DEAR BOY's DASHING DETROIT DEBUT

Let's hear it for the boy! Dear Boy that is. The pop band from Los Angeles made their Detroit
debut as the opening act for the Psychedelic Furs and James show at the Royal Oak Music Theatre this past Saturday night. For those of you who missed it, you missed a great performance! 

 

I was glad to see that there were plenty people who did arrive early and enjoyed the band's show. It seems the band already has quite a few fans here in the city and are sure to have gained more judging by the enthusiastic response to their set.

 

 Dear Boy set the stage for the night with their brand of Brit pop meets post punk and dreamy guitar driven songs. They played songs off their three E.P.s they released on their own indie label. They mixed older songs like “Hesitation Waltz” from their first self-titled release with a newer tune “Semester” off their 2019 Strawberry E.P. throughout the opening set. The band was named one of the best bands in LA by music critics in 2018. 

 

 They have supported artists such as Peter Murphy, The xx and Dear or Die and also embarked on a national tour with fellow indie band Rogue Wave.This was their first tour opening for these major acts and the band held their own with a remarkable performance. Lead vocalist Ben Grey announced
during their set “It was a dream come true” as he humbly thanked the fans in the crowd for helping them get to that point and for getting there early to see them perform. They also joined the audience after their set to watch the rest of the concert along with them.

 So next time they return to our city, make sure you make a point to go see Dear Boy and
check out their music in the meantime.

 

 Words: Sue Static;  Photos: Kim Ski

THE FIREWALKERS HEAT UP THE WHITNEY GARDEN PARTY

There's a hot new band in town and they will set the stage afire at the Whitney Garden Party on Thursday, July 11! The Firewalkers are a new r&b/blues quartet featuring some of the city's finest musicians set off by the fiery vocals of Laura Mendoza.

The Firewalkers are comprised of singer Laura Mendoza, (White Shag, The Ricky Rat Pack, Mark Farner’s American Band) featuring David James (Jon Rice Band, David James) on guitar, Rudy Varner  (Jack Scott, Chris Casello Trio, JC and the Royal Keys) on upright bass and Loney Charles (Jack Scott, Chris Casello Trio, JC and the Royal Keys) on drums.

In 2017, during a residency at Otus Supply where Rudy and Loney were playing with JC and the Royal Keys, Laura was invited to sit in as a guest singer for one of the dates. That day the band started off with the unmistakable classic “Hound Dog” by Big Mama Thornton and the audience was blown away. Afterward, the three decided to start their own band and made their debut performance at the annual Erotic Poetry & Music Festival in 2019 to a rapturous crowd and began playing shows around town.  The band performs an original set of songs that includes some select r&b and rock classics like “Fever.”

They will be performing two sets starting at 7pm to 9pm at the infamous Whitney Garden Party. The party opens at 4:30 and is $5 cover. The Whitney is located at 4421 Woodward in Detroit, 313-832-5700. The parties are held in the fabulous garden of the historic restaurant.

Another upcoming show will be August 9 at The Willis Show Bar located at 4156 Third Avenue in Detroit, 313-788-7469. www.willisshowbar.com

For more information on The Firewalkers check out their webpage at https://www.facebook.com/thefirewalkersdetroit/

For more info on The Whitney: https://www.facebook.com/TheWhitneyDetroit/

A DATE WITH DEAR BOY! DON'T MISS THIS BAND'S DETROIT DEBUT OPENING FOR THE PSYCHEDELIC FURS AND JAMES ON JULY 27!

Dear Boy (Photo by Casey Curry)

How many times have you purposely arrived to a concert late to skip the opening band? It seems these days everyone has short attention spans and don't want to sit thru opening acts while waiting for the headliners. In the case of the upcoming dual headlining show of The Psychedelic Furs and James coming to the Royal Oak Music Theatre on July 27, it would be a shame if you missed the opening band Dear Boy!

Dear Boy will be setting the stage for the night with their brand of Brit pop meets post punk and dreamy guitar driven songs that are reminiscent of bands from the eighties and nineties. They are a perfect match to this retro bill! The band may have Brit influences, but they hail from Los Angeles. With two E.P.s of music on their own label under their belt, the band has been making waves in their hometown and abroad. They were named one of the best bands in Los Angeles by music critics there in 2018. They have supported artists such as Peter Murphy, The xx and Dear or Die and also embarked on a national tour with fellow indie band Rogue Wave.

