Tim’s Picks: A mid-summer edition
Your weekly dose of five choice ideas for the weekend and beyond in Lafayette/West Lafayette, for July 13-19. Plus, a host of other reads.
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And now, your weekly dose of …
By Tim Brouk / For Based in Lafayette
Totally ’90s Book Fair, 4-8 p.m. Friday, July 14, Main Street Books, 426 Main St., Lafayette — Before the streams, before the devices, even before the internet, Scholastic book drives, fairs and Pizza Hut-related contests caused much-needed fanfare for 1980s and ’90s kids during the school year. What a deal: Students would get to use class time to peruse those old, paper catalogues to pick out their favorite books. Then, seemingly centuries later, the utter, unbridled joy — again during class time — when the books would arrive in giant boxes and be distributed was electric. It was like as if Amazon delivered only once or twice a year. THEN, those books could be used for Pizza Hut’s reading contests that awarded pizzas to children that met their reading goals. That personal pan pepperoni pizza somehow tasted better after reading several Goosebumps or Babysitters Club titles. Downtown Lafayette’s Main Street Books and Shop 765 will tap into that nostalgia with a book fair brimming with old-school young adult series like Animorphs, Magic School Bus, I Spy and much more. Instead of pizza, though, patrons will receive a free mood ring with every purchase. R(e)adical!
BT Koning, 6 p.m. Friday, July 14, Purdue Memorial Union — Central Indiana-based country singer-songwriter BT Koning only needs his trusty acoustic guitar and a slew of tunes to land gigs from Nashville (Indiana), Greater Lafayette and everywhere in-between. Bolstered by his latest album, “Second Wind,” Koning, a Lafayette Jeff grad, can bring a tear directly into your beer or get you to sing along into the summer night. His style is in the vein of 21st century country artists that focus on song writing like Jason Isbell and Zac Brown as opposed to pop-country vapidity. The show is free.
Outdoor Velour and Dawn Hively with Blends, 7 p.m. Friday, July 14, Digby’s Pub and Patio, 133 N. Fourth St., Lafayette — After making a go in Austin, Texas, (preceded by a short stretch in Nashville, Tennessee), Dawn Hively will make her Lafayette re-debut. The young singer-songwriter fronted the rock band Abercorn some years ago but has repackaged her talents for the solo artist format. Surviving and even thriving in the Nashville and Austin markets is not easy, and Hively is sure to be better than ever after working for months in such celebrated live music scenes. Local indie pop-rockers Outdoor Velour will play its first set in almost a year with new songs, covers and drummer in the form Mathew Anderson, who leads local noisy indie rock act Blends. And to add to the musical incestuous-ness, Outdoor Velour guitarist/vocalist Greg Simpson will play drums during Blends’ opening set.
Sixth & South Annual Fundraiser, 6-10 p.m. Saturday, July 15, MatchBOX, 17 S. Sixth St., Lafayette — From startup companies to individual work, MatchBOX Coworking Studio has been a hub for local ideation, creation and community impact for years in downtown Lafayette. The setting promotes creativity with all the accoutrement to get work done. But it’s not always work, work, work. MatchBOX can party, too. Its annual Sixth & South fundraiser and celebration will feature live music from Lafayette’s own Ebony and the Ruckus and DJ Kyle Robert Paquin. Food and drinks will be courtesy of Revolution BBQ. Keep Lafayette’s entrepreneurial spirit alive at Sixth & South and beyond. $50. Tickets.
Lydia Brittan and The Royal Family, 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 18, People’s Brewing Company, 2006 N. Ninth St., Lafayette — That wonderful Nashville musical pipeline continues to flow into town when Lydia Brittan and her band, The Royal Family, make their Lafayette debut. With a vintage mix of 1960s soul, rockabilly and psychedelic-tinged rock ‘n’ roll, Brittan has the strong, smoky, take-no-prisoners vocals that grabs listeners’ attention and never lets go. Be sure to check out the band’s single, “Runaway Brain,” a track that warns those dirty dog dudes that happen to talk in their sleep to stay faithful or else. The Royal Family are killers, too: Bassist Sissy Dinkle provides stunning lines and harmonies while guitarist Anthony Castagna squeezes out the perfect leads and chords to further send you into ‘60s bliss. $10. Tickets.
Tim Brouk is a longtime arts and entertainment reporter. He writes here (almost) weekly, tracking things to do for Based in Lafayette.
OTHER READS …
New ILEARN results – a measure of math and reading skills for students in Indiana’s schools – were released Wednesday. The headline on Indiana Capital Chronicle reporter Casey Smith’s article had the upshot: “New Indiana ILEARN scores show more improvement, but still no pre-pandemic bounce-back.”
(Photo: Unsplash) For a school-by-school look at ILEARN scores for where your kids go or in your neighborhood, searchable databases are up via Chalkbeat and WFYI, to name two.
Purdue Exponent reporter James Kling reported that police had called off the search for a graduate student lecturer from Purdue who was seen on surveillance footage jumping into the Wabash River from the John T. Myers Pedestrian Bridge in the early morning hours of July 3. Here’s the Exponent report.
J&C reporter Ron Wilkins had this, from an arrest in Lafayette: “Police officer injured by K9 attack during a suspect's arrest.”
Farm Aid is coming back to Indiana for the third time, this time at Ruoff Music Center in Noblesville on Sept. 23. The lineup includes: Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, the return of Neil Young, Dave Matthews, Margo Price, Bob Weir and more. Details here via Billboard: “Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp to Headline 2023 Farm Aid in Indianapolis.”
(Photo: Dave Bangert) Indiana Public Broadcasting reporter Brandon Smith had this story, three weeks before Indiana’s near-total ban on abortion – upheld by the Indiana Supreme Court – goes into effect Aug. 1: “Planned Parenthood at full capacity for abortion care before Indiana ban takes effect.”
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Abortion bans will not stop abortions, only safe ones. But Republican politicians don't care about dead women any more than they care about suicidal trans kids.
Thanks. I just got tix for People’s.