It is rooted in one beloved musician's untimely passing. Yet somehow, as NickoDemos concert participant/committee member Matt Kim explains, the annual benefit in honor of Nick Demos, who was killed on I-91 in 2003, seems to have taken on a life of its own.
"The first couple of years was basically a lot of Nick's friends—musicians—throwing sets together, playing loud and fast, raising some college education money for his children," Kim recalls. "This year, we wanted to expand what we were doing both in a musical sense and even to others in the community that could use some help."
As a means to that end, Kim states that the fourth annual NickoDemos show, slated for this Saturday, Aug. 25, at the Miller's Falls Rod & Gun Club in Montague, will feature the event's most eclectic lineup to date, including WRSI Singer/Songwriter contest winner Jen Tobey, Unit 7 (which effectively hitched former members of Trailer Park with defunct funksters Stash), and what can only be described as a Halloween-esque homage to AC/DC gone awry, The Wrinkly Old Nuts.
Proceeds from this year's installment will benefit both Artspace in Greenfield and The Brickhouse in Turner's Falls, in addition to the annual contribution to Demos' children's college funds. With all of his behind-the-scenes work drawing to a close, Kim himself will also grace the Rod & Gun Club stage with his band Milton Gabor, a Rush-inspired cover project that actually made its official area debut at NickoDemos II in 2005. For times, tix and more info, kindly point your browser to www.nickodemos.com.
In other news, former on-air talent Brian Anastasi checked in to report that while he can no longer be found "in-studio" at UMASS' WMUA, he will be in many a music lover's email inbox each week, starting Aug. 27.
"I had to give up the radio show for health reasons, but I wanted to be involved in the local music scene," he revealed. "My solution was to revive 'The Weekly Band Email' that Maria McLaughlin had started out of Boston."
As advertised, Anastasi's electronic offering will highlight the live entertainment calendars of some 30 New England nightclubs on a week-to-week basis. To subscribe to the free service, simply email him at bananastasi@comcast.net.
Last up, your friendly neighborhood Nightcrawler was strongly encouraged (read: told) by his significant other to attend a recent performance by that sonic sultan of "Sexyback," Justin Timberlake. While even the most casual readers of this column can probably deduce that the pop stylings of the infamous wardrobe malfunction perpetrator have never been N Synch with this writer's personal tastes, the wife's offer to drive both ways coupled with the show's venue ( Mohegan Sun) somehow made the trip justifiable.
Inside, I was pleasantly unsurprised to find that JT had wisely been surrounded with top-notch musicians and dancers on an impressive, expansive stage replete with every conceivable multimedia accoutrement. And to be clear—and fair—the need for such window dressing is no way tied to Timberlake's personal performance. A lifelong entertainer, he masterfully worked every inch of the in-the-round stage, hit all of his dancing marks and was, as is almost always the case, in fine voice.
Send correspondence to Nightcrawler, P.O. Box 427, Somers, CT 06071; fax to (860) 698-9373 or email Garycarra@aol.com.
