Rock on the River 2008

A few months ago, local news media reported an as of yet unexplained explosion in Cabell County. Unless we collectively spread the word about Rock on the River this weekend, I am afraid similar reports will be coming out of Ironton.

The sixth annual Rock on the River is featuring some local heavy rock acts Let the Guilty Hang, X Factor 1, Stereovenom, Waiting The Fall, Down in Round 3, 20 Ton Angel, Faded and Stone Immortal.

The show is September 20 and will only cost you $7 in advance and $5 on the day of the show.

For more information check out the Rock on the River Web site: myspace.com/rotr08 or call Cody Chaffin, the event organizer at 740-646-4081.

Yesterday, I ran into Adam from Let the Guilty Hang and I picked up their album "The Unspeakable". Here are a few observations.The album is a tightly wound metal disc filled with equal parts yelling, guttural moans and melody.

The rhythm section hits hard and the lead work flitters between traditional metal noodling to what sounds like a possible B-side from Joe Satriani's "Surfing with the Alien".

I honestly do not have a lot of experience with metal music, so I will let you in on the test I use to judge metal. I played the new album in my computer and closed my eyes. I then had my roommate alternately turn on another metal band behind them. Sure enough, Let the Guilty Hang played tightly enough I could tell when the other band was on.

Yes. I have had CDs come into my possession that failed the above test.

Seriously though, Let the Guilty Hang is a group of rocking fella's and their live show is as headbanging as it comes.

Listen to Let the Guilty Hang here.

SOME OTHER ROCK ON THE RIVER BANDS (with a blurb about first song to come up on their page)

X Factor 1- Paint It Black- Perverted carnival ride which summons Nirvana and the Rolling Stones "Mother's Little Helper" balled into a package of metal.

Stereovenom- The Knife- A blues band that decided it would be cooler to get a harder edge and a vocalist from 90's grunge era--all through a thin cement wall.

Waiting the Fall- Divide the Weak- A giant trying to clear his throat over top of a torrent of rain drop drums and waves of rhythm guitar work with the occasional blistering lead work.

20 Ton Angel- Point Your Finger at the Mirror- I have no idea what is going on here--it's something between Christian metal, emo, screamo and sped up elevator music.

Luke Jivetalker coming to the V Club

Imagine taking Phish, Gov't Mule, the Allman Brothers, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Stevie Ray Vaughn and locking them up in a room together to make a new album.

With that in mind, Luke Jivetalker is a band that sounds like the above project's cover band. They have a rich soulful sound with just enough grit to sound like the perfect desperado at a bar soundtrack.

Luckily, you can run the soundtrack as you throw back a few at the Thursday show at the V Club. The show starts at 10pm according to the V Club Web site, which means you probably won't miss much if you roll in a little later, not that socializing a bit before a little blues jam isn't good for the soul.

It's the return...

September 17
The Fuzzy Duck (Ironton)--Bad Habits
Dowtown Barboursville Barboursville Goes Caribbean with the Buffettman Friday
Fat Patty's Hillbilly Rockstar

September 18
V Club Luke Jivetalker

September 20
Center Street Landing Rock on the River with Let the Guilty Hang, X Factor 1, StereoVenom, Waiting The Fall, Down In Round Three, 20 Ton Angel, Faded and Stone Immortal
Dowtown Point Pleasant Mothman Festival Lots of music, I will let you know some more later

September 21
V Club-- Punk Rock BBQ with The Big Bad, The Dig Its, The Bible Beaters, Sarasota
Shamrock Pub-- Ashers, The Concept, New Clear Future and Crash Notice

September 22
V Club JJ Grey and Mofro with Luke Jive Talker

Tom Watts, The Buffetman comes to Barboursville

Photo courtesy of www.tomwatt.com

Barboursville's Annual Fall Fest will have a special guest bringing the atmosphere of the beaches of Margaritaville to the village.

Sure, it's not Jimmy Buffett, but I have seen this man and Jimmy Buffett play live before and Tom Watt is really close to the legend. I will admit, it took a lot for this 21-year-old college student to admit he once attended a Jimmy Buffett show, but you have to admit the man knows how to live.

Fortunately, he also knows how to play music that creates atmosphere. It may be fall and it may be cooling down, but why not have one more go at the beach before busting out the knitted clothing?

