“All are welcome…even scruffy musicians!”

Western’s Wesley Foundation seems to be the hosting-site for all sorts of acoustic assemblies lately: both the punk-show held last month, and Saturday night’s Double-Phelix themed Peace Phest at 8 p.m., both hosted by the folks of the Kalamazoo Peace Center. Usually the college’s hub for the United Methodist Ministry, the KPC uses the Wesley Foundation and such events to minister doses of green-sense  to the college-aged populace of our fair city; a perusal of their website reveals showings of Gasland, If A Tree Falls, and various public announcements against corporate tyranny. On the website there is even some attention thrown towards the ECO anti-frackers that were being legally lionized over at the Stabbin’ Cabin Friday–but that’s just a distraction. Saturday’s festivities, just like Friday night’s, are all about the fundraising–or merely about fund raising, as there is a suggested donation of five dollars to go towards continuing such activities.

As for the music, it’s regional with a spit of local flair–flavor provided primarily by production/ musical rotating cast Double Phelix Studios. del Brutto, the blues psycho folk sounding fellows from Ann Arbor playing Saturday night, had their recent album Greenhorn produced by Andy Caitlin over at the studio behind Black Owl. The result is garage sound filled with notes of a tin-rattling blues-guitar and a vocal style akin to the maddening rambles of the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. Sounds like it could be playing in someone’s back porch somewhere with Christmas lights and stuffed hunting prizes, through a lo-fi microphone. Good for the blurry-bar romp, or the exhalation of twitching music nerves. Mike Savina of the Double Phelix collective is also slated to join the group for some added mellow melodies.

Lasso, Andy Caitlin’s solo-soundtrack-western-project, will be providing the other half of the Double Phelix themed performances Saturday night. Like Ennio Morricone bumping into the medicine cabinet and tripping on some smooth Valium (although the metaphor is ruined when realized it isn’t a psychedelic.) Though tomorrow seems to be calling for the 8-piece collective effort  it can be hoped that the goofy, plunking piano, and moseying guitar that seem so aware of the genre Lasso is emulating,satirizing, and ultimately will remain the premise and fun of the project, and in-turn the performance will be just as endearing. Lasso’s newest EP  Lasso, Arizona was released this past Wednesday:

Wesley Foundation is right across from the Flagpoles of Western University, the pinnacle of the hill–or for more tech savvy users just use this address (2101 Wilbur Ave.,  Kalamazoo, MI 49006) with Google Maps.

Respect the venue, respect the bands, and mayhaps donate a few dollars for less broken bones around the world. Or least in Kalamazoo.