The band are also fans of the two bands they are currently touring with as they have released a cover of The Psychedelic Furs tune “The Ghost In You.” They are also actively keeping the medium of music videos alive and have released a dozen for their songs since they started in 2012.

So make a plan to get to the show early and don't miss Dear Boy. You don't want to hear from your friends how you missed a good band the next day.

Here is a short Q&A from lead vocalist/guitarist Ben Grey of Dear Boy by Sue Static:

Is this your first time playing in Michigan?

It is! And I can’t think of a better first date with Michigan.

Obviously the band are Psychedelic Furs fans, whose choice was it to cover the song “Ghost In You”? Were there any songs in the running for a cover?

Haha totally… We wear our Furs fanaticism on our sleeves.

We do love to cover other music... "In The City" by The Jam, "Girlfriend in a Coma" by The Smiths, "Only The Lonely" by The Motels, "Only You" by Yaz, "Never Let Me Down Again" by Depeche Mode... we even do a fuzzy rendition of "Sister Golden Hair" by America... But "The Ghost in You" was the only cover we've ever done that was truly different than the original but still felt like an actual marriage of two sounds and two bands. Also, whenever we play it live, it's so fun to pretend that we wrote it... Even if it's just for a few minutes ;)

It's good to see a band who still takes the time to release creative videos. Do you have any additional videos in the works?

Thank you! That really means a lot. We actually did just finish shooting a video for a new song called "Heaven Moves." It's kinda like "A Hard Day's Night" if The Beatles were Monsters and if it was directed by Eric Rohmer. I think it's going to be cool.

What else is on the horizon for Dear Boy?

We're planning some fun live shows in Southern California and then a Fall tour... but mostly, we're excited to start tracking our first full length record. It's written... It's ready... and we absolutely can't wait to get moving.

For more info and to hear Dear Boy check out their website www.dearboyofficial.com or their videos on youtube.com.

7th Annual Small Wonders - An Exhibition of Tiny Art

HAMTRAMCK, MI - On Saturday July 20 2019 at Atomic Cafe Gallery in Hamtramck comes the 7th annual grand event of tiny proportions called Small Wonders - An Exhibition of Tiny Art.  This curated exhibition will feature 62 fine works in various mediums from 45 local and national artists created with only one guideline in mind...all artwork must 5 inches and under. Beginning in 2013 as part of the wedding reception festivities for local artists Dekilah and DVS, this now 7th annual event has grown to include a small festival of film shorts, a gallery of artists creating tiny art live and a tiny selection of tiny fine desserts.  And returning once again, lounge singer extraordinaire Konrad Lee (Satori Circus) will be singing a selection of tiny themed songs. Admission is $5 and all ages are welcome.  We look forward to seeing you soon! Small Wonders 7 – An Exhibition of Tiny Art Saturday July 20 2019 – 7pm until midnight Atomic Cafe, 10326 Joseph Campau, Hamtramck, MI http://www.SmallWondersDetroit.com https://www.facebook.com/events/419199931956335/ The 2019 Big Roster or Tiny Artists Annissa Pettit (Oak Park) B.P. LeGault (Royal Oak) Braden Duncan (Washington) Camille McCoy (Williamston) Carl Demeulenaere (Grosse Pte) Clever9Design (Harper Wds) Crystal Mielcarek (Hamtramck) David Prescott (Rochester Hls) Debbee Lotito (Lathrup Vlg) Dekilah (Detroit) DVS (Detroit) Eve Hyde (Royal Oak) Fae (Detroit) Gail Carpenter (St Clair Shr) Jackie Brooks (Grosse Pte Fms) Jason Passeno (Redford) Jen Casper (Lincoln Park) Jenny Creech (Clinton Twp) Jim Leach (Ann Arbor) John Thomason (California) Joseph Ferraro (Ferndale) Krysta Logan (Oxford) Krystal Tibbs (Alabama) Laurel Shada (Sterling Hts) Laurie Wechter (Ann Arbor) Leo James (Canton) Linda Buck (Berkley) Linden Eller (Arizona) Maria Latour (Livonia) Mary Eldridge (Ann Arbor) Melissa Porter (Berkley) mushabear (Warren) Nicole Filiatrault (California) Paul Balog (Wyandotte) Paula Marie Deubel (Sterling Hts) Rachel Truscon (Ann Arbor) Renee Robinson (Sterling Hts) Sanda Cook (Hamtramck) Shanta Ambady (Detroit) Shelby & Karl Denton (Detroit) Sya Reed (Kentucky) Tina Speece (Alabama) Vanessa Lipson (Berkley) Wayne Pace (Pontiac) Zieg (Walled Lake) The 2019 Tiny Film Roster “Chase Your Passion” – Cameon Wade (2018 Michigan 1:40) An anecdotal, inspirational short about finding and following your passion. “Corkscrewed” – Massimo Ottoni (2019 Italy 3:51) A dance, a fight, a solo; the story of a courtship. “Crossing Over” – Lotti Bauer (2018 Switzerland 4:00) “Danny’s Super 8” – Colin Russell & Alec Rodriques (2018 California 4:00) A look into the work of underground filmmaker Danny Plotnick and his love for Super-8 film. “Game Time” – Paul Hickert (2019 New York 1:10) Things get out of hand and someone could get hurt, when the big GAME is getting ready to start and the TV goes on the blink. “Portraitures” – Cosmo Richard John Spada (2019 Oregon 3:35) An artist interprets the lives of strangers in the form of urban sketches. “re/cycle” – Rene Smaal (2018 Netherlands 0:54) A forest. A bicycle. A man. Where did they come from? Where do they go? “Rendez-vous” – Jimmy Boutry & Thibaud Chaufourier (2017 France 2:10) In a manor out of time, a man begins to paint a canvas. “Sophie & the Magic Mirror” – Jeremy Bridges (2019 United States 4:59) Sophie finds herself face to face with the Magic Mirror of classic fairytales and works through what she should ask. “The Modelist” – Ben Mottershead (2018 United Kingdom 1:00) A model enthusiast struggles to speak to a girl he sees in the park, so uses his own unique methods to ask her on a date. And as a Special Feature “Being Satori Circus ~ SizzleTrailer” – Mark Finnell (2019 Michigan 3:23) A ‘sizzle/teaser’ trailer of the Hybrid Documentary in production, ‘Being Satori Circus’.