The Fall Fest is a small affair right in the heart of Barboursville and there will be plenty to do at the fest. Last time I was there, I believe the headliner was Confederate Railroad. Whoever is booking these shows is definitely finding some really unique, low budget shows.

You can read more about Tom Watts on his Web site. You can also listen to some of his music. The coolest thing on the Web site is a little section that gives you Tom's stage plan... That is one detailed media kit!

Daisy De La Hoya coming to Fluid

Daisy De La Hoya, of VH1's Rock of Love 2 fame, claims to be from the City of Angels, which due to my knowledge of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, makes me assume she is from Los Angeles.

La Hoya is coming to Huntington Monday via the Fluid Nightclub. I'm not sure about this show, mostly because I listened to her music--once.

La Hoya plays a brand of cold droning rock rife with 80's metal licks. Gathering on what I have heard about her live performances, I am less than excited about her music. However... have you seen her?

I know that should not matter, but hey... I don't make the rules.

If nothing else, De La Hoya offers up the chance to meet a blood relative of famed boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya. She may jsut rock the crowd--we'll see.

I have been perusing a few brief bio's on the chick and some of them seem to suggest she has more to offer than reality show fame and a fresh ride on the coat tails of Uncle Oscar.

Give her music a listen and you can decide for yourself, that's what it's all about right?

The Shamrock Pub and the band Sarasota

As mentioned several times in this blog and I assure you this is the last time, I was at first skeptical of the Shamrock. However my Monday/holiday/late-night visit was like trying to appreciate the beauty of a bald eagle by painting a crow's head white.

I gave the Irish Pub a second go-around and found the live music scene is really where the bar excels. Sarasota was an excellent, catchy little punk band with a lot of passion. They played very well and I had only a few minor hangups with the sound.

The energy was incredible and though the Shamrock may be too small for a huge crowd, it is an excellent breeding ground for live bands. The flavor thus far seems to lean towards the punk rock crowd, what with bands like Sarasota, Down Goes Frazier, The Demon Beat, and The Redbloods.

Sarasota is an awesome live act and their online stuff seems pretty tight as well. Oddly enough, still a little foggy from attending the show, I found out the drummer is in my magazine article writing class. Sweet.

Here is where you can catch Sarasota soon...

September 19-- Bernie's Distillery
September 21-- V Club at the Punk Rock BBQ
October 12-- Club Echo
October 31-- Shamrock

...and here is a list of upcoming Shamrock shows, which sadly, in my previous "calendar post" I forgot to mention--fixing that now...

September 13-- Genuine Junk Band
September 21-- Ashers, The Concept, New Clear Future and Crash Notice
September 27 -- Richie Tipton, Rob Roy and Katt Jaxson

Click the photo above to see more shots from the show...

The Fuzzy Duck

If fuzzy wuzzy was a a duck...

The Fuzzy Duck bar in Ironton ended up with a similar visit to my previous one with the Shamrock Pub a few days ago... I must have picked the wrong night.

The music was awesome. I am not sure of the name of the guys who played their open mic night, but one of them used to play bass in the Genuine Junk Band. If you don't know GJB, you should definitely try to look them up.

Anyway, the bar has a beautiful scenic view of the river and is worth the short drive from Huntington. Here are a few things I would like to check out at the Fuzzy Duck:

The Fuzzy Duck (Ironton) --Gypzy Rose
The Fuzzy Duck (Ironton)--Bad Habits

P.S. If you have a hard time finding it based on directions from a GPS or Internet site... Just drive through the floodwall entrance... It doesn't look like the right move in the dark, but trust me.

Holderby's Landing Business Before Pleasure

I'm not sure how it happened. I go out fairly frequently, but maybe just not enough. Whatever the problem may be, I somehow managed living in Huntington for years without ever strolling down to Holderby's Landing.

I went last night to check out their event, "Business Before Pleasure", and though there seemed to be more people wandering the Harris Riverfront Park (doing who knows what) than there were on the deck at Holderby's, it was quite an experience.

The cost at the door was only a buck, so I can forgive slightly pricier bar items. The atmosphere at this place was killer. The entire scene seems more befitting to a beach bar and the view of the river was about as lovely as the Ohio by Huntington gets.

