Pats Peak Bike Festival

Pats Peak in Henniker, NH will hold its annual 24hr Bike Festival on May 31 & June 1, 2008, featuring tons of races, live music, food and drinks, and plenty of entertainment. Henniker's own Beechwood will perform at the festival on Saturday, June 1 from 5-10:00PM at the Sled Pub. Sponsored by S&W Sports, USA Cycling, MB Tractor & Equipment, Jagermeister and Grappone Toyota.

Jesse Dee @ The Barley and tonight's other live shows!

Happy Friday, everyone! Its a gorgeous May day here in the great Granite State, and boy, have I got TONS of live shows and events to fill your weekend! If you are looking for some cool music tonight, you won't be disappointed. One show in particular I want to mention is Jesse Dee at The Barley House in Concord at 8:00PM. You wouldn't think it by looking at his picture, but this guy sounds like Otis Redding with some Sam Cooke and Al Green thrown in for good measure - in short, an evening of great soul and R&B music! Here's the rest of the lineup for tonight:

Nashua
8:00PM David Newsam (Michael Timothy’s Wine and Jazz Bar)

9:00PM Matt Murray & The Motivators (Cattlemans)

9:00PM Rock City (Haluwa Restaurant and Lounge)

Suncook
8:00PM Beautiful Lies, Nothing To No One, and Eye Witness (Ground Zero)

Manchester

8:00PM Chip City (Millys Tavern)
9:00PM Mad Lincoln (Mad Bob’s Saloon)
9:00PM Reklis (Milly’s Tavern)
9:30PM Nimbus 9 (The Flambeaux)
9:30PM The Mirage Band (The Derryfield C.C.)

Merrimack
8:00PM Stone-Ground (Slapshot’s)

Epping

9:00PM Revels' Glen (The Holy Grail)

Milford
9:00PM Duty Free (The Pasta Loft)

Rochester
9:00PM Slow Bill (Slims Tex Mex)
9:00PM Of the Many (Old Oak Tavern)

Plymouth
9:00PM Live and Kickin (Hong Kong Garden)

Peterborough
9:30PM Jah Spirit (Harlow's Pub)

Laconia
9:30PM Pulse (Paradise Beach Club - Weirs Beach)

The Spotlight Cafe at the Capitol Center for the Arts

Concord's Capitol Center for the Arts is introducing a new feature to its performance hall: the Spotlight Café. Touted as "a place to discover fresh, exciting work in a hip, scintillating, club-style atmosphere," the Spotlight Café will feature hot, up-and-coming muscians and bands, as well as live theater. Seating is at reserved café tables or general admission banquet chairs in one of three Capitol Center locations: The Governor's Hall, The Kimball House or onstage at The Chubb Theatre. Sponsored by 92.5 The River and Rath, Young and Pignatelli. Here is the schedule of shows:

Sun, July 13, 2008 (5:30 PM)
Karen Grenier
This acoustic rocker cuts to the heart with emotion driven original songs and belts out cover tunes. Her intense emotional energy combined with her rhythmic acoustic style captures her audience's attention.

Wed, July 16, 2008 (7:00 PM)
Brooks Young Band
This local blues band has performed all over from New York to Boston and has opened for many greats like B.B. King and Roomful of Blues.

Fri, July 18, 2008 (6:30 PM)
The New Hampshire Slam Poet Team
The NH Slam Poet team lead by Mark Palos will slam in the Spotlight Café in preparation for the national finals this summer.

Sat, July 26, 2008 (8:00 PM)
Comedy Night at the Spotlight Café
A night of laughter with two popular Boston comedians.

Sat, August 16, 2008 (8:00 PM)
Jeff Dearborn and the Contoocook Blues Society
The quintessential NH Blues Band will perform in the Spotlight Café.

Sat, September 13, 2008 (7:00 PM)
Alex de Grassi
One of the world’s top fingerstyle, steel-string guitarists, Grammy nominee Alex de Grassi.

Wed, October 22, 2008 (7:00 PM)
The Kite Runner
A staged theatrical adaptation of Khaled Hosseini’s epic novel.

Wed, December 3, 2008 (7:00 PM)
The Lascivious Biddies
This all female cocktail pop quartet from New York City will perform an energetic, tightly-woven live show full of humor, expert musicianship and a dash of sentimentality.

