TURN IT DOWN: A survey of Lansing's musical landscape

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A Ghostly experimental folk sound

Benot Pioulard (a.k.a. Thomas Meluch) is set to play his hybrid of unpredictable experimental sounds, folk and pop song structures at Mac’s Bar on Sunday.

Now living in Oregon, Pioulard has released a pile of odd and airy-sounding vinyl records on a number of indie labels, including Ghostly International in Ann Arbor.

Meluch has long been fascinated by natural sounds and the textures of decay. He began playing piano before his feet could reach the pedals. He is a veteran drummer of a half-dozen bands and an avid collector of instruments and analog devices, although Meluch relies on guitar and voice as the basis for his work as Benot Pioulard.

Opening the show are two local acts, Gnome Village and Stargrazer.

Sunday, Oct. 24 @ Mac’s Bar 2700 East Michigan Ave., Lansing $5, 18 and over, 9 p.m.


Fields of Industry channels Lou Reed on CD

Fields of Industry was started in 1999 by songwriter Joshua Barton. Today, the band has evolved into a five-piece that sounds like the children of the Velvet Underground, with hints of the Rolling Stones (during their “Exile on Main Street” era). The band will release its second album, “Trouble House,” at its record release show this Saturday at Mac’s Bar.

Opening the show is a roster of local punks. Fun Ender will take the stage, performing its new all keyboard (no guitar) sound; think Devo and Kraftwerk, with angermanagement issues. Also The People’s Temple — which are completing work on a debut album, “Sons of Stone,” set to be released on HoZac Records in 2011 — will smash through a set of psychedelic punk and ’60s pop melodies. Phantom Grey will open the show with an acoustic set. Phantom Grey is a solo performance by Ben Assaff, a former member of the defunct Lansing garage band Dead Stream Corners.

Saturday, Oct. 23 @ Mac’s Bar 2700 East Michigan Ave., Lansing $5, 18 and over, 9 p.m.


New venue for metal hosts Animal Mother release show

Blackened Moon Concert Hall, Lansing’s newest rock venue, will kick off this Friday with an EP release show by local head-bangers Animal Mother. The night will also double as a Halloween party and costume contest.

Animal Mother’s new EP will feature the band’s new lineup, which includes a second lead guitarist.

Animal Mother will take the stage at approximately 11 p.m. Also set to crank out some fist-pounding metal is Serpent Crown (7 p.m.), Bipolar (8 p.m.), 4 Warned (9 p.m.), Circle of Crows (10 p.m.) and Dagon (midnight). For more information, visit: www.blackenedmoon.com.

Friday, Oct. 22 @ Blackened Moon Concert Hall 3208 S. Martin Luther King Blvd., Lansing


Fest celebrates Appalachian folk instrument

The Ten Pound Fiddle continually hosts unique folk shows. The first East Lansing Dulcimer Festival will showcase performers who specialize in the instrument. Set to perform are Maddie MacNeil (Florida) and Michigan-based musicians Wanda Degen and Doug Berch. The performers will also present nine afternoon workshops, including beginning, intermediate and advanced levels on both hammered and lap dulcimer. At 7:30 p.m., live performances by the headliners will get underway.

Saturday, Oct. 23 @ Ten Pound Fiddle at Unitarian Universalist Church 855 Grove Street, East Lansing A $20 wristband, purchased at the door, covers all workshops. Concert tickets, $15 public, $12 members. Festival runs from noon to 10:30 p.m.


Dorman plays homecoming show at (SCENE)

Vermont-based singer/songwriter Chris Dorman will bring his acoustic indie-folk melodies to (SCENE) Metrospace this Saturday. Dorman, a Lansing native, cut his teeth in the Lansing folk scene, where he played open mics and volunteered at the now-defunct Magdalena’s Tea House.

Chris also works with children. He leads music and songwriting performance workshops for kids from kindergarten through sixth grade, presents songwriting workshops for kids, teens, and adults alike, and is currently developing music programming

for infant-to-3-year-olds. Opening the show are Gifts or Creatures and Red Tail Ring.

Saturday, Oct. 23 @ (SCENE) Metrospace 110 Charles St., East Lansing $5, all ages, doors at 7 p.m., show at 8 p.m.Vasas also is recording one cover song per day and posting them for free on his blog, www.songsnotbyme.com.


A smooth show

Since the late 1990s Too Smooth For Notes (Lansing) has gained popularity throughout the Midwest in the urban smooth jazz scene. The group will celebrate a decade of shows this Saturday at The Loft.

This saxophone-led group blends jazz, R&B, pop, funk, soul and gospel. Saxophonist Phil Denny, keyboardist Sebastian Wood, bassist Arnold “AP” Pulliam, guitarist Irvin Williams, drummer Joe Amerson and percussionist Craig Smith bring a variety of influences to the band’s tight sound. DJ Radd 1 will also be entertaining.

Saturday, Oct. 23 @ The Loft 414 E. Michigan Ave., Lansing $15 advance, $20 at door, 18 and over, doors at 8 p.m., show at 9 p.m.


If your band has an upcoming show, post it at www.facebook.com/turnitdown

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