Weekly Picks: Psychedelic Furs, Bipolaroid, Loudon Wainwright III, Leo Kottke, Southern Belles, Zep Replica, Big Payback, Fear of Music

Friday is packed with music. If you've ever wondered what would happen if Led Zeppelin, James Brown and Talking Heads did a concert together, well, wonder no more. At the Canal Club Friday night, it's tribute band mania with Zep Replica (their last show ever!), The Big Payback and Fear of Music. Doors will open at 7, it's $8 in advance, $10 to get in. FOM will start the show at 8 so get there early. All fans of Phil B. should attend also. Here'e Zep Replica doing "Since I've Been Loving You" at Hardywood Brewery on 11/17/12:


Zep Replica - Since I've Been Loving You from Todd Raviotta on Vimeo.

At the RVA Theater (formerly the Hat Factory) on Friday night, it's Rockn' to Lockn' Round 1 as Virginia bands face off to see who will get a spot on the big stage at this year's Lockn' Festival. The first round will feature Everwilde, People's Blues of Richmond, The Green Boys, and Bryan Elijah Smith and the Wild Hearts. All of them are great bands and if one of them is your favorite, make sure you get there to vote. It's $8 to get in. There will be four rounds in all over the next few months with the championship round at the RVA Theater on August 9th which, perhaps not coincidentally considering the Grateful Dead/jam band centic Lockn' Fest, is the 19th anniversary of the death of Jerry Garcia.

Speaking of jam bands, The Southern Belles (who will hopefully be in a later round of Rockn' for Lockn')c continue their first Friday residency at The Camel. It's $7 to get in, show starts at 10 with openers Brushfire Stankgrass from Asheville NC. You can catch the Belles on the radio or the interwebs (www.wxjm.org) on WXJM from Harrisonburg on Thursday night from 8 - 10 PM. Here's the Belles on March 19 at Cary St Cafe with the "Jet Trails Medley" featuring Jet Trails (Southern Belles) > Bloody Well Right (Supertramp) > I'm a Wreck > Jet Trails.



Legendary folk musicians Leo Kottke and Loudon Wainwright III at the Modlin Center on Saturday night. The show starts at 7:30 and tix range from $18 - $36 depending on your demographic. Here's the press blurb on the show:

"For more than four decades, Leo Kottke’s innovative fingerpicking style of guitar-playing has earned him five “Best Folk Guitarist” wins (Guitar Player magazine), a “Best Instrumentalist” win (Performance magazine), an induction into the Guitar Player Hall of Fame, two Grammy nods, and an honorary doctorate. Kottke has released 22 studio records and 14 compilations, live albums, and soundtracks.
 Throughout a recording career consisting of 25 albums, Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, humorist, and actor Loudon Wainwright III’s songs have been covered by music icons including Johnny Cash, Bonnie Raitt, Earl Scruggs, Rufus Wainwright, and more. In addition to a prolific music career, Wainwright’s acting credits include film roles in Knocked Up (for which he also recorded the soundtrack), The 40 Year Old Virgin, Elizabethtown, The Aviator, Big Fish, 28 Days, Jackknife, and The Slugger’s Wife, and television roles including Parks and Recreation, Undeclared, Grounded for Life, Ally McBeal, and M*A*S*H."

Here's Leo doing "Deep River Blues" in 1997:

And, seeing as the weather is finally warming up, here's Loudon getting you ready for summer with "Swimming Song":



Sunday, The Psychedelic Furs will be at The Beacon Theatre in nearby Hopewell. Tix range from $20- $55. Show starts at 6:30. No word on whether there will be an opener or not. The Furs had a great run of hits and albums in the 80s. This one was my favorite, "Love My Way":

On Monday night, at record store Steady Sounds, there will be a free in-store performance from Louisiana band Bipolaroid who play "delta psychedelic music influenced by the likes of Dr. John the Night Tripper, Syd Barrett/Pink Floyd and the 13th Floor Elevators" which sounds right up my alley. Richmond's Roseanne will open. It starts at 5 PM and goes until 7. It's FREE but if you want to bring some $ to help out the touring band, they'd be grateful. Here's Bipolaroid's new video for "Self-Portrait".



Who says cartoon aren't good enought for Carnegie Hall? Here, Ensemble ECJW (don't ask me what that means) of Carnegie Hall do a medley of 43 Cartoon Theme Songs. See if you can name them all. The fun visual cues they provide might help.



Have a great weekend!

Tony Jordan