Tue, April 7, 2009 (7:00 PM)
Secret Life of Bees
This staged verbatim theatrical adaptation of Sue Monk Kidd's novel brought to life by professional actors.

"The Itinerant Artist" at the PLC Gallery

Ashley Bullard, 9-20-06, oil, 30"x30"

The Patricia Ladd Carega Gallery in Center Sandwich (69 Maple Street, Rt. 113) is currently featuring the exhibit The Itinerant Artist, a display of gallery artists who have carried their colors and brushes with them on journeys, sabbaticals, or travels to faraway places. Artists include Sallie Wolf, C.C. White, Michael Doyle, Michael Rich, Ashley Bullard, Andrew Tavarelli, and Alton Stoney Conley. There will be a reception for the artists on Saturday, June 7 from 5-7:00PM and is open to the general public. Gallery hours are: Tuesday-Saturday from 11:00AM-5:00PM.

Get your literary groove on!

Attention all writers, wannabe writers and literary fans: there are some cool upcoming events for all of you around the state! Interested in joining a writing group? On Friday, May 30, join the Writing Group with Nylah Lyman from 10:00AM-Noon at D Acres Farm at 218 Streeter Woods Road in Dorchester. Participants will work to discover and improve their creative writing talents in a supportive atmosphere through the use of writing prompts, skill-building, and group critique. Don't worry if you haven't written! All levels are welcome! Pre-registration is required. Call 786-2366 or visit www.dacres.org.

Want to follow in the rather impressive footsteps of your favorite 18 Miles blogger (yeah, like that could happen! :) The Pease Public Library will hold a Blogging Workshop on Wednesday, June 4 at 4:00PM at 1 Russell Street in Plymouth. Mary Emma Allen, writer and blogger, will teach the basics of blogging in a one-hour workshop. Participants with laptops that have wireless cards are welcome to bring them along to experiment with after the workshop. And what could be even better than learning about blogging? Having it be free! There is absolutely no charge for the workshop. For more information, call 536-2616.

Tonight's music lineup!

Well, the holiday weekend is over and its back to reality for most of us 9-5er's! However, the weather is beautiful and there are some great live shows worth checking out tonight:

Suncook
7:00PM: Vega Under Fire w/Select Start, Appreciation Post, Yellow Team, Fire Takes The Sky (Ground Zero, $10)

Manchester
7:30PM: Building James (Milly’s Tavern, Free)
8:00PM: Manchuka (The Shaskeen, Free)
9:30 PM: Black Tuesday (The Black Brimmer, Free)

Portsmouth
9:00PM: Dave Gerard (The Dolphin Striker, Free)

Sunday with Son Volt!

Hope you all are enjoying your Memorial Day - especially if you have the day off like moi! I'll have more local show info coming up for you guys tomorrow, but I had to post some pics from a show I went to last night (yes, it was out-of-state...I know, I know...bad NH blogger! I throw myself on the mercy of you kind Granite Staters...). But, this was Son Volt at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in North Adams, MA. If you haven't either seen Son Volt live or been to the MOCA, I highly recommend checking out both. The intimate show was at times both laid back and highly rocking, especially when the guys came out and did an instrumental encore, during which I stared, mouth open, at drummer Dave Bryson's insane skills - it really was amazing! And even though, sadly, they did not play my fav song, "Circadian Rhythm", it was still a very cool show. So, while I work on the next batch of LOCAL shows for you guys, enjoy some pics!

Manchester's 17th Annual Sky Show

Looking for something to rock your Sunday afternoon? Then head over to Rock 101's 17th Annual Sky Show in Manchester's Arms Park on Commercial Street on Sunday, May 25 (if you visit the link for the show, you can also watch the video for event performers No More King's "Sweep the Leg," featuring plenting of references to the film, The Karate Kid - the vid even has some of the original cast in it, including a still baby-faced Ralph Macchio!). The event will feature music by Recycled Percussion, Aranda, No More Kings, Z02, Gary Hoey, and Sweet Cheater. Music is set to begin at 3:00 p.m. with the Cheater's show and will end with Hoey at 9:00 p.m. There will also be fireworks, caricatures, face painting, temp tattoos (for all you needle-phobs out there!), pyschics, bungie jumping, a mattress race, and a performance by Red Bull motorcycle stunt driver, Aaron Colton. The entrance fee to this jam-packed event? Nada. Nichts. Niente. Absolutely nothing! Can't beat that, am I right? Don't miss it!

