Tim’s Picks: Hey, what’s up?
Some choice ideas for this week and beyond.
Support for this edition comes from Greater Lafayette Family Shelter. From July 20 through July 25, donate to Greater Lafayette Family Shelter’s Christmas in July campaign to support our community’s only shelter dedicated to serving families. Your gift helps parents and children stay together while they work toward safety, stability, and a new beginning. Give today at bit.ly/GLFSDonate
And now for …
By Tim Brouk/For Based in Lafayette
The Prannies and Holy Smokes, 9 p.m. Friday, July 24, The Spot Tavern, 409 S. Fourth St., Lafayette — Lafayette’s premier pub rock band, The Prannies, will blend well with visiting garage rockers Holy Smokes. The Muncie trio have a 1960s flair to go with their hooky garage sound that will make you exclaim “Holy smokes!” $10.
Downtown Blues & Jazz Festival, 4-11 p.m. Saturday, July 25, North Fifth Street, downtown Lafayette — The annual Downtown Blues & Jazz Festival returns with four acts local and beyond for a celebratory night of two of America’s most important genres of music that influenced just about every sound for the last 100 years-plus. This outdoor extravaganza will welcome back Lafayette’s own The Scratch Thing and the debut of the Francois Dior Blues Band. The Max Hendricks Band is back from a Lafayette hiatus. This group rubbed elbows with the Clayton Miller Band 25 years ago. Queen Delphine and The Crown Jewels will serve as the festival’s headliner. The Indianapolis blues and soul band is led by the exquisite vocals of Queen Delphine — “The Queen of Blues” if you will — and has been gigging around central Indiana for more than a decade. The Crown Jewels are all stellar players, which often include a fiery horn section. Tickets.
Fergus Daly with Noah Red Elk and SHAY 537, 7 p.m. Saturday, July 25, The Arts Federation, 638 North St., Lafayette — One of Lafayette’s top songwriters, Fergus Daly will make a rare all-ages appearance for the latest edition of the Rec Room Live concert series. Daly’s brand of Americana/folk is a thing of beauty, and audiences young and old must witness his music live. Daly will be joined by young rock band SHAY 537 and singer-songwriter Noah Red Elk, who is also a local sound engineer and has the ponytail to prove it. $10, $5 for students.
Wet Denim with Criminal Kids and Pothole, 9 p.m. July 31, The Spot Tavern, 409 S. Fourth St., Lafayette — This band has “Bite,” and this “Bite” has made Wet Denim the top rock ‘n’ roll band in Indiana. The Indianapolis four-piece led by guitarist and vocalist Steven Riddle, whose voice sounds like he’s gargling razor blades but in an awesome way, returns to Lafayette but this time with a new LP, “Bite Back.” The nine-track record kicks off with an absolute guitar-driven explosion in “Double Fister,” which is the anthem for this hard drinkin’ and smokin’ band. I just saw them perform in Indianapolis and these songs sound as good live as they do on vinyl. There is even a mind-blowing cover of the Devo classic “Gates of Steel.” Indianapolis is lucky to have this band, and Lafayette is even luckier when Wet Denim makes the trip up. Bassist Matt Haddock used to drum in ‘00s Lafayette punk band Counteractive and is from our town. Opening the show will be Chicago’ garage punk band Criminal Kids and new Greater Lafayette punk act Pothole. $10.
A Taste of the Past: Feast, 6 p.m. Aug. 1, The History Center, 522 Columbia St., Lafayette — Can’t wait three months for the fall’s most cherished local festival, Feast of the Hunters’ Moon? Have a literal appetizer at an upcoming dining event led by local chef Lauren Reed. While the history, marching formations and 18th century fashions are interesting, the unique food at the Feast is a huge draw for the thousands that immerse themselves in the culture around a 1700s French trading post every year. Chef Reed created a menu that takes Feast food favorites and weaves them into more modern dishes like Pumpkin Butternut Squash Soup with Sage Crouton and Pumpkin Seed, Upside-down Ginger Pear Cake topped with Toffee Sauce and Whipped Cream, and Herb Grilled Pork Chop with Feast-Style Noodables. If you don’t know noodables, they are the Feast’s take on thick egg noodles combined with cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and celery, stir-fried in oil and seasoned with paprika, dill and salt. Wash it all down with some mulberry tea. In addition to the meal, the dinner will feature a performance by the Voyageur Ancient Fife & Drum Corps. Call (765) 476-8411 ext. 1 to place your reservation. $65.
Johanna Rose and the Dreamboats with KP and the WLGs, 8 p.m. Aug. 1, People’s Brewing Company, 2006 N. Ninth St., Lafayette — The summer sounds of New Orleans jazz and soul come to Lafayette via the vocals and upright bass playing of Johanna Rose and her Dreamboats band. The show is part of the band’s near monthlong tour around the South, East, Midwest and Canada. Opening will be Bloomington’s KP and the WLGs, a young band that has been steadily gigging between B-town and Indianapolis with its eclectic sound of country, folk and rock. Tickets.
Tim Brouk is a longtime arts and entertainment reporter. He writes here (almost) weekly, tracking things to do for Based in Lafayette.
BONUS PICK: The Tippecanoe County 4-H Fair continues today through Saturday at the Tippecanoe County Fairgrounds, 1406 Teal Road. There’s plenty of time to get one of those ribeye sandwiches and regale strangers about the time you made a pie in 4-H. Here’s the schedule to line up your Fair time.
Thanks, again, for support for this edition from Greater Lafayette Family Shelter. From July 20 through July 25, donate to Greater Lafayette Family Shelter’s Christmas in July campaign to support our community’s only shelter dedicated to serving families. Your gift helps parents and children stay together while they work toward safety, stability, and a new beginning. Give today at bit.ly/GLFSDonate
Thank you for supporting Based in Lafayette, an independent, local reporting project. Free and full-ride subscription options are ready for you here.
Tips, story ideas? I’m at davebangert1@gmail.com.