1. September 6 and 7: End of Summer ExtravaGansett; Two stages; Outdoors from 2 to 7pm and inside 7pm til close each night; $8 suggested donation / $5 with a non-perishable food item for the RI Community food bank; Check age restrictions; The Parlour, 1119 North Main St, Providence. Narragansett Beer (can I get a free case of old Summer for mentioning them?) and The Parlour have teamed up to bring you a two-day adios to summer with indoor and outdoor stages of live music. The first day consists of a mix of rock and roots with Providence mainstays such as Smith & Weeden, Barn Burning, Haunt The House, Sharks Come Cruisin’, and Frankie Ranks and the Freeloaders along with national Americana act Willard Grant Conspiracy, New Haven’s Flaming Lipsish Jose and the Astronauts, and newish Providence act Eric and the Nothings. I wandered upon the Nothings’ bandcamp since I haven’t caught them yet, and their songs sound great. It’s ‘50s garage dream pop without sounding forced, cheesy or overwhelming. Well done. I recommend seeking it out. On Monday the lineup sticks with The Parlour’s weekly theme of reggae-related bands and DJs such as Natural Element, The Copacetics, Team Upsetta, Paul Bedrosian and more. Should be a great send-off to the summer I mostly missed.
2. Sunday, September 6: Scurvy Dog Parking Lot Mega Show II featuring Beta Motel, The Viennagram, Minibeast, Beware The Dangers Of A Ghost Scorpion!, The Worried, Louisiana Hayride, The Quahogs, Sasquatch, The Hornets; The Scurvy Dog; 2pm – 2am; Free!; 21+; 1718 Westminister St, Providence. While the East Side is responsibly rock and/or rolling at The Parlour, the West End collective of punk and/or rollers will be tanning in their sea of black t-shirts in the parking lot of the Scurvy Dog. I went to Mega Show I and it was a blast. My favorite part was seeing all the neighbors in their surrounding-the-bar housing coming out to figure out what the hell they were listening to. I wasn’t sure if it was ire or admiration, but it was interesting. Anyway, the line-up looks great. I still haven’t caught Beta Motel or Minibeast (featuring Peter Prescott from Mission Of Burma) and I really want to. I am not sure what Beware the Dangers of a Ghost Scorpion! is, but I think I want to. And right in the middle you have some of Providence’s punk and rock communities’ longest active musicians: The Worried, Sasquatch, and the return of Louisiana Hayride. And Scurvy Dog’s chef, Jenny, in addition to the usual great burgers and dogs fare, will crank out her famous shrimp and crawfish gumbo! Lots of great music all around town this Labor Day weekend. Make sure to get out and make the most of it.
3. Friday, September 18: 94 WHJY welcomes Slash featuring Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators; 8pm doors / 9pm show; $35; All ages; Lupo’s, 79 Washington St, Providence. This September, Lupo’s has something for everyone who likes classic rock. On the 17th you have Zappa Playing Zappa, on the 23rd is Ace Frehley (formerly of Kiss) and oddly enough, on the 25th is Kansas. And the show I am looking forward to the most (although Kansas is close) is the first time appearance at Lupo’s of guitar virtuoso Slash. You have to live under a rock to not know who Slash is, the former lead guitarist of Guns N’ Roses. The iconic image of him in a top hat is so ingrained in pop culture that it should be trademarked. While I am sure the musicians backing him, Myles Kennedy and Conspirators, are going to be great, the reason I am so excited for this show is the people watching. A Friday night in Providence is going to bring out all the oddballs in southern New England to blend in with all the hard rock hold-outs. Get there early to take all of it in before the lights dim.
4. Saturday, September 19: Blake Schwarzenbach (of Jawbreaker / Jets To Brazil / Forgetters), Twin Foxes, Valencourt; 9pm doors / 9:30pm show; $10 advance / $12 day of; 21+; Dusk, 301 Harris Ave, Providence. For the first time that I can think of, Blake Schwarzenbach is playing solo shows outside of his home New York City area. For fans of his seminal bands such as ’90s punk act Jawbreaker, indie act Jets To Brazil and most recently Forgetters, this is great news. Discussions in the punk rock community craving a Jawbreaker reunion have gotten so loud and feverish that it’s at the point where there is now a band called Jawbreaker Reunion, playing off the legend of the discussion. For the generations who missed out on catching Jawbreaker or even Jets To Brazil, this might be the closest you’ll get. Rumor is he has been playing a few songs from his catalogue of song-writing-past along with new songs. I saw Jawbreaker when I was 15 (thanks, Mom) with Jawbox at Lupo’s II. It was all I could have wanted and more, and I made an MTV VJ swear at me — another highlight of my teenage years. My friends think I am crazy, but as much as I love Jawbreaker I would most look forward to a Jets To Brazil reunion. Maybe I should start a band name pining for it. Providence’s ’90s indie throwback Twin Foxes and solo act Valencourt round out the bill. Make sure to get tickets in advance. Dusk is small and this will sell out, maybe in advance.
5. Tuesday, September 29: 95.5 WBRU First Contact presents Wolf Alice, Drenge, Made Violent; 8pm doors / 9pm show; $9.55; All ages; The Met, 1005 Main St, Pawtucket. When I was in high school in the late ’90s, bands would have to make phone calls (can you believe it??) to the clubs to be booked. It was pretty easy, but not easy for local clubs to fact check that these bands actually existed. So my friends and I would call in during booking hours and make up band names hoping to see them in the listings for our later amusement. Take two mismatched words, Meat Brick or Face Stick, and you have a ’90s band ready for the flier or Phoenix ad. This bill has three ’90s sounding band names. Upon listening, it’s appropriate as they all seem to be somewhat influenced by the decade. North London’s Wolf Alice are touring in support of their first full-length, My Love Is Cool, a balance of well-produced and well-written post-grunge alt-rock. Sheffield, England’s, Drenge are a unique sound of post-punk blurring with grunge riffs. Buffalo’s Made Violent sound would seem to more out of oughts, reminiscent of The Libertines. I love what I have heard of them so far. Check out tracks “Wasted Days” or “On My Own.” Should be a great bill front to stop.
Worth noting: September 11: The Antlers @ The Met; September 16: Goddamn Gallows @ Firehouse 13; September 17: of Montreal @ Columbus Theatre; September 22: Circle Takes The Square @ Aurora; September 22: Wale @ Lupo’s; September 29: Joey Cape (of Lagwagon) @ The Parlour; October 1: Pentagram at The Met
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