"Yo, Adrian!!!"

Hello all! I got to see Henniker's own Beechwood at The Bridge in Contoocook do a great acoustic set last night - if you haven't seen these guys yet, they'll be performing at Pats Peak in Henniker on May 31st (more details to come!) In the meantime, I have yet another AFI update - had some really good ones in this round!

Duck Soup: This 1933 Marx brothers classic, has the wealthy Mrs. Teasdale enlisting Rufus T. Firefly (Groucho Marx) be appointed leader of the small, bankrupt country of Freedonia before she will continue to provide much-needed financial assistance. Meanwhile, neighboring Sylvania is attempting to take over the country. Sylvanian ambassador Trentino tries to foment a revolution, woos Mrs. Teasdale, and attempts to dig up dirt on Firefly by sending in spies Chicolini and Pinky (the always hilarious Chico and Harpo Marx). There are some scenes that go down in history in this film, including a near-perfect execution of a "mirror scene" between Groucho and Harpo (where they face each other and mimic each others movements, where a mirror would normally be). It has been duplicated, but never matched in many! There is also a priceless scene with Chico and Harpo harassing a lemonade vendor that is a textbook example of brilliant physical comedy. And, as with every Marx Brothers film, there is no shortage of snappy dialogue: "You're a brave man. Go and break through the lines. And remember, while you're out there risking your life and limb through shot and shell, we'll be in be in here thinking what a sucker you are."

Nashville: This 1975 Robert Altman film tells the intersecting stories of various people connected to the music business in Nashville. Barbara Jean is the reigning queen of Nashville but is near collapse. Linnea and Delbert Reese (Lily Tomlin & Ned Beatty) have a shaky marriage and 2 deaf children. Opal is a needy and annoying British journalist touring the area. And Jeff Goldblum appears as a bizarre (big surprise there!) motorcycle-riding, magic-performing hippie rambler. This film takes place in the wake of JFK's assassination and under the shadow of the Vietnam war. The performances by all the characters are incredible, and were mostly improvised. Though this film is over two hours, it moves swiftly along, since you are drawn in to how all of these character's lives intersect with each other. You need to suspend a little disbelief to accept the fact that somehow....miraculously....these people seem to always end up in the same places with each other in a city as big as Nashville, but the film is strong enough that you forget that. You would also figure that since this film centers around the country music scene, there are lots of great country performances, but that's not really the case. There are some standouts, but probably the best comes in the last scene of the film (its a pivotal climax that I can't reveal, but that final music scene is just incredible and I found myself singing the chorus long after it was over).

Rocky: Winner of the 1977 Best Picture Oscar, Rocky is probably the best thing Sylvester Stallone has ever done (Copland comes in second for me). A love letter to the city of Philadelphia, this underdog film was written by Stallone and has become a classic. Rocky Balboa is a struggling boxer trying to make the big time. Working as a heavy-handed debt collector, he also pursues painfully shy pet shop worker, Adrian. When heavyweight champion Apollo Creed comes into town, his managers want to set up an exhibition match between Creed and a struggling boxer, touting the fight as a chance for a "nobody" to become a "somebody." Enter...Rocky. This was the first time I had seen this film in its entirety, and I was surprised how much I enjoyed it (since common belief is that my DNA isn't set up to like "macho" films like this...though I did identify with the shy Adrian). Surprisingly, this movie has one of the best kisses I've ever seen on film. It's sweet and intimate and real and awkward and passionate, made more so because Rocky and Adrian are so different from each other. But BECAUSE they are so different from the other people around them, it is in being outcasts that they become a natural draw for each other: "We fill gaps...I got gaps, she's got gaps....together we fill gaps." Of course, there is "the training montage", giving birth to so many training montages of films to come! You get the sense watching this film that this was physically a difficult film for Sylvester Stallone to do - the pain, the sweat and the blood feel very real.

Next in my queue: Jaws, North By Northwest, M.A.S.H.

