The aptly named Creepy Band from Chicago will be coming to Kalamazoo to play some coffin rock for you. It’s like Danzig meets Castlevania. They’ll be performing in support of their upcoming full length album, set to be released on Halloween day naturally.
The brand new Kalamazoo band, Statia, will be performing as well. Featuring members of hometown heroes Pan and Ackley Kid, I had the pleasure of witnessing their first show just the other night. Expect heavy doses of taut, well-orchestrated riffage over busy drums with tasteful keyboard accompaniment as well as a dual screaming vocal assault. It’s probably the best thing to happen to Kalamazoo in a while.
The show is going down at Shakespeare’s lower level Saturday night, doors @ 9PM. And it is totally free.
At DIT, we are generally working to limit competing shows on the same night, but these things do happen-and then we are forced to choose. We’re here to help make that an informed decision.
At the Globe there will be a 21+ show of the folk and country variety with Jon Timm, an upper-Michigan native turned Nashvillian, and Rust Whip, the country-rock band fronted by Kalamazoo’s Dylan Lancaster.
Jon Timm and Rust Whip are in the middle of doing a week of shows together and you can learn more about the both of them in this Mostly Midwest article.
Hometown heartthrobs Cold Mountain Child will be rounding out the bill on this one. Originally formed as the duo of Tyler Bradley and David Spalvieri-Kruse, the group has since grown into an ensemble of shifting members and instrumentation but still creates lush mountain-folk songs that’s prettier than socks on a rooster.
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Simultaneously, down at the Victory House will be a total mixed-bag of a show with Pittsburgh’s Skinless Boneless on tour displaying their hyper blend of fuzzed-out Freak/Psych madness. As residents of Philadelphia’s Single Girl, Married Girl Records, a label that prides itself on putting out challenging music, if Skinless Boneless is as interesting and energetic live as they are on recording, they’ll put on a helluva show for sure.
Locals for this one will be on rather opposite ends of the musical spectrum. Terror Terror Oh My! are a party time Rock and Roll band that likes to deliver healthy doses of sass whereas Deep Waters are more of an introspective, chilled out act that resides somewhere on the fringes of the Pop music realm (and features some of the same members of Cold Mountain Child curiously enough – how they plan to pull this off will be a mystery).
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Both shows are set to start at 9PM so be sure to get down one way or the other – unless you’re feeling adventurous, then grab some friends and hop between the two. Either way, make sure to throw some dollars towards the touring acts who will be in town.
Sunday night is going to be ridiculous. The Milhouse will be hosting what will likely go down as my favorite Kalamazoo show of the year.
I met the guys in Duck. Little Brother, Duck! after a 14-hour drive from Idaho Falls to Portland this past winter. Upon our arrival, these fine fellows showed us the kind of hospitality in their hometown that made the hours and gas money spent all so worth it. These are the kind of folks that will help someone from 2000+ miles away with a show to play, pack out an entire anarchist bookstore to well beyond fire-code, inexhaustibly show you around their entire city, and get their parents to feed you healthy Portlandia food the whole time you’re there.
Also, their band makes amazing music.
It’s angular, adventurous, and defies structure – yet with all the energy of the most shoutable post-hardcore bands. Their newest release, Don’t Take Our Filth Away, is coming out this month on Topshelf Records and can be heard now on the label’s bandcamp page (which has been taking up a tab on my web browser for the last three weeks because it’s the kind of album you find yourself listening to daily).
They’ll be meeting up with Octaves from Baltimore, MD, while they’re on this side of the country. Octaves is stylistically quite different; darker. They play a metally version of hardcore that is fast and aggressive but knows when to let a song breathe and expand and do the kind of interesting things that set this band apart from others in the hardcore/screamo realm.
Also on tour for this show will be William Bonney, the Northern Indiana heavyweights who will be touring behind the brand new vinyl release of their album Good Vibes. This fierce five-piece, if you’re not already familiar, was a critical part of the new Midwest screamo movement before members decided to move to other parts of the country. Though not always active nowadays, they’ve been working towards their vinyl release for some time now and are in the midst of a lengthy US tour.
Local bands Ackley Kid (always a hometown favorite) and Seventeen Again (the brand new band featuring members of Ackley Kid/The Reptilian/William Bonney) will be joining this stellar lineup of touring bands for the evening. It’s going to be a frenzied show from start to finish with nothing but exciting talent.
The show will be starting early due to having so many bands on the lineup. None are to be missed and, as always, please help these touring bands out by being as generous as possible with donation money!
You’re probably sun burnt. Possibly hungover. You’re either loving the newfound legality of airborne fireworks in Michigan or you’re really sick of it by now. But this is America, so let’s keep the party rolling.
