Blue Cactus
Blue Cactus:Blue Cactus, the North Carolina duo of Steph Stewart and Mario Arnez, make Dream Country: a blend of grit, glitz, groove, and twang that evokes a celestial soundscape of mid-century heartbreak and harkens comparisons eclectic and iconic as Bobbie Gentry, Fleetwood Mac, and David Bowie. Their sophomore album, Stranger Again, released in 2021 on Sleepy Cat Records, nabbed enthusiastic attention from tastemakers including No Depression, American Songwriter, FLOOD Magazine, Talkhouse, and INDY Week, among others. Following their critically acclaimed 2017 debut and a string of singles in 2020, Stranger Again saw the band taking their sound to an ambitious new plane, where country-rock and light psychedelia mingle, vocals soaring over twangy slide guitars and propulsive bass lines. The North Carolina duo have performed at several beloved festivals including Nelsonville, Red Wing Roots, Muddy Roots and Hopscotch and shared the stage as support for an array of artists from The War & Treaty, Sarah Shook & the Disarmers, and Lilly Hiatt to Town Mountain and Junior Brown. Between the comfort of classic country and the glamour of 70s rock, Blue Cactus resuscitates a fleeting style of honest-to-goodness country music considered valueless to a “new” country music where songwriting is officiated by financial analysts and teams of marketing plutocrats instead of woebegone troubadours. With a high lonesome twang, an Emmylou-like southern drawl, and blistering guitar techniques, Blue Cactus exercises the honky-tonk muscles to firmly bear the flag for a new generation of country music.Tobacco City:“Perpetually in humble beginnings, Chicago’s Tobacco City serves up urban country sway for good times and bad. Starting as diner co-workers, Lexi Goddard and Chris Coleslaw began performing Neil Young cover sets and writing their first EP, and in 2021 released their debut full length album Tobacco City, USA (Scissortail Records). The duo’s harmonies provide a bed for their nostalgic, melancholy and often silly lyricism. With rhythm section grooves by Josh Condon and Eliza Weber, and tasty pedal steel additions by Colin Croom, Tobacco City promises a live show that will leave you pining for the next drag.”
JULIA., Late Notice
JULIA.We are JULIA., and we’re here to make you move.Our cause is intergalactic, traveling across the stars themselves aboard the sacred Mothership to bring you our purest funk concoctions – equal parts primal psychedelia, buttery beautiful soul, and grievously groovin riffs that’ll make ya mama wanna get up and dance the night away. Guaranteed to bring the funk right to your face.LinktreeLate NoticeRaleigh based band, Late Notice, began during the summer of 2021 and has continued cultivating the East Coast with their unique blend of rock, funk, hip hop, and blues. The high energy 6 pieces’ 4 debut originals can be heard on all streaming platforms, and they are currently finishing up recording their first EP which will be out this fall. Beyond the music, the band is composed of a group of best friends and their love for each other shows during their insanely fun live performances. InstagramGallowayLinktree
Boom Unit Brass Band
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WCOM’s Back Room Blitz II
Raad OG is a seven-piece band that plays popular music by various contemporary artists including Lake Street Dive, Amy Winehouse, Maneskin, Maroon 5, and Carrie Underwood alongside classics by Stevie Wonder, Bill Withers, Green Day, the B-52’s, and more. Unlike most cover bands with set lists that are predominated by music from the same genre, we offer a diverse experience to our audience. A strong & steady back line of Chuck on keys, Mac on drums, Aldo on bass, and Jon on guitar provides our vocalists Nicole, Everett, and Ale with the opportunity to showcase their solid harmonies and lead vocals.
Bowbarr Patio Fundraiser Project
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ONDARA: THE REBIRTH TOUR
Ondara’s new album, Spanish Villager No: 3, was predominately produced by Ondara and Mike Viola(Jenny Lewis, Dan Wilson) with contributions from Taylor Goldsmith and Griffin Goldsmith of Dawes, Sebastian Steinberg, Tim Kuhl and Jeremy Stacey. The new collection of songs features a much more full, electric sound.Of the album, Ondara states, “This collection of work and the work that lies ahead in presenting it to the world, is a metaphor for my spiritual path. There is death and resurrection in it, a peeling of layers, a pursuit of the truest form of the self in the universe. Ironically, the adaptation of the Spanish Villager character has made me more acquainted with myself. By creating an obvious demarcation between the art and the artist, I have charted two paths of maturation. One path is the maturation of the Spanish Villager as a work of art, as a character in a narrative, as a commodity partaking in the mandatory sport of capitalism; The other is my own personal maturation into a spiritual, integrated, and useful member of society.”The namesake behind the new album is The Spanish Villager: a mysterious man with a potent message who has proven to be a versatile guy: he’s the subject of a short story Ondara wrote and turned into a graphic novel, and now a new album.Spanish Villager No: 3follows his 2020 sophomore album, Folk N’ Roll Vol 1: Tales of Isolation, and his2019 debut album, Tales of America, which received a nomination for Best Americana Albumatthe62nd Grammy Awards. Ondara also received a nod for Best Emerging Act at the2019 Americana Awards.Ondara grew up in Nairobi, Kenya listening to American alt-rock and making up his own songs for as long as he can remember. At an early age he fell in love with the music of Bob Dylan and was granted a visa through the immigration lottery system. He chose Minneapolis as his home to pursue a career as a singer and songwriter with Dylan in mind. He began making his way in the local music scene, continually writing songs about what he saw, felt and experienced in a place far different from home.
