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This Wednesday’s Lightning Bolt at Gabe’s was one of the loudest shows I’ve seen in quite some time. It was also one of the best. If you haven’t yet had a chance to read A.C. Hawley’s preview for the show, it’s still a relevant read, and perhaps even more so if you happened to attend the show itself. You’ll realize that Hawley’s proselytizing was entirely accurate.
From Los Angeles, California to the Little Village Live studio comes Andy Frasco, touring extraordinaire. This young musician plays hundreds of shows each year, including four in Iowa City, but not without good reason. Take a look at the following video to see Frasco’s own brand of high-energy Blues.
Collectible Boys and Andy Frasco dropped by the studio this week for some Little Village Live double feature shenanigans. We’re also happy to note that this week marked the first anniversary of Little Village Live, but you’re here for the music, so lets get to it.
Fierce rain may have prevented Dr. Lonnie Smith from headlining the final day of the 2010 Jazz Festival, but all is not lost. We still have plenty of quality jazz to get to from the day’s earlier performances. So, what are we waiting for?
Straight out of Athens, Ohio come the harbingers of darkness known only as Skeletonwitch, or something to that effect. The thrash metal group took the stage late Saturday night at the White Lightning Warehouse and, as the following video attests, put on a show that would make any headbanger proud.
Day two of the Iowa City Jazz Festival wrapped up with another bevy of live music entertainment and beautiful weather to boot. Lets get to it, shall we? First up, we have Grammy Award-nominated trombonist Roswell Rudd and his Trombone Tribe, the day’s main stage headliners.
Safe to say, Iowa City has plenty of love for singer/songwriter Daphne Willis. The 22-year-old Chicagoan brought a throng of fans to Gabe’s over the weekend, playing alongside Megan McCormick, Megan Burtt, Amanda Miller and Alan Sweet. Check out the video inside to see Daphne in action.
How about that jazz, hepcats? You’ve hopefully made it downtown to get your fill of live music and vittles at the 2010 Iowa City Jazz Festival, but if you’ve been missing out, fret not! We’ve plenty of video highlights from Friday’s festivities to share, including clips of the U.S. Army blues–straight out of Washington D.C.–and the Bob Washut Dream Band.
With Jennie Vicious on lead vocals and Richey Vicious carrying the harmony, Toronto’s The Vicious Guns tout a vocally-focused brand of electronic rock that’s as smart as it is catchy. The two visited Gabe’s Saturday, putting on a lively performance after Chicago’s Boutros had finished their opening set.
The mysterious duo known as Boutros called Gabe’s their home Saturday night, performing a full set before letting The Vicious Guns take the stage. With beats slightly reminiscent of France’s Justice with a bass guitar to boot, there’s plenty of reason to give these two from Chicago a quick listen.
The Prids and Soft Tags, both hailing from the Pacific Northwest, gave us plenty of reason to get out of the heat and into The Yacht Club with back-to-back high energy sets of indie rock. The students may have shipped out for the summer months, but that hasn’t kept Iowa City from rocking with bells on, and we have the video to prove it.
Portland’s System and Station and the more local rock group Modern Day Satire–based in Des Moines–came by Gabe’s this weekend to play us some music. The show was a nice cherry on top of an otherwise action-packed Iowa City weekend, of which the Iowa City Pride Parade and Festival was the centerpiece, and we have plenty of video for you to sink your teeth into.
Little Village is a free, independent and community-supported news, arts and culture publication based in Iowa City and covering communities throughout Eastern and Central Iowa. Little Village's free print magazine is distributed to over 800 pickup locations around the state, and paywall-free online stories are published daily.
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