Turn it Down: A survey of Lansing's musical landscape

The Cheap Girls seem to be on a roll these days. Aside from touring non-stop (even touring Europe), the band has also been receiving tons of national press and rave reviews for its two full-lengths.

The band was recently featured in Spin Magazine for a Bad Religion tribute CD they contributed to and the Girls are getting set to tour with major label punks Against Me! in January.

Catch the band live at The Cheap Girls Holiday Show, set for Friday, Dec. 17 at Mac’s Bar. The night is a showcase of local acts from different genres. Opening the show are the delicate folk sounds of Small Houses, the shredding metal of Genocya, and the hardcore punk of Dire Wolf — an eclectic bill to say the least.

Friday, Dec. 17 @ Mac’s Bar 2700 E. Michigan Ave., Lansing $5 advance, $7 door, 9 p.m.

Sing your heart out

For those who love a good sing-along, you may want to check out the Holiday Sing at the Ten Pound Fiddle. This popular annual event is set for Friday and is hosted by Sally Potter. A variety of local song leaders, including Pat Madden, will lead two sets of holiday selections, both old favorites and newer popular songs. Lyric sheets are provided.

Friday, Dec. 10 @ Unitarian Universalist Church — Ten Pound Fiddle 855 Grove St., East Lansing Gate opens at 7 p.m.; doors open at 7:30 p.m. Tickets $10, $8 Fiddle members, $20 family rate. www.tenpoundfiddle.org

Holiday cheer at The Pump House

Decembersongs, the singer-songwriter quartet of Amy Speace, Dan Navarro, Jon Vezner and Sally Barris, is set to perform at the Pump House Monday.

After various configurations, Speace landed on the current line-up by deciding that two men and two women would make for an interesting dynamic. “I envisioned it like a Bluebird Café-style show, with four high-level songwriters playing on each others’ stuff. We all bring something different to the table,” she said.

The line-up includes Nashville-based Speace, Los Angeles-based Dan Navarro (one half of the well-known folk duo Lowen & Navarro), and two fellow Nashvillebased performers: Grammy-nominated Sally Barris and Grammy winner Jon Vezner. The group plays in the round, performing mostly original holiday songs. The set list also includes traditional holiday favorites and some of the artists’ non-holiday material.

Monday, Dec. 13 @ The Pump House 368 Orchard St., East Lansing Donations accepted, 7p.m.

Joe Buck Yourself at Mac’s

Aside from playing in the Legendary Shack Shakers and backing up Hank Williams III, Joe Buck (Nashville, Tenn.) has made a name for himself in the punk underground where he performs as a one-manband. Under the stage name of Joe Buck Yourself he plays frantic punk music with shreds of real hillbilly and country music.

Buck is set to play Mac’s Bar Sunday.

Sharing the bill is Lansing psychobilly favorites, The Goddamn Gallows. Opening the show is Viva Le Fox and Husky Burnette.

Sunday, Dec. 12 @ Mac’s Bar 2700 E. Michigan Ave., Lansing $10, 18 and over, 9 p.m.

Frontier Ruckus heads home

After touring the world and releasing two acclaimed full-lengths, Frontier Ruckus has become East Lansing’s folk heroes. The band is set to play Mac’s Bar Friday. Lead by songwriter and guitarist Matthew Milia, the band has become a staple in the emerging Midwest indie-folk scene. Opening the show is the Giving Tree and Gifts or Creatures (Lansing folk).

Friday, Dec. 10 @ Mac’s Bar 2700 E. Michigan Ave., Lansing 9 p.m. $10, 18 and over

Vegan potluck explodes with grindcore at B414

Basement 414 hosts a vegan pot luck Sunday, starting at 4 p.m. Then, at 7 p.m., work off those calories as five bands rip through some intense sets of under the radar genres of rock. Set to make some noise are Cloud Rat (female-fronted grind-core from Mt. Pleasant), Xtra Vomit (Muskegon-based vegan straight-edge fast-core), The Oily Menace (Lansing positive anarchist grind-core), Parasitic Twins (Fort Wayne-based hard-core punk), and American Gothic, featuring members of Fisherking and other Lansing musicians.

Sunday, Dec. 12 @ Basement 414 414 Jay St., Lansing FREE, 4 p.m. vegan potluck, show at 7 p.m.

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