TONIGHT! SOUND SPACE 7 at Deluxx Fluxx

CRYOVAC 22 - The Record Shop EP Release Party

Journey into something deeper...

Underground techno all night

Hosted by Rebecca Goldberg

with Andy Garcia (Cryovac Recordings) and Dutch Mike

10pm

$5 | 21+

Cryovac Recordings is a collection of artists with a personal style that bleeds through their work. Cryovac artists have a relentless energy and passion for the music called techno. They are warriors with a clear vision and discipline on a course that is their own. The Cryovac crew believes in the vinyl record and has always been drawn to its’ unique quality it gives to sound. This e.p. celebrates the record shop, a crossroads of ideas and inspiration, where connections are made solid in the unity of the underground.

Rebecca Goldberg twists the 303 around a relentless 4/4 groove that evolves tweaks and pops into a sonic neurosis. Her yin yang approach applies a smooth steady delivery moving parallel to a raucous funk. The collaborative effort of Andy Garcia and Mike Kretsch produced a techno with moody rises and falls, stark kicks, and eerie effects held together with heroic energy. Toms and knocks, digital barks and farts, random clicks and ticks all fall into a galloping composition.

X RETURNS TO DETROIT ON MAY 21

The iconic punk rock band, X, will return to Detroit as part of their spring/summer tour on Tuesday, May 21 at El Club. Exene Cervenka, John Doe, Billy Zoom, and DJ Bonebrake will be performing songs from their first four classic albums which were recently reissued and remastered by Fat Possum Records.

Los Angeles (1980), Wild Gift (1981), Under The Big Black Sun (1982) and More Fun In The New
World (1983) were re-released earlier this year. In addition, the band recently re-entered the recording
studio for the first time since 1984. In two days, five songs were recorded with producer Rob Schnapf; release plans are pending.