Tonight's live shows and the 4th Annual Rock N' Race

Mornin' all my 18 Milers! Got lots of great live music for you tonight! I'm hoping to head over to The Bridge in Contoocook tonight to see Beechwood perform, so if you are in the area, come on by!

Also, don't miss the 4th Annual 5K Rock N' Race happening at The State House in Concord tonight at 6:00 PM! This event benefits the Concord Hospital Payson Center for Cancer Care and the race is for all ages and abilities. Music from Tan Gentle Rythms, River City Wilco, Bow Junction Band, Tapioca Fugitive, October Son's, Abaxialtup, June, and Mad Dog Rock n' Roll Show will be on hand to provide the soundtrack to the race!

Here's the lowdown on other shows happening in the area tonight...

8:00PM Pete Smith (Pasta Loft Restaurant and Pub, Milford)

9:00PM Revels' Glen (Peddlers Daughter, Nashua)

9:00PM OrangEighth (Fody’s Tavern, Nashua)

9:00PM Jim Devlin (Murphy’s Tap Room, Manchester)

Ground Cover covers just about...everything!

On a gorgeous, warm Saturday evening, my car zipped along the winding and pine-lined roads, seeking out Newport's Salt Hill Pub with the focus of a silver, bumper-stickered bullet searching for its target. When I finally found the charming and welcoming brick building, the upstairs pub was already packed with a crowd of twenty, thirty, and forty-somethings looking to cut loose, and the local band Ground Cover (Jeremy Almstrom, vocals/Keith Ricci, bass/Logan Flewelling, guitar/Kyle Flewelling, drums) was hoping to help them all out with their musical agendas for the evening.

The guys kicked their set off with a cover of the "it was once cute but now its annoying" 80's hit "Jenny (867-5309)", following that with some other fairly predictable covers of "Spirit in the Sky", "Brown-Eyed Girl", and "Summer of '69." However, their version of Tom Petty's "Running Down a Dream" was pretty darn good -musically- with Logan Flewelling's roaring, crunching guitar capturing the bluesy swagger of the original. However Almstrom's vocals were sadly blah, not able to keep up with the hard-hitting rock song. Though Almstom does have a good vocal, he's too conservative with his instrument. At times, I felt like he was holding back when he could have given more. When they did Lit's "My Own Worst Enemy", the vocals really needed to be stronger - I wanted to see him tear that song up!

The band itself looked like the third floor of my dorm my senior year of college, clad in the uniform of a typical new england male university student: that "just enough" facial scruff, at least one shirt that's either checked or plaid, and a pair of Vans sneakers.

Ground Cover's stage presence needs a little work (not that there was a lot of stage space to work with), but I don't think they are the kind of band that will show up with a spinning Motley Crue drum cage anytime soon, and its probably a good thing. They are a guy-next-door band, and were so likable, cracking jokes and talking with some of their friends and family that seemed to be in the audience. Though they are a young band, most of the song choices they made were lifted from a 70's and 80's musical repertoire, which is great for an older crowd, but they also had a lot of young people in the audience that would have liked something a little fresher. Personally, I would have liked to see them try their hand at a Son Volt, Guster, or even a Spoon song!

Ground Cover is a good band to be your background music to an evening out with friends that you are looking forward to catching up with, but as a band to come and sit and watch with purpose, they're not quite there yet. That's not to say that they won't get there, they have some really positive things going for it: a very good guitarist, a lead singer with great vocal potential, and a great easygoing band demeanor, but its one thing to be the band people talk around and the band people talk about.

Your weekend shows

Well, its Friday and I'm fighting a bummer of a summer cold right now...ugh. However, I am going to try to get to the Salt Hill Pub in Newport, NH to see Ground Cover on Saturday, May 17 at 9:00 p.m., so if you see me there, and have a tin of Sucrets, you will henceforth be my new best friend. Here are some other shows happening this weekend!


