ALT-COUNTRY | Ryan Adams, Whiskeytown Tribute
Fri. July 24
9 p.m.
$8/adv., $10/door
The Pour House
With all the tribute shows making the rounds lately, perhaps it’s surprising that, given Ryan Adam’s catalogue and influence, we haven’t ever heard of a tribute to the former Whiskeytown frontman. Enter Ryan Bonner, of Charleston’s own Guilt Ridden Troubadour. “I’ve always been a big fan,” Bonner says of Adams, who’s released a remarkable 14 albums in the 15 years since Whiskeytown broke up. “And most of the musicians I know are all big fans, as well. There’s such great musicianship in all his work.” Bonner and bassist Brent Poulson gathered guitarist Jeff Davis, drummer Jack Friel (both members of Guilt Ridden Troubadour), singers Lindsay Holler (Matadero) and Lauren Cahill (The Lowhills), and keyboard player Whitt Algar (Gaslight Street) — and together the troupe prepared a program that mixes material from all of Adams’ different incarnations, from the rustic Americana of Whiskeytown to the blurry balladry of Love is Hell, the ragged country of Easy Tiger, and the rock ‘n’ roll of, well, Rock & Roll. It might seem like an intimidating prospect to pick from such a large discography, but Bonner says that’s part of the fun. “Rather than just playing one style of music, it’s nice to have a wealth of stuff,” he says. “We all threw in some ideas and picked the ones that seemed to be our favorites or the ones that would be the most fun to play or fun for people to hear.” —Vincent Harris FRIDAY
ROCK ’N’ ROLL | A Fragile Tomorrow
w/ Finnegan Bell, Tom Mackell, Tyler Boone, and See Water
Thurs. July 23
$10
8:30 p.m.
King Dusko
#CharlestonStrong is still going strong, and musicians are still uniting around the Lowcountry to benefit the Mother Emanuel Hope Fund. Coast Records hosts a concert at King Dusko featuring five artists that all have a Charleston connection. Pop-rock group A Fragile Tomorrow, currently at their studio Low Watt Recording in Savannah, Ga., will return to their hometown to support the cause. “We saw that Tyler was putting together this benefit for Mother Emanuel, and we knew we had to be a part of it. We were all heartbroken by the senseless tragedy in Charleston, and we wanted to do something, anything, to help, in any way,” says A Fragile Tomorrow drummer and vocalist Dominic Kelly. Other artists to join the lineup include Columbia-based Americana-pop duo Finnegan Bell, Philly singer-songwriter Tom Mackell, local reggae group See Water, and the man who threw everything together, bar-scene favorite Tyler Boone. “In true Charleston form, the community has come together to rally around these families and Mother Emanuel, and it seems to have brought more people together in general,” says Kelly. “I think it also woke a lot of people here up to the real fact that we are not living in a post-racial society. It’s easy to come to a gorgeous city like Charleston and not notice the separation, the Confederate memorials, and the layer of institutional racism that exists here and all over this country. Hopefully, now Charleston can start to address the real issues in our city and be a guiding force for the rest of the nation. We have to prevent this sort of thing from ever happening again, and hopefully Charleston can pave the way.” —Kalyn Oyer THURSDAY
MOUNTAIN SOUL | Justin Jones
w/ SUSTO (acoustic solo)
Mon. July 27
9 p.m.
$5
The Royal American
Singer-songwriter Justin Jones has lived in Washington, D.C. for the past 13 years, but most of his music is reminiscent of his Shenandoah Valley roots. “I think your environment always plays a big part in who you are and in that case has played a big part in what I sound like,” he says. “To me, I sound like the mountains in Virginia, the Shenandoah Valley.” His 2012 album, Fading Light, garnered a lot of attention due to its association with a national television show. Jones was commissioned to write the opening theme song for the NBC Sports’ Gun It with Bennie Spies, which turned out to be “My Father’s Gun.” “They had been using a Pearl Jam song as their opening theme, and Pearl Jam decided to not let them continue for this or that reason and they needed to replace it,” Jones explains. “I wrote the song while I was on vacation with my family in North Carolina on a Friday. Went and tracked it on Sunday, had it mixed and sent to the show by Monday, and added it to a record I was releasing shortly thereafter. It was the fastest idea-to-recorded song I’ve ever worked on.” Last year, Jones released a B-sides recording though NoiseTrade, and now he’s in the process of making his seventh album, which is slated for a release late next year. Jones will also perform on Sat. July 25 at Palmetto Brewing. —Kelly Rae Smith MONDAY
HOOKY ROCK | The High Divers
w/ The Honeycutters
Sat. July 25
9:30 p.m.
$10
The Pour House
Catchy-hook rockers and harmonizers the High Divers have been recording a debut album with Holy City music producer Wolfgang Zimmerman all summer. “He definitely pushes you to be more creative, and he lifts you up when you’re feeling down about a song. He’s really good about that,” says bassist Kevin Early. Lead singer and guitarist Luke Mitchell worked with Zimmerman before on his solo disc Sweetest Things while living in Hilton Head. Early also fills in for fellow Hearts & Plugs act SUSTO, who recently opened for classic rockers Boston. “That was the most nervous I think I’ve ever been,” he laughs. “I was shaking, and like all the Boston people are super healthy and fit and all they drink is coconut water. Meanwhile, I was like all I need is a beer right now.” Early (with SUSTO) will also be opening for Iron & Wine this fall, and he’s also stoked to see what projects and collaborations the High Divers will have in store when their East Coast tour launches. The High Divers’ 11-track disc Riverlust is set to drop in early fall and will coincide with a CD-release party before they hit the road. “We have some rockin’ runs that will totally melt your face, and then we have some sweet songs that are really beautiful and have violins,” Early says. “If I had to pinpoint a style, I’d say more Tom Petty-ish fused with Wilco and Dr. Dog.” —Kalyn Oyer SATURDAY
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