I'm not sure exactly what the event was--if it was a dance party, it may have failed, but I am completely okay with that. Dancing is overrated anyway. The little crowd that was there seemed to be composed of some pretty easy going folks.

Holderby's Landing is a great little escape from the wild, college-fueled, drink-til-you-dance, dance-til-you-get-sick clubs that pack Huntington.

Don't forget the Angie Fletcher band is set to play the Landing Saturday night, which you can read about a few posts down.

My only complaint? Glad you asked. The boat makes it feel like a beach bar. The decor makes it feel like a beach bar. The chilled out crowd makes it feel like a beach bar. However, no disrespect to de la Rocha and crew, but I am not sure how well the Rage Against the Machine tunes filling the air at the bar matched the rest of the scene.

On second thought, I love Rage Against the Machine and Jimmy Buffet may have just been too cheesy--maybe. Either way, I am going to take the problem of missing this little gem and turn it into an excuse to hit the night scene a little more heavily, so drop me an e-mail and let me know what else I am missing out on!

Angie Fletcher Band to play Holderby's Landing

I met Angie Fletcher at the Heiner's Summer Concert Series. Then I saw her again at the V-Club and once again at the wedding of the Dawg's Frontrow Jim. She's a real classy lady.

Being classy, doesn't mean I won't trash your music. Luckily for the Angie Fletcher Band, she is actually a very talented singer and keyboardist. Her vocals howl like the twisted souls of Melissa Etheridge, Aretha Franklin and Janis Joplin and her level of talent on the keyboard challenges mastery.

Fletcher also works for Kindred Communications and helps book the bands for at Pullman Square. Classy and busy it would seem.

It is very, very important that the name of the band does not fool you though. It is not just Angie Fletcher. The band is a powerful blues-country-rock group with some of the hottest licks in the Tri-State.

If you are a big country music fan, or just a big fan of the Huntington-native Billy Ray Cyrus, you may note some similarities in the rhythm section. Greg Fletcher, Angie's husband, and former drummer for B. Ray (10 years) , handles the beat-boy duties behind the drum kit.

Now if want to hear some amazing blues jamming with some very soulful singing and you wouldn't mind floating on a boat while you do it--don't miss this show.
Here is the Herald-Dispatch listing for the event:

Holderby's Landing, 1360 Harris Riverfront Park, Huntington. SATURDAY: Angie Fletcher, 8-11 p.m.

Update: A few show cancellations

The upcoming V Club show for Forty Pound Snapper and Ten Carp Lie have been canceled due to some band issues. There is still a good bit going on this weekend and further on, so check in tonight for some more information.

I think tonight I may go check out this Business Before Pleasure business going on at Holderby's Landing. I will let you know how it goes. Tonight there should be a little information on Angie Fletcher as well.

Holderby's Landing--Business Before Pleasure Sept. 4
Holderby's Landing-- Angie Fletcher Band Sep. 6
Funny Bone-- Comedian John Witherspoon
Holderby's Landing-- Kelly Ray Davis and the Money Makers September 6
Harris Riverfront Park X-Fest--September 6
MonkeyBar Forever in Terror, Neon Sky, Ceremonial Flesh, Ashes of Serenity, Dead Face Down,Trigger Disciple--September 9
V Club Who's Bad--September 11
MonkeyBar Bleeding Through, Timeless Memory, Extinct By Design, TBD September 11
V Club Rick Perdue Band and Fletcher's Grove--September 12
V Club MAYHEM STRING BAND & POKEY LAFARGE--Sep 13

40 Pound Snapper plays the V Club Thursday

40 Pound Snapper is a band. That simple fact, however, does not deter me from believing they are the wandering abandoned dream soul-spirit of my high school English teacher Joe Vincell from Moorefield, WV.

Unlike Vincell, Forty Pound Snapper is much more likely to crank out a Lyrnd Skynrd like Southern soul ballad than "Every Rose Has It's Thorn," but they are fronted by a young English teacher. They also happen to hail from Point Pleasant, WV instead of Moorefield.

The band plays the V Club very regularly and according to their MySpace page, not much else is lined up. I have heard from an inside source the band may be playing a pretty big part in some local festivities though.

