Leave it to scene stalwarts Bourgeois Heroes to transform a well-respected audio institution like The Elevens into one of the CD-iest places in town this weekend.
The Great Mix CD Mix-Up on Jan. 30 invites attendees to bring in discs of their favorite song, which will be dumped into a "master mixer" that will spit out random compilations for all to take home. There may be little connection between that and performances by BH, The Fawns and Lucky Pedestrian, but event architect Jason Bourgeois says he wants to reverse a disturbing trend.
"I just wanted to bring back a form of music sharing that has been on the decline," he explains. "Computers, torrents, downloads and mouse pads are just a bit too nerdy for me. If I'm getting a mix from someone, I want it on something physical& and with hand-drawn artwork, damn it!"
After nearly a year of writing and recording, veteran indie rock practitioners The Mitchells won't have a finished copy of their fourth studio effort in hand when they take to the stage at The Elevens the following night, Jan. 31. According to guitarist/vocalist Caleb Wetmore, however, the prolonged club hiatus—coupled with the chance to open for Circle of Buzzards, the new project from Jason Lowenstein (of Sebadoh fame)—was more than enough to coax the band back to the live circuit.
"It's actually a mini-tour with Circle and Empire State Troopers that has other shows in New York," he says. "So it's a great opportunity, and, although we did perform some of the new material once in late 2008, it was without a drummer. So we're just dying to preview them full force, too!"
Rounding out The Elevens' weekend, the Crawler finds a slew of Valley notables expressing their sweet Devo-tion to a certain iconic post punk/art rock band Monday, Feb. 2—when The Steamrollers, Tal Vez, Cuhnaband, Conduit, Haven's Lament and The Cheater's Club (the last of which is scheduled to debut its third/newest member, Cora Gualin) whip their best Devo covers into shape for a tribute night dubbed Uncontrollable Urge.
Meanwhile, Ware River Club alum Matthew Hebert checked in to report that his newest project will perform at one of his favorite haunts—The Iron Horse—Jan. 30.
Sort of.
"All is well with Haunt, but this Friday, I will actually be playing solo for the first time in quite some time," he reveals. "I have a bunch of new songs and an acoustic record in the works, so I figured this would be both a nice opportunity to open for my friend Ellis Paul and try some of this stuff out."
Incidentally, the Hebert-fronted Haunt recently released its latest studio offering, The Deep North, and has received a steady stream of accolades from sources as lofty as American Songwriter, Pop Matters and Amplifier Magazine.
Last up, the United States Army Field Band of Volunteers has signed on for a Saturday, March 7 engagement at the West Springfield Middle School, 31 Middle School Drive.
The band of brothers (and one sister, it appears) in arms has performed its eclectic mix of rock, pop, country, jazz standards and, of course, patriotic anthems the world over since its inception in 1981.
Although the concert is free, tickets must be obtained in advance. To get yours, write a note with a S.A.S.E. and the number of tickets desired (maximum of four) to U.S. Army Band, West Springfield Park Department, 26 Central St., West Springfield, MA 01089.
Send correspondence to Nightcrawler, P.O. Box 427, Somers, CT 06071; fax to (860) 698-9373 or email Garycarra@aol.com.
