Live Gig Confidential - June 2024
It’s only the second week of June, and the summer music schedule is already boiling over. Just this past weekend, Japanese garage rock trio Guitar Wolf performed to a packed house at Hernando’s Hideaway (and parlayed the excitement into an extra day of fun at an impromptu Sunday afternoon pool party), the late, great Chris Bell was feted at Maria Montessori School’s River Series, and the Compulsive Gamblers reunited for Memphis photographer and new WYXR DJ Mike Brown’s birthday party. Whew!
On deck this week:
Thursday, June 13 | 7:30 pm | Free
Cedric Burnside at Overton Park Shell
Expect excellent hill country blues from this grandson of late, great hypno-guitarist R.L. Burnside and son of blues drummer Calvin Jackson. Known for holding down the beat at Junior Kimbrough’s legendary North Mississippi juke joint, Cedric eventually switched to guitar, which led to a 2021 National Heritage Fellowship awarded by the National Endowment for the Arts and a 2022 Grammy win for Best Traditional Blues Album for I Be Trying.
Thursday, June 13 | 8 pm | $20 advance/$25 at door
Goner Records Presents Cosmic Psychos 40th Anniversary Tour with TSOT and Nine Pound Hammer at Growlers, 1911 Poplar Ave
The unapologetically brash Cosmic Psychos last rolled through Memphis at Gonerfest 10—which was seven years ago. We’re still reeling! The Australian punk-meets-garage rockers put the raucous in rock’n’roll, landing somewhere between Spinal Tap and the Ramones on the decibel meter. Irreverent? Yes! Silly? Yes! Fun? Yes to the infinite power. Memphis’ own True Sons of Thunder, which MAXIMUMROCKNROLL describes as a “cloudy tonic of post-Electric Eels/Flipper/Butthole Surfers party sludge with a paw or two dipped in the honey jar of Southern rawk and the freakier fringe of ’90s garage punk” opens.
Saturday, June 15 | 1-7 pm
Soul & Spirits Record Fair with the Subteens at Soul & Spirits Brewery, 845 N Main
Saturday, June 15 | 7:30 pm | Free
Blvck Hippie at Overton Park Shell
Blvck Hippie channels their energy inward, delivering a heartfelt blend of emo-influenced indie rock. Their new album, Basketball Camp, showcases their unique sound as a "Black Fronted Sad Boy Indie Rock Band," combining the introspective vibe of Kid Cudi with the raw edge of Slint. This show marks the beginning of a regional tour for the Memphis group, with upcoming stops in Miami, Athens, GA, and New Orleans.
Upcoming:
Sunday, June 16 | 3-11 pm | $20
The Juneteenth Festival at Orange Mound Tower, Presented by Tone with DJ Lo Down Loretta Brown (aka Erykah Badu), Hitkidd, Juicy J, and Curren$y
Friday, June 21 | 7:30 pm | Free
Talibah Safiya at Overton Park Shell
Saturday, June 22 | 4 pm
Al Kapone Listening Party: The Blues Rap Mane at the Memphis Listening Lab, Crosstown Concourse, Second Floor with special guests Craig Brewer and Jared Boyd
Saturday, June 22 | 7:30 pm | $10 advance/$20 at door
Dope on Arrival: DOA Draft #3 at Growlers, 1911 Poplar Ave
Wednesday, June 26 | 6 pm | Free
Booksigning: I Believe in You: The Incredible Journey of R&B Legend Johnnie Taylor at the Memphis Listening Lab, Crosstown Concourse, Second Floor
Thursday, June 27 | 5:30 pm | Free
WYXR Dowd Awards at Cossitt Library, 33 S. Front Street
Thursday, June 27 | 6:30 pm | Free
Lo Fi in Hi Fi with Shangri-la Records: Tommy Wright III On the Run at the Memphis Listening Lab, Crosstown Concourse, Second Floor
Friday, June 28 | 5:30 pm | $60
Goner's 20th Birthday Party Cruise with Quintron & Miss Pussycat
Friday, June 28 | 10 pm
Goner Riverboat Cruise Secret Afterparty with Jack Oblivian & The Sheiks at B-Side, 1553 Madison Ave
Saturday, June 29 | 7:30 pm | Free
Stax Music Academy Showcase at Overton Park Shell
Saturday, June 29 | 9 pm | Free