5/29/18

JEFF GERMAN & THE BLANKETY BLANKS RETURN TO DETROIT

Americana artist and former Detroiter, Jeff German & The the Blankety Blanks, returns for a hometown show on Friday, June 29 at 8pm at PJ's Lager House in Detroit. The show also features two local singer-songwriters bookending the night of acoustic folk music.

This will be the Detroit debut of the new Blankety Blanks lineup that features Matt Wilson on pedal steel, Matt Newman on bass and Brian Osborne on drums. The band just completed a spring tour through the Mid-South that included a spot on the popular “WDVX Blue Plate Special” radio show in Knoxville, TN.  

Jeff German & The Blankety Blanks music can best be described as "Midwest music for the working class."  He creates an eclectic mix of musical styles - country, punk, rock, bluegrass, gospel - and melds them into a blue collar brand of Americana all his own.   

The band has recorded and released four albums on the indie label Slothrop Records. His latest collaboration as an acoustic duo with pedal steel player Matthew Wilson, "12 Day Weeks," was released in the winter of 2017. His latest offerings were recently released in Europe and received high praise from overseas critics. One review stated, "Jeff seems unable to compose a bad song and with these releases does nothing but confirm it."  

The night will also feature performances by: 

Michelle Held  –  https://www.reverbnation.com/michelleheldmusic Michelle Held is a folk singer, known for her timeless, captivating style. Brett Callwood (Detroit Metro Times) wrote, “Held plays gentle folk with oft scathing lyrics. It's her voice that adds the X-Factor; that little bit of welcome strange." Held performs regularly throughout Southeast Michigan with recent national appearances that include Kansas City Folk Festival, Old Quarter Acoustic Cafe and Wheatland Music Festival and received honorable mention in the 2018 Telluride Troubadour Contest. 

Jeff German & the Blankety Blanks  - The band hails from Columbus, Ohio but guitarist/frontman Jeff German is a native Detroiter. He is known around these parts for his previous work fronting the rockabilly trio The Flyin' Saucers, who regularly performed in Detroit. He also fronted The Curdogs and was the sideman to Bloodshot Records artist Lydia Loveless and Americana singer Amy Black.

Mike Ward https://www.reverbnation.com/mikeward6 Singer-songwriter Mike Ward is a regular solo performer around the Michigan area known for his straight-forward songs and style.

For more information on Jeff German & The Blankety Blanks check out www.jgblanketyblanks.com

The show is on Friday, June 29, 8pm doors/9pm show at PJ's Lager House located at 1254 Michigan Avenue, Detroit, 48226. 313-961-4668,www.pjslagerhouse.com 21 & over are welcome and cover is $5.