Friday, June 24, 2011
Lounge Act Weekend: Richmond Fontaine, Meat Puppets, Del McCoury
Posted By Dan Nailen on June 24, 2011, 4:00 AM
This weekend is pretty much lining up as a musical fantasy weekend for me. Three of my absolute favorites are playing the next three nights. The rest of you should just follow my lead.---
I'll start tonight, when Richmond Fontaine headlines at The State Room. The Portland-based band is led by Willy Vlautin, one mean songwriter who is now a novelist as well; one of his books, The Motel Life, is currently being turned into a feature film starring Emile Hirsch. It makes sense, since Vlautin's lyrical imagery is incredibly evocative, especially of scenes across the Mountain West. If you've never seen Richmond Fontaine, get on it! The show starts at 9 p.m., with Erik the Red and The Brothers Comatose opening.
Saturday night, it's one of my Top 5 Favorites of All Time bands, the Meat Puppets, pictured) headlining at Urban Lounge. The band has been going since 1980, starting as an SST "punk" band alongside The Minutemen, Black Flag and Hüsker Dü, even though their sound has veered into myriad directions since the early days: psychedelic, cow-punk, ZZ Top-style classic-rock guitar rave-ups. You name it, the Meat Puppets have probably played it. Check out our interview catching up with the Meat Puppets right here, then hit the show at 9 p.m. Bad Weather California and Black Box Revelation are also on the bill.
Sunday night, it's time to get traditional. Bluegrass music isn't for everyone, but the Del McCoury Band is a group that helped make me a fan. McCoury played with Bill Monroe back in the day, and his sons Ronnie (mandolin) and Robbie (banjo) are among the best players of their respective instruments on the planet. The band is classy all the way, wearing suits and harmonizing around a single microphone. It's great stuff. The band plays at 9:45 p.m. at the Utah Arts Festival.
Obviously there is plenty more going on, particularly with the killer Utah Arts Festival running through the weekend. Check out our cover story on the Utah Arts Festival for some tips.
And check out our Events listings for all the weekend has to offer. Maybe you can make three straight nights of your own favorites. You know where to find me.
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