Today, Local Spins announces the winter/spring concert series at the downtown club and restaurant, showcasing Michigan acts and tribute bands — January through April. View the full schedule.
Energizing SpeakEZ Lounge on Jan. 22: Prog/jazz fusion band Squatch. (Photo/Chelsea Whitaker)
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There’s never been a Local Spins concert series at SpeakEZ Lounge like this.
Expanding to include Fridays as well as Wednesdays, the winter/spring 2025 edition of the concert lineup at the intimate downtown club not only boasts more than a dozen eclectic Michigan acts playing the series for the first time, but a February tribute month paying homage to Neil Diamond, Neil Young, Jimmy Buffett and a first-ever “Laurel Canyon” open-mic night offering up songs by Warren Zevon, Linda Ronstadt and Jackson Browne.
(Musicians and singers interested in participating in the Feb. 21 open-mic tribute can click on this link to get details and sign up by Jan. 24: https://localspins.com/laurel-canyon-open-mic-speakez-the-songs-of-warren-zevon-linda-ronstadt-jackson-browne/.)
The 2025 series launches on Wednesday (Jan. 8) with a special “Winter Wheat Warmup” night featuring the Round Creek String Band, unfurling old-timey folk and bluegrass in a sneak preview of the West Michigan group’s appearance at the Jan. 11 Winter Wheat festival hosted by the Wheatland Music Organization at the Intersection. Details here.
Hank Mowery & The Hawktones: Playing SpeakEZ on March 26. (Photo/Eric Stoike)
Representatives from WMO will be on hand at SpeakEZ to talk about the annual Winter Wheat affair that raises money for the organization and features performances by 10 Michigan acts on two stages. (Get the schedule and ticket info for Winter Wheat here.)
The series continues on Jan. 22 with the SpeakEZ debut of up-and-coming, progressive/jazz fusion band Squatch, followed by two Friday shows: Celebrated singer-songwriters Spencer LaJoye, Chris DuPont and Kylee Phillips on Jan. 24 and Lynn & Ian: The Moonshine Runners on Jan. 31.
(Details about the Squatch show here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1125686295930730)
February’s tribute month has long been a big attraction for music fans and SpeakEZ patrons, with Feb. 7 featuring the SpeakEZ debut of The Frog King: Neil Diamond Tribute, followed by the return of the Crazy Hearse Neil Young Tribute and the first-ever “Laurel Canyon Night,” the aforementioned evening of songs from Warren Zevon, Jackson Browne and Linda Ronstadt.
Tribute month closes out with the SpeakEZ debut of Back on Barkentine: The Jimmy Buffett Tribute on Feb. 26 — a “Real American Beer” night with specials to be revealed in February.
View the rest of the series schedule below, but suffice to say it’s jam-packed with uber-talented regional acts: Top-shelf blues band Hank Mowery & The Hawktones, northern Michigan’s Silver Creek Revival, Kalamazoo’s Americana/rock band The Incantations, singer-songwriters Ralston Bowles, Dan Terry, Melissa Dylan, Caitlin Cusack and Nathan Walton, alt-country’s Wild Honey Collective and funk/fusion’s Simply in Time.
The series is sponsored by SpeakEZ Lounge, Modelo Especial, Long Drink, Alliance Beverage and Local Spins, with a $5 surcharge added to patrons’ bills to help pay performers.
The ‘Laurel Canyon’ Open-Mic Night
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