FRIDAY, MAY 16

Claremont
8:00PM You Want Apologies (The Red Elephant, Free)

Salem
8:00PM "Rob and Mike" (Blackwater Grill, Free)

Plaistow
8:00PM Third line (The Sad Cafe W/ XOversa, $10)
8:00PM The Release (The Sad Cafe, $10)
9:00PM The RG’s House Band (Hanas Kabob, Free)

Manchester
8:00PM 2Plus Change (New England Revival Coffee House)
9:00PM Scalawag w/Mercury Hat (The Shaskeen)
9:00PM Traces David w/Ashley Alexander & Thick As Thieves (Milly’s Tavern, $10)
9:30PM Tigerlily and Jon-Paul Royer (Black Brimmer)

Suncook
8:00PM tonight is tonight (Groundzero, $10)

Merrimack
9:00PM Figure Eight (SlapShots)

Bow
9:00PM Good Morning Chester (Chen Yang Li, Free)

Nashua
9:00PM Rutstein (The Garden, Free)
9:00PM Akustik Kid (603 Lounge, Free)

Rochester
9:00PM Slow Bill (Old Oak Tavern, Free)

Milford
9:00PM Best Not Broken (Shenanigans, Free)

Henniker
9:00PM Late Night Radio (Idlewild, Free)

Bedford
9:00PM Common Knowledge (Slammers Bar & Billiards, Free)

Newport
9:00PM Chad Gibbs (Salt Hill Pub)

Nashua
9:00PM Erin Thornton & the Soul Drivers (Fody’s Tavern, Free)

Peterborough
9:30PM The Joe Grind Band (Harlows, $5)


SATURDAY, MAY 17

Claremont
8:00PM Adelaide (Your Mom’s Bedroom, Free)

Rochester
8:00PM Hopeless Folk w/Seconds to September (The Governers Inn)

Nashua
8:00PM The Buskers (Michael Timothy’s, Free)
9:00PM Soundtrack To Monday (Sky Lounge)

Concord
8:00PM Scott Barnett (The Green Martini, Free)

Suncoook
8:00PM The Fate Of Society (Groundzero, $10)
8:00PM A Simple Complex (Ground Zero, $10)

Laconia
8:00PM Summoning Hate (One Gilford Place, $5)

Henniker
8:00PM Taxicab Dismemberment (The Henniker Junction, $5)

Manchester
9:00PM Mad Lincoln (Johnny Bad’s, Free)

Milford
9:00PM Dana Shellmire w/Groove Authority (Pasta Loft)

The English Beat at Tupelo

80's ska legends The English Beat, will perform tonight and Friday, May 15th at 8:00 p.m. at Tupelo Music Hall in Londonderry. Tickets are $35. The Friday show is sold out, but there are still tickets available for tonight's performance! For more information, call 437-5100 or go to http://www.tupelohall.com/. Don't miss it! Think I'm going to put on my old red plaid Doc Martens and listen to "Mirror in the Bathroom" today....

Delicious death...

Like a little homicide with your dinner? Then join Mayhem & Murder Productions at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 17, at Valentino's Restaurant in Hudson, NH to benefit the Court Street Theatre. For $45, you get a great show from M&M Productions, featuring The Altos ("like the Soprano's...only lower"), as well as a full sit-down dinner and plenty of fun! Mayhem & Murder Productions create interactive mystery dinner theatre experiences, where the audience is encouraged to participate in all the action! For more information, email them at info@mayhemandmurder.com.

The Happy Mondays...

Mornin' 18 Milers! It's another lovely day here in the Granite State - I hope all of you had a great weekend! Mine was spent working my 9-to-5 gig, and, of course, spending time with my wonderful mother for Mom's Day. Though it was all good, I must confess, I am wiped out! However, I can always muster up the energy for some great comedy and live music - how bout you guys? If you're looking for a chuckle, gaffaw, or a belly laugh, the comedy improv group Stranger Than Fiction has not one, but two performances this week! First off, they will have another live online show at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 13th - just head over to www.mogulus.com/improvcomedy and join the fun! Then, on Thursday, May 15th, they will perform at Concord's Barley House at 8:00 p.m. The cost is $5, but if you watch the online show, you may be given a secret password that will get you into the performance for free!

