WHAT: Plants and Animals, Grandkids, the Leadership
WHERE: Canopy Club ($10 advance)
WHEN: Tuesday, March 1st at 6:30 p.m.
Plants and Animals have gotten some well-deserved props for their excellent debut Parc Avenue, but they’ve largely flown under the radar of many indie music fans. But hey, I seem to remember some other Canadian indie rock group playing Champaign and then going on to win something called a “Grammy” several years later. With stellar local support (seriously, Grandkids’ new material is absolutely phenomenal) and cheap cover, this is one you should really make it out to.
WHAT: Keller Williams
WHERE: Canopy Club ($20 advance)
WHEN: Thursday, March 3rd at 9:30 p.m.
Keller’s fanbase and indie rock don’t really overlap whatsoever — so if you’ve got tickets to this one, you probably know what you’re getting yourself into. However you feel about him, you can’t deny that Keller Williams is good at what he does. Few people in the world can make a loop pedal feel as organic as he does.
WHAT: The Prairie Dogs
WHERE: The Iron Post ($TBA)
WHEN: Friday, March 4th at 5:00 p.m.
We’re betting you might want to avoid a good chunk of campus come Friday evening, so why not head over to downtown Urbana to see one of the area’s longest-running bands (they’ve been around for fifteen years and twenty-three bassists) in easily the best jazz venue in town. This one is pretty much guaranteed to be asshole-free.
WHAT: Band of Heathens Monkey Creek Boys
WHERE: The Highdive ($12 advance)
WHEN: Friday, March 4th at 6:30 p.m.
Contrary to the Prairie Dogs show, we’re betting that you might want to have a few drinks and let loose at this one. If you’re into this whole americana thing, you probably aren’t going to do much better than Band of Heathens. We fully expect footstomping.
WHAT: NOLA Benefit / Summercamp on the Road with Zach May and the Maps, Grandkids, MadPaw, Beeson Brothers, Corn Desert Ramblers, Banjar, Dan Hubbard, World’s Worst Vegan, Afternoon Moon
WHERE: Red Herring Canopy Club ($5)
WHEN: Friday, March 4th at 7:00 p.m.
A superbly-booked night at Canopy, which is doubling as both a New Orleans relief fundraiser and a Summercamp on the Road show. This means you get to support a good cause, see awesome bands like Zach May and the Maps (a band that must be seen live if there ever was) and possibly win some free tickets/swag.
WH
AT: Duke of Uke, the Curses, Grandpa Livingston
WHERE: Cowboy Monkey ($5)
WHEN: Saturday, March 5th at 10:00 p.m.
Begin with the fact Duke of Uke show are well known for their dangerously high levels of partying. and then multiply that times Mardi Gras. Also on the bill are the Curses, who’ve been somewhat off the local radar for a bit, but that time was spent recording a debut full-length, to be released on May 1st. Maybe they play some new stuff?