Their influences range from the Flaming Lips to Neil Young, but their sound is all guitar driven rock with a message. The band has some very diverse sounds spread across their original catalog and their show is defintely worth taking a peek.

If you are still not completely sold on the band check out their tunes on the MySpace link above. I try to make it to as many shows as possible and I think I will be at this one. If you want to meet me you can find me at the V-Club Thursday. Let me know what you want to see on this blog and introduce me to your band or whatever other project you are working on.

I would like to see this become as interactive and fun as possible but I can only do so much without your help. I'm pretty easy to deal with too, so get in contact!

Hillbilly Rockstar playing Fat Patty's Wednesday

I have not seen or heard much from Hillbilly Rockstar, but it seems they are playing Fat Patty's tommorow and I believe this is their Soundclick page.

I really do not have too much to say about the band, I know only what is on the page linked above. Hillbilly Rockstar claims to play original and covers.

I must admit that I am not super excited about the sample I heard on the Web site, but I think a lot of that has to do with recording quality. The band seems to know their way around an acoustic guitar and doesn't mind peppering a little pop sensibility into the mix.

The show is scheduled Wednesday September 3 at Fat Patty's at 1935 3rd Avenue. I can not make many promises for this band, I know little of them. My final verdict? Go to Fat Patty's and eat some awesome food, if the band is good, well my friend, that is a bonus.

Arrested Development at the V-Club and the new Shamrock Pub

Arrested Development, Grammy award winners from the 90's played a hot show to a small but uber-energetic crowd Friday. I don't want to dedicate to much time to a show that you already missed or experienced, but the show was one of the best I had seen in a while.

The bassist was the most impressive instrumentalist in the group. He took turns summoning the finger-tapping of Kaki King (YouTube Vid) and Van Halen with the funk ferocity of Flea.

Enough about that.

I also went to the new Shamrock Pub with a friend to check it out. It was interesting and it seemed to have potential, unfortunately I did not roll in until shortly after midnight. The bar was practically empty, so I am going to follow up on that soon.

If you need information about the Shamrock Pub immediately you can read the Herald-Dispatch article by Richard Allen.

Well, more information later, but in the mean time, here are a few highlights of what will be coming up soon:

Fat Patty's Hillbilly Rockstar-- September 3
V Club 40 Pound Snapper-- September 4
Holderby's Landing--Business Before Pleasure Sept. 4
Holderby's Landing-- Angie Fletcher Band Sep. 5
Funny Bone-- Comedian John Witherspoon
V Club Ten Carp Lie---September 5
Holderby's Landing-- Kelly Ray Davis and the Money Makers September 6
Harris Riverfront Park X-Fest--September 6
MonkeyBar Forever in Terror, Neon Sky, Ceremonial Flesh, Ashes of Serenity, Dead Face Down,Trigger Disciple--September 9

I'll try to provide a few more details on some of these very soon, check back this evening.

Let's rock, Tri-State!

When I was just a young, bright-eyed lad, I dreamed of shattering the air between a stage and throngs of fans who believed my talent was nothing short of the latest miracle.

So I got a job to buy a guitar, I bought a guitar to start a band, I started a band to tour the world. However, with the level of dedication I was willing to give the guitar, I was barely able to tour a street corner and an open mic night on a jewelry store porch both about 10 minutes from my house.

I lost all hope as a rock star. Shortly after, an English teacher I knew said that I could write fairly well. That is when I discovered the joy of critiquing those who succeeded where I failed, the joy of passing my love to the masses.

My intention, you lucky little Internet wanderer, is to bring you the latest and greatest entertainment news in Huntington, the nation and the world.

I only hope writers have the same benefits and luxuries as rock stars. I will let you know if that turns out to be true, but as of yet I have not seen a single kid air-typing to a sweet new article.

This is where you can find what I have found to do in the world of entertainment, particularly how it pertains to the Tri-State. You can find me all over Huntington in venues, bars, clubs and just about anywhere else you find music.

Unfortunately — if you are the sort to peer through windows — you may see me in an embarrassing kickback to my past. Yes, I do occasionally throw on my Fender Stratocaster, crank up the volume on my MP3 player and rock out in front of the bathroom mirror.

My dream may be in a sad sort of coma, but it is far from dead. Read my words, believe half of them and enjoy all the Tri-State has to offer.