We've also got some great live music happening around the state tonight, so if you are looking to cut loose after pretending for a whole Sunday that you do wear that ugly turtleneck your mother gave you for your birthday, you've come the right place! Here are the shows for tonight:

Peterborough
Town Library: Chatterbox, Velcrows, The Youngest Sun, and Lymbyc Systm ($5)

Londonderry
Whippersnappers: Embur

Concord
Hermanos: State Street Combo
The Red Blazer: open mike w/ Randy Arrant

Manchester
Breezeway: piano night w/ Robert D
Shaskeen: trad. Irish session

Portsmouth
Press Room: PJ Donahue Quartet
Red Door: Milo Greene, Uke Springsteen and Breakfast Song

"I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it anymore!"

Sorry I've been incommunicado with the updates folks - right now, the job that gives me paychecks takes priority! However, I've got another AFI update for all of you, and will have some more live music info as well. So, without further ado...here's my last round of flicks:

Network: This 1976 Sidney Lumet film really forshadowed the future of TV news magazine shows and reality shows. The film starts off with a television newscaster named Howard Beale, who's a sort of a Walter Cronkite/Dan Rather sort of personality. He's found out he's getting the ax due to low ratings, and proceeds to go on the air and announce that he's going to kill himself live on his last show. Needless to say, ratings skyrocket. Enter Faye Dunaway, who plays a ruthless producer who's determined to exploit Beale's increasingly bizarre rantings for profit. This is a man who is obviously mentally ill, and yet the network and its suits are willing to milk it, no matter what damage it does to Beale, or even to themselves. A film that deals with so many ethical issues, I think that if Network had been made today, George Clooney would have been at the helm of it.

American Graffitti: Before there was 16 Candles, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, and American Pie, there was American Graffitti (written and directed by George Lucas). This coming-of-age film takes place on the last night of high school for a group of friends as they prepare to go their separate ways. The film features some great performances (a young Harrison Ford in his first movie role) as well as a young Richard Dreyfuss who spends the evening searching for the girl of his dreams. My mom said when she saw this film when it first came out, she said to her companion, "that kid is going to be a star." Aren't you tired of being right all the time mom? This film holds special significance to me because of its music (which is incredible). My dad practically raised me on its soundtrack, which features acts like Flash Cadillac and The Continental Kids, Frankie Lymon, The Big Bopper, Chuck Berry, and The Platters. If you see it, see it for the music alone!

Cabaret: Directed and choreographed by the legendary Bob Fosse, this saucy musical stars Liza Minnelli as Sally Bowles, an American singer in 1930s Berlin, who falls in love with bisexual Brit named Brian (played by Michael York, who young audiences may know better as the MI-6 director from the Austin Powers films). They are both then seduced by Max, a rich playboy, all the while, the rise of the Nazi regime developes around them and the last bastion of heathenism, The Kit-Kat Club. There is a particularly chilling scene in which Brian and Max are at a country picnic and you see a young blonde boy singing a very operetic, patriotic song...until the camera pulls back and you see the swatstika on his shirt. As others at the picnic join in with the song, it becomes a very menancing and disturbing musical moment. Minnelli is great in it with her bubbly energy and huge voice and Joel Gray as the Kit-Kat Club's Master of Ceremonies is wonderfully outlandish.

Next in my queue: Duck Soup, Nashville, and Rocky

Tonight's rundown of live music

Got a jones for some live music? Never fear, there are plenty of options to choose from - here's what the Granite State has for you tonight!

Bedford
C.R. Sparks: Siroteau

Boscawen
Alan’s: John Pratt

Concord
Green Martini: open mike w/Steve Naylor
Hermanos: Richard Gardzina

Dover
Biddy Mulligan’s: Revels Glen
Brick House: Keith Kane and Pete Kilpatrick
Mojitos: Monkey Bar and Gnarlemagne

Londonderry
Tupelo: open mike w/ Dan May
Whippersnappers: Crisis

Manchester
Black Brimmer: Head Shop and Burgandy
Derryfield: Pat Foley Duo
Hilton Garden: Piper Runnion-Bareford
Milly’s: Jahb, Absolute Logics and Jagga
Murphy’s: Chad LaMarsh
Shaskeen: open mike w/Josh Logan
Strange Brew: Soup de Jour
Wild Rover: Marty Quirk

Newmarket
Stone Church: Reid Genauer

Portsmouth
Brewery Lane: Greg Luttrell
Dolphin Striker: Tim Theriault & Jamie DeCato
Press Room: Conor & His Band
Red Door: The Dodgerz