Formed in 1977, X quickly established themselves as one of the best bands in the first wave of LA's
flourishing punk scene; becoming legendary leaders of a punk generation. Featuring vocalist Exene
Cervenka, vocalist/bassist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom, and drummer DJ Bonebrake, their debut 45 was released on the seminal Dangerhouse label in 1978, followed by seven studio albums released from 1980-1993. X's first two studio albums, Los Angeles and Wild Gift are ranked by Rolling Stone among the top 500 greatest albums of all time. Over the years, the band has released several critically-acclaimed albums, topped the musical charts with regularity and performed their iconic hits on top television shows such as Letterman and American Bandstand. In 2017, the band celebrated their 40th anniversary in music with a Grammy Museum exhibit opening, a Proclamation from the City of Los Angeles and being honored at a Los Angeles Dodgers game, where Exene threw out the first pitch and John Doe sang the National Anthem. The band continues to tour with the original line-up.

Opening the show is are indie pop band Skating Polly from Oklahoma. Exene Cervenka was
instrumental in helping the band and producing their second album after the band approached her
after a concert. The women struck up a friendship that led to the musical collaboration. This is the
second time the line-up of the two bands have toured together and played Detroit.

The show will take place at El Club located at 4114 Vernor Hwy in Detroit. 313-279-7382. The show is all ages and tickets are available at this link: www.elclubdetroit.com/listing

For more info on X check out their official website: www.xtheband.com

ARTIST JEREMY IAN HARVEY'S NEW SHOW: GHOST THE WORLD

 

Local artist Jeremy Ian Harvey is known for his wildly colorful paintings, life-size sculptures and magnificent murals that can be found around town at places like Display Group, The Beer Grotto and Royale With Cheese.

The artist will present a show that combines new work and a retrospective from the last three years called “Ghost The World” on Saturday, June 8 from 7-11pm at The Hidden Gate Gallery in Eastern Market. 

This exhibit is deeply personal to the artist who has become a full-time caregiver to his wife and daughter for the past few years. Each of them have multiple health conditions. The most prominent with his wife Kristen is Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (a genetic degenerative disorder that affects your connective tissue that causes joint dislocations, severe arthritis, intestinal disorders and often coexisting conditions). EDS is an extremely rare disease so it doesn't get a lot of funding for research. 

The couple's ten year old daughter Juliana has had complications since soon after her conception. It was a very traumatic pregnancy, so many things went wrong and so many other things after. Julianna has autism, cerebral palsy and EDS as well. She had a regression five years ago which has made her non-verbal. Her last diagnosis was a condition called excitable catatonia which does the exact opposite of what catatonic behavior is. Julianna is constantly in motion, she never relaxes or focuses on one thing for too long and her energy is boundless and endless.

The round the clock care-giving made it impossible to hold a regular job, so the artist relied on various commercial art jobs and mural work to provide for the family. About three years ago the complications at home became too much to leave the house and Jeremy devoted his time to creating fine art in his home studio. After a year he had an artistic breakthrough with his work that came from a breaking point with the depression, stress and anxiety of the situation. “After a year of experimenting with techniques I had one of the biggest artistic revelations I’ve had in almost 30 years.” he says,“I had desperately needed to change the way I was painting. I was putting so much focus on details often spending hours on one tiny spot. I loved what I was doing but the constant bombardment of stress, anxiety and depression was life encompassing. Inside my head was non stop downward intrusive thought spirals and instead of my art helping me cope, all the over analyzing was adding fuel to that fire. I felt no good for myself and no good for my family.” Harvey says of the trying time. “Soon, through a lot of trial and error, I taught myself enough new bells and whistles that a whole new kind of style emerged. Everything now is very splashy with lots of color washes and loose brush strokes.” He went on to produce five art shows in two years with various themes such as clowns, party pics, David Bowie and even a tribute show to his wife Kristen.

“Ghost The World” features paintings selected from the previous five shows along with a whole new body of work. The theme for this new work is it's size format as the new pieces are all going to be very large, between four to six feet tall in scale. The artist says of the new show, “I want to pull every trick up my sleeve to transform the venue with my mural work. It's going to be very over the top and by far the most challenging. I’m about as excited as I can physically be for this one and It' officially starts now.”

The show is on Saturday, June 8, 7-11pm at Hidden Gate Gallery located at 1353 Division St. in Eastern Market in Detroit. (313) 686-3433.www.hiddengategallery.com

For more information on Jeremy Harvey check out his artist page at: https://www.facebook.com/Jeremyianharveyart/

 

 

Static presents…CAT MANIA! A celebration of cats variety show!

Static presents Cat Mania! A variety show featuring a night of music, art, magic,dance, burlesque and vendors capturing the feline frenzy! The proceeds go to the local cat rescue the Hater Kitty Rescue Army and Tailwagger's 1990 dog and cat rescue.

