If you want to paint the town red, this is the week to do it, so I hope you have been saving your shekels as there is a lot going on thanks to two big events and several other shows this week.
If you like the softer, more pop side of the ’70s, the Historic Lethbridge Festival has several concerts this week which will be right up your alley.
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t and possibly remember ’70s fashions at the Lethbridge Pubic Library, May 6. It will be followed by the Can You Dig it? concert featuring Jesse Plessis, Bente Hansen, Mwansa Mwansa and the Integra Contemporary & Electroacoustic Ensemble.
If you love jazz music, there will be a “Jazz of the ’70s concert at the Sterndale Bennett Theatre featuring Randy Epp on keyboards, Kyle Harmon on drums, Ryan Heseltine on saxophone and Robb playing trumpet and flugelhorn. They will be playing the music of ’70s jazz icons like Stanley Turrentine, Grover Washington Jr, Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea.
Tickets cost $15 (regular), $10 (senior/student) at Long & McQuade and Music Court.
The Historic Lethbridge Festival also celebrates the rock of the ’70s with “Stayin’ Alive,” May 10 at the University Theatre featuring the Groove Apostles, Incanto Singers and U of L Youth Singers directed by Kathy Matkin-Clapton, director plus Mwansa Mwansa and Bente Hansen.
Tickets $20 (regular), $15 senior/alumni/student.
For the complete opposite to that, mark May 10 on your calendar for the Electric Eye Music Festival.
This multi-venue, by donation festival, features 30 of the wildest, weirdest, more experimental independent bands in Alberta playing at six different venues including the Slice, Owl Acoustic Lounge, Army and Navy Air Force Veterans Club, the SAAG, Blueprint and Telegraph Taphouse. There will be everything from country music to electronica plus a whole lot of garage rock, punk and psych rock. A suggested donation of three dollars per band will be taken or you can buy a no hassle wristband for $20.
Check out the schedule at http://eemusicfest.com/site-map/
There are other interesting shows including Lethbridge/ Calgary Metallica tribute Damage Inc. playing Bo Diddleys on May 9. The show begins at 9 p.m. There will be a $10 cover for it. If you like Ozzy Osbourne, Ozzy Osbourne Tribute Blackdaze will be playing Sound Garden, May 9 as well. There is a five dollar cover for the show, which begins at 9:30 p.m. Ottawa roots and country musician Trevor Alguire plays the Slice, May 9 in support of his brand new fifth CD “Miles Away” as well.
Also on May 9, Calgary bands Miesha and the Spanks and the Highkicks will show you that duos do it better when they play scrappy garage rock and rock and roll at Scores, May 9. Miesha and the Spanks features guitarist/ vocalist Miesha Louie and new drummer Emilia Lovink. Highkicks features the Dudes’ Danny Vacon on guitar and vocals and drummer Matt Doherty. Tickets cost $15.
Apart from that, local rock band the Delawares play the Owl Acoustic Lounge, May 9.
There are several early week shows. The biggest is Winnipeg musicians Scott Nolan and Brandy Zdan who will be rocking the folk at the Slice, May 7. The next night, laid back Sherwood Park indie rock/ folk band Nature Of will be playing the Slice, May 8.
And if you want to have a relaxing lunch, Floyd Sillito has his regular monthly noon hour gig at the Lethbridge Public Library on Wednesday, May 7 with special guests Karen and Ottle Pahl, who will be playing old school country music from noon to 1 p.m.
There are a couple of jazz and blues gigs this week too.
Paul Kype and Texas Flood will be rocking the blues at Casino Lethbridge on May 8 and 9. Steve Keenan has his blues jam at Honkers on May 9 and Randy Epp and Donn Robb return to the Mocha Cabana to play some jazz music, May 9 and 10.
If you still haven’t got your fill of live music after all of that, there are gigs on Monday and Tuesday as well. Vancouver folk trio Dogwood and Dahlia will be playing the Owl Acoustic Lounge’s May 12 open mic as well.
The Slice brings in some excellent punk and rock bands on May 12 with Winnipeg pop punk band Charlie, Monster, Winnipeg pop band Latka, local punk band Open 24-7 and Ste-Agathe, Manitoba acoustic performer Alone I Walk. There will be a five dollar cover for that show, which begins at 9 p.m.
If you love ”80s pop and soul, a talented Whitney Houston tribute comes to the University Theatre on Tuesday, May 13. The Greatest Love Of All - The Whitney Houston Show starring Belinda Davids just returned from a successful tour of Australia and South Africa. They will perform a catalogue of Houston’s most loved songs from the span of her 29 year career.
The two and a half hour concert and stage show includes hits such as ‘How Will I Know’, ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’, ‘Where Do Broken Hearts Go’, ‘Didn’t We Almost Have It All’, ‘I’m Every Woman’, ‘Exhale (Shoop Shoop)’, ‘Step by Step’ and of course, ‘I Will Always Love You’.
Tickets cost $30-$49 for the show, which begins at 8 p.m.
