Dig this, gang! Garage-rockin’ pop fun from Maybe, Baby tonight at Louie’s Trophy House!

In case you didn’t know, The Strutt loves you. And the best way it knows how to show it is by constantly hosting the best shows possible at the lowest price possible. Tonight is no exception!

Flier by Sid Redlin

That’s right, ONLY $3!!! Not convinced? Check out this sweet video of Hordes doing their thing:

Vinyl enthusiast may recognize the bass player as Jon Howard from FBC.

Tonight!! The No Fun House will host a punk rock show of epic proportions!!! May I present, The Atom Age:

In case you’re not familiar. You’ve probably heard the singer’s other project… one of the greatest pop punk bands of all time, THE QEERS.

Opening the party will be Kalamazoo punk rock super stars Ackley Kid!!! Don’t be the only one missing out on this!!

Doors at 8. First band at 9. $2 for the touring band. No booze, no drugs, no jerks.

See you there!

The Crane Wives! Photo by Tommy Valdez

An evening of potent and lyrical folk waits all who enter the Strutt tonight. GR’s The Crane Wives have that haunting finger plucked sound that goes great with Christmas lights and black coffee. Kalamazoo’s Everyone & their Empty Cups have that early Modest Mouse/Brand New kind of frankness that cuts and comforts at the same time. Also from Kalamazoo, Birches will crank out some harmony-heavy power jams about late night phone calls and cruising with the windows down.

This show is 18+ and costs $5 at the Door.

flyer by Ben Lyon!

Punk N Roll.

Kalamazoo’s newest active House venue, the Ant Hill (Ant Colony, Alien Ant Farm, Whathaveyou) is playing host, this Friday, to a host of absolutely rockin’ Michigan bands from all over this great mitten-shaped state of ours.

Kalamazoo’s own Pan will be taking the stage at this one. This super-tight three-piece outfit delivers all-instrumental progressive goodness with a smooth set of curves to boot. Your brains will melt. Your face will melt. You will not be disappointed.

From Muskegon, the boys in Chordis Bell will be down to move you. Stretched out funky rock is their forte’, with songs about all the tough parts of life. I’ve had the pleasure of playing with this outfit in the past, and I can tell you first-hand that they put on a hell of a show. Or you can check out this youtube video:

Down from Grand Rapids, MINNESOTA will also be tearing things up. These guys call themselves Alternative and that seems about right. Fast, heavy, and hard-hitting, MINNESOTA is just the right thing to get your blood pumping on a Friday night.

Finally, the excellently technical Drawing Mountains will be in town from Royal Oak. Expect clean time changes, strange guitar melodies and an overall feel that boarders on ambient despite the high-energy playing. These guys also just got signed to Start/Finish Records, a newer record label based out of Flint Michigan.

I, for one, will be at the Ant Hill this Friday. That said, if you don’t know where the Ant Hill (or any other place, for that matter) is located, you can always email us at ditkalamazoo@gmail.com and ask.

An impressive duo of bands out of California in the style of psychedelic singer/songwriter are breezing through our increasingly chilling southwest Michigan autumn in the capacity of No Fun House on Tuesday, November 16, 2010.  They go by the monikers Moomaw and Gravid Wives.

Moomaw’s sound is dark psych-folk; if you like Nick Cave, Leonard Cohen, Pearls Before Swine, Simon Finn, Love, Townes Van Zandt, Gram Parsons, or 13th Floor Elevators, there should be something to behold in this band for you.  Nathan Moomaw fronts the band, you can listen to a bare-bones version of one of his songs here, proving the strength of the tunes:

Gravid Wives have a slightly more rock-oriented approach to their psychedelic pop, though it’s easy to understand why these two bands are congenial to each other and touring together.

Kalamazoo’s The Philly Crawlers will be supplying their psych-pop slices for those in attendance to hungrily devour. Show begins at 9 p.m. SHARP! and will cost only $2!  These three bands will bring a lot of songcraft to the table.  If you don’t know where No Fun House is located, ask someone or hit up ditkalamazoo@gmail.com, baby!

Tonight, the Strutt will be movin’ and shakin’ to the surf-party-rock-n-soul sound of Nashville’s Turbo Fruits. Pitchfork sez: “this album (Echo Kids by Turbo Fruits) is just like a diner cheeseburger: Cheesy, greasy, bloody, goes good with beer.” You heard it here: DANCE PARTY TONIGHT AT THE STRUTT.

Supporting will be indie rockers Pujol (also from Nashville), local power-poppers Jake Simmons and the Little Ghosts, and local surf dudes Totally Rad. $7 at the door, show starts at 9.