Essenger & Puppet with special guest Young Medicine
Essenger stands on the cutting edge of electronic music, blending an array of influences for a sound that pays tribute to modern alt rock, EDM, and synth wave. The artist marks his highly personal songwriting style with striking lyrics, and the result is a singular creative style that opens new possibilities for both retro and future synth music.The artist’s adept compositional skills and production chops helped his early singles attract a significant following while racking up hundreds of thousands of streams on individual songs. Essenger soon connected with prominent labels including Seeking Blue and Monster cat, and those early successes led to an album deal with independent synth wave label FiXT Neon in late 2019.In early 2020,Essengerand FiXT Neon released the artist’s full-length album After Dark to widespread acclaim. The album became an immediate success on Spotify and Bandcamp, earning a place alongside some of the most significant synth wave albums to date. In early summer of the same year, the artist announced a full remix album of After Dark with an eclectic mix of artists from EDM, synth wave, and all spaces in-between.The remix album sets the stage for the next chapter of Essenger’s career with innovative and exciting new music to come.Website | Instagram | Twitter | FacebookBrendan Baldwin pka Puppet is an electronic rock artist based in New York City. After his debut and consistent releases with Monster cat in 2014-2017, he quickly became known for his stand out sound, blending pop-punk vocals, rock focused song structures and real instruments with electronic production. In 2019 he released his Give Up The Dream EP independently, which showcased an even deeper fusion between traditional rock and electronic music. In 2020 he released his debut album I Know You Know Who I Am which cemented his status as a pioneer of the rock / EDM fusion. 2022 began with a mini tour which showed off his unique live set in front of hundreds of fans across the country. His sophomore album New York Family was released on May 4, 2022 and was followed by his first ever US headline tour. So far in 2023 he’s released 4 songs, the most recent being a collab with prolific edm talent, if found.Website | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook
Citizen
With the ability to excel in both quiet ballads and distorted rock anthems, Citizen (which recently expanded to a full quintet with the addition of former touring members drummer Ben Russin and guitarist Mason Mercer) has an incredible knack for channeling raw emotion and energy into singalong songs. On their new album Calling The Dogs, the band exemplifies that passionate songwriting and styling while stripping back to what they do best: guitar-driven rock ‘n roll. Picking up labels ranging from post-hardcore to shoegaze over the years, it’s reductive to try to categorize Citizen as anything other than one of the best rock bands around today. Evolving from teenagers playing local dives to a vibrant band capable of selling out theaters and hitting major festivals around the world, vocalist Mat Kerekes, guitarist Nick Hamm and bassist Eric Hamm have earned their reputation as both tremendous songwriters and a must-see live act. Website | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Spotify | YouTube
An Evening of Music with Valerie June, Rachael Davis, Thao, Yasmin Williams
This is a seated show.An Evening of Music with Valerie June, Rachael Davis, Thao, Yasmin Williams is a collective of multi-instrumentalists influenced by a kaleidoscope of musical traditions. Allthese powerful artists were invited by the visionary promoter, Anya Siglin, toperform atthe Ann Arbor Folk Festival. After an exhilarating evening of songs and stories thattransfixed the audience, each artist was excited to take the show on the road. Theirperformancesweaveinteractive conversation segments with songs in a Nashville-styleround. This powerhouse collective of women from uniquely different backgrounds, ages,and views share united auras of sound and music.The Musical Conversation Meet & Greet Experience Includes: – General Admission ticket to see The Musical- Conversation live (varies by city)- Access to an exclusive pre-show experience including:- Acoustic performance of 2-3 songs not being performed during the show that night- Moderated Q&A- Meet & Greet with group photo opportunity- Commemorative VIP laminate- Merchandise shopping opportunity prior to doors opening to the public- Early entry to the venue
Squirrel Flower
The music Ella Williams makes as Squirrel Flower has always communicated a strong sense of place. Her self-released debut EP, 2015’s early winter songs from middle america, was written during her first year living in Iowa, where the winter months make those of her hometown, Boston, seem quaint by comparison. Since that first offering, Squirrel Flower amassed a fanbase beyond the Boston DIY scene and has released two more EPs and two full-lengths. The most recent, Planet (i), was laden with climate anxiety, while the subsequent Planet EP marked an important turning point in Williams’ prolific career; the collection of demos was the first self-produced material she’d released in some time. With a renewed confidence as a producer, she helmed her new album Tomorrow’s Fire at Drop of Sun Studios in Asheville alongside storied engineer Alex Farrar. Before Tomorrow’s Fire, Squirrel Flower might’ve been labeled something like “indie folk,” but this is a rock record, made to be played loud. As if to signal this shift, the album opens with the soaring “i don’t use a trash can,” a re-imagining of the first ever Squirrel Flower song. Williams returns to her past to demonstrate her growth as an artist and to nod to those early shows, when her voice, looped and minimalistic, had the power to silence a room. Lead singles “Full Time Job” and “When a Plant is Dying,” narrate the universal desperation that comes with living as an artist and pushing up against a world where that’s a challenging thing to be. The frustration in Williams’ lyrics is echoed by the music’s uninhibited, ferocious production. “There must be more to life/ Than being on time,” she sings on the latter’s towering chorus. Lyrics like that one are fated to become anthemic, and Tomorrow’s Fire overflows with them. “Doing my best is a full time job/ But it doesn’t pay the rent” Williams sings on “Full Time Job” over careening feedback, her steady delivery imposing order over a song that is, at its heart, about a loss of control. Closing track “Finally Rain” speaks to the ambiguity of being a young person staring down climate catastrophe. The last verse is an homage to Williams’ relationship with her loved ones — ‘We won’t grow up.’ A stark realization, but also a manifesto. To be resolutely committed to a life of not ‘growing up,’ not losing our wonder while we’re still here.Website | Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | YouTube