish, Heaters, I Believe in Julio and Mustard Plug all pumped out impressive sets for more than 2,000 bundled-up festival-goers who danced, played cornhole, huddled around fires and donated to Kids’ Food Basket and WYCE-FM. It was a hearty and happy bunch, indeed, as these images prove. (Check out some videos below.)
PHOTO GALLERY: Photos by Taylor Mansen, Anna Sink and John Sinkevics
KALAMAZOO
In Kalamazoo, things got heated up in nostalgic fashion on Thursday with the legendary soul of The Temptations, who romped through their vintage hits for an approving crowd at State Theatre. The same night, Kalamazoo acoustic duo Red Tail Ring — Michael Beauchamp and Laurel Premo — returned to Bell’s Brewery Eccentric Cafe for a night of old-time folk, along with Misty Lyn.
Michigander followed that on Saturday with a rousing display for a jam-packed crowd at Shakespeare’s Lower Level, finishing up a very busy week for frontman Jason Singer, who also made his SpeakEZ Lounge debut in Grand Rapids for the Local Spins Wednesdays series. Another Michigan-bred artist with a busy week — New Orleans-based Luke Winslow King — delivered material from his latest album, “I’m Glad Trouble Don’t Last Always” for fans at Bell’s Brewery on Friday and Grand Rapids’ Tip Top Deluxe Bar & Grill on Saturday (with special guest Peter ‘Madcat’ Ruth and the Elroy Meltzer duo opening).
PHOTO GALLERY
The Temptations, Red Tail Ring, Michigander photos by Derek Ketchum
Luke Winslow King, Elroy Meltzer at Tip Top photos by Anna Sink)
Grand Rapids Soul Club toasted its fifth anniversary at The Pyramid Scheme on Friday night, and Seth Bernard and his band celebrated release of his new “Eggtones Blues” album at Founders Brewing Co. with a host of special guests (including members of The Crane Wives).
PHOTO GALLERY
Grand Rapids Soul Club photos by Katy Batdorff
Seth Bernard photos by Anna Sink