CAT MANIA! is on Friday, May 31 at 8:00 pm/8:30 showtime at the Tangent Gallery/Hastings Street Ballroom 715 E. Milwaukee St. in Detroit. (313) 873-2955. 18 & over are welcome. $10 suggested donation.

Featuring Music by:

• Konrad Lee: https://www.facebook.com/konradlee2009
• Cat Lung: https://www.facebook.com/catlungband/

Burlesque by:

• Kitty & Eris
• Sophia Von Stardust (below)
• Ravenna Munster

Performers:

• Jennifer Wingless
• The Amazing Flec
• The Big Icky
• Divine Butterfly (below)

Art by:

• B.P. LeGault
• Steve Czapiewski
• Brian Lewandowski
• and more!

Tarot readings by GeminEye Tarot

Vendors:

• Beth Amber
• Sis T's Treatz
• Wix & Wax
• Spooky's Geek Boutique
• Windy Woods Designs
• Frozentree
• Brett's Topicals
• Crafty Darling
• Crystal Mielcarek
• and more!

Raffle with fab prizes from our vendors and other local shops!

X ANNOUNCE ADDITIONAL SPRING & SUMMER TOUR DATES

JOINING VIOLENT FEMMES FOR SELECT MAY DATES

The iconic punk rock band, X, have announced additional dates for the first leg of their upcoming spring/summer tour plans. The first tour leg will begin on May 2 in Hermosa Beach, CA at a VIP party for the BeachLife Festival after which Exene Cervenka, John Doe, Billy Zoom, and DJ Bonebrake will then join the Violent Femmes for a 9-date co-headlining tour starting May 6th at Humphrey's in San Diego, CA and continuing on through May 17th in St. Louis at The Pageant. In addition, X and Violent Femmes will be among the top stars at Arlington, TX's upcoming KAABOO Texas, set for Saturday, May 11th alongside The Killers, Kid Rock, Sting, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Avett Brothers and many more.

X recently announced the reissuing and remastering of their first four classic albums via their collaboration with Fat Possum Records. Los Angeles (1980) will be released on February 22nd, Wild Gift (1981) will be released on March 22nd, while Under The Big Black Sun (1982) and More Fun In The New World (1983) will each be released on April 12th. In addition, the band recently re-entered the recording studio for the first time since 1984. In two days, five songs were recorded with producer Rob Schnapf, release plans are pending.

Formed in 1977, X quickly established themselves as one of the best bands in the first wave of LA's flourishing punk scene; becoming legendary leaders of a punk generation. Featuring vocalist Exene Cervenka, vocalist/bassist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom, and drummer DJ Bonebrake, their debut 45 was released on the seminal Dangerhouse label in 1978, followed by seven studio albums released from 1980-1993. X's first two studio albums, Los Angeles and Wild Gift are ranked by Rolling Stone among the top 500 greatest albums of all time. Over the years, the band has released several critically acclaimed albums, topped the musical charts with regularity and performed their iconic hits on top television shows such as Letterman and American Bandstand. In 2017, the band celebrated their 40th anniversary in music with a Grammy Museum exhibit opening, a Proclamation from the City of Los Angeles and being honored at a Los Angeles Dodgers game, where Exene threw out the first pitch and John Doe sang the National Anthem. The band continues to tour with the original line-up.

X on Tour

May 02 – Hermosa Beach, CA – Beach Life Festival (VIP Party) **

May 05 – San Diego - Humphrey’s *

May 07 – Phoenix – Van Buren *

May 09 – Austin, TX – ALC Live * 

May 10 – Houston, TX – HOB *

May 11 – Dallas, TX – KAABOO Festival **

May 13 – San Antonio – The Aztec *

May 14 – Tulsa, OK – Caines *

May 16 – Memphis, TN – Graceland *

May 17 – St. Louis, MO – The Pageant *

May 21 – Detroit, MI – El Club

May 22 – Kent, OH – The Kent Stage

May 24 – Albany, NY – TBA

May 25– Holyoke, MA – The Gateway City Arts

May 28 – Pawling, NY – Daryl’s House

May 30 – Chicago, IL – HOB

May 31 – Thornville, OH – Camp Anarchy Festival **

More X Summer tour dates to be announced soon

*X with Violent Femmes

**Festival Date