Relationships and My Captain, My Sea on tour from the Steel(ers) City, Pittsburgh. They’re playing tonight with their local buds/teen heartthrobs George Costanza. It’s a night of fun, upbeat, twinkly, pretty, punky kind of stuff and it’s all going down below ground level which should feel very welcome in the midst of the current heat wave.
Bring a few dollars to help these Pennsylvanians on their tour and get ready for more fireworks and maybe even some BBQ action. It’s going down at 9PM.
Coming up at the Fat Guy House on Friday, we’ve got something a little different for the house, something less on the punk side.
On tour from Columbus, OH, are two bands that vary pretty greatly from each other: the crooning, country-fried stylings of the aptly-named Steamboat and the amped-up, East-coast style, noodly emo of Squeamish.
Local acts Jake Simmons and the Little Ghosts and the Honey Pot will be joining the Ohio bands. Arguably the two best best bands in the Garage-rock realm of Kalamazoo, both acts are known for their spot-on delivery live.
All kinds of solid music on this one and it’s going to be a party for sure. Come on down, get down. Bring some dollars to donate to the touring bands.
Last week saw the end of the Strutt’s run in their location at the corner of Academy and W. Michigan. While there are plans in the works for relocation, the future of shows in the new location seems to remain up in the air. What this means, at least for the moment, is that we’ve once again lost an important music venue in our city.
I’m sad to see it go, as I know many are. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing a number of national acts right here in town, only two measly blocks from my house, that I wouldn’t have otherwise. I’ve attended countless performances by my good friends alongside touring acts from all over the country and beyond. In addition, the Strutt had personally become my favorite local venue to play.
As is the nature of things, spots where people can put on shows come and go, and generally all too quickly. The lifespan of a venue – be it in a basement, bar, or art space – is often a few years at best. Any establishment that hosts live music of this nature, on the kind of intimate scale that we appreciate, is going to be a constant struggle to maintain. But one thing will always remain and will be paramount to its success: the spirit of real community.
Without it, the Strutt would have been just a building, just a business. But hopefully everyone reading this was lucky enough to experience the kinds of things I have over the last few years: moments of honest joy, moments that moved me, that inspired me. Yes, it has less to do with the place itself or the money that goes into it than it does with the musicians that are a part of it, the friends that share in it with you, the people that make it happen. These things are universals in our little subculture world and are a testament to the power that music has in our lives, and the Strutt played a role in bringing this into our most excellent city.
While a venue may not be the most sustainable venture and will all too often meet a premature end, this spirit must continue to be nurtured. Thankfully, at present there is a multitude of places to see live music here in Kalamazoo and for us to gather together, and if you’re reading this article that much should be clear. While there were many aspects of the Strutt that were unique and beneficial, hopefully those can be recaptured in a new space sometime in the near future. Regardless, Kalamazoo’s music culture continues to thrive and will do so as long as we all stay involved.
The No Fun House is at it again. Monday evening there will be another night of acoustic entertainment as Abbi Rajasekhar, a native of Alpena, Michigan, makes her way out on a tour in support of her new album. Locals Silphium Blooms and Everyone and Their Empty Cups join for an intimate evening of music in the company of good friends and good food. If you’d like to contribute a dish, please feel free. The potluck will start at 7PM and music will start once everyone is good and fed. Bring some bucks for donation!
Locals Lincoln County War and Birdfingers will be performing in the No Fun House living room Sunday, along with The New and Very Welcome from Burlington, Vermont. There will be a potluck beforehand feel so feel free to bring a dish or simply some snacks to share – or just come over to enjoy some delicious food and an intimate night of music. The food portion is scheduled to start at 7PM with music following afterward.
Bring a few dollars to donate so we can help some touring musicians from all the way out East!
Are you asking yourself, “Self, what am I going to do with myself Thursday night?” Well, why don’t you head down to Louie’s Trophy House and kick it with the Saxsquatch? The man himself will be wailing the night away with his band and you can come beat the heat (there’s air conditioning) and relax for a reasonable charge ($3) – with reasonable drink specials to boot! And there’s pizza!
So if you like jazz, drinks, and unchecked dexterity, here’s something to check out Thursday night.
Here at DIT we’re working on moving back into having regular weekly meetings as well as branching out to as many people in our music community who want to take part. Tomorrow afternoon at 4PM there will be a meeting at No Fun and we would love to see you there and get your input on what shows you’re throwing, what you want to see happen in our town, and what you think we can do to make this operation run better. Be there! If that time doesn’t work but you still want to get involved, let us know and we’ll do what we can to arrange things accordingly.
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