And you thought you had to wait until November to see a bunch people pretending to be something they are not.
Unlike the elections, however, the Northampton Arts Council’s (northamptonartscouncil.org) annual Transperformance concert—wherein local notables cover the works of national artists in the framework of a prescribed theme—is solely rooted in pure intentions and unabashed acts of altruism.
In fact, by Council member Bob Cilman‘s account, by the conclusion of this year’s installment at Look Park on Aug. 31, the series will have raised more than $250,000 during its 20-year run.
“All of that money goes to arts in the community and public schools,” Cilman adds, “and considering the fact that last year’s Transperformance sold out, I’d say it’s as popular as ever.”
In accordance with 2010’s “Body Parts” motif, the likes of Group DeVille, Ed Vadas, King Radio and many more will tackle the works of Leadbelly, Badfinger and an assortment of other anatomically-oriented acts between the hours of 4 and 9:30 p.m.
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Prolific alt/prog rocker Jesse Sterling Harrison will put on his best Portishead for Transperformance Tuesday as well. And while the Valley veteran says that he is equal parts honored and excited to be included in the annual shindig (he’s even enlisted the services of Emily Hague from Keene, N.H. to help out on vocals), it is a recent audio exorcism of sorts that really seems to have his spirits soaring.
“My new disc, Take The Demons Out, is done, and I have to admit, the new shop did the art and sound up right,” Harrison says, beaming. Said CD is available online at cdbaby.com or can be purchased in-person at the official release party Aug. 27 at Easthamp’s Flywheel.
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Similarly celebrating new studio product this weekend are Hartford metal-meisters Seven Days of Grey (sevendaysofgrey.com). The work is a self-titled, five-tune EP. The whereabouts of the celebration: Chicopee’s Maximum Capacity on Aug. 28.
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Last up, ’90s notables Skid Row return to the city that will forever be a footnote in the band’s nearly two-decade career when they play Stearns Square in Springfield as part of the Bike Night series on Aug. 26. In fact, the Crawler himself was in attendance for the 1989 concert commonly referred to as “the bottle incident,” in which then-singer Sebastian Bach was arrested for hurling a bottle back at an unruly fan who had thrown it at him—instead hitting a bystander.
“That whole ordeal sucked all the way around,” recalls bassist Rachel Bolan of the trip down memory lane. “Thankfully, no one has to worry about that happening again.”
One reason he can assure with such certainty that Bach won’t misbehave is that the fiery singer turned reality TV star won’t even be there this Thursday.
The latest incarnation of Skid Row features one Johnny Solinger on the mic, and, according to Bolan, the new singer’s vocal abilities and stage presence have made him instantly accepted by fans old and new.
And just how does a band that has put out only two discs in the last decade manage to obtain new fans?
Technology, of course. Although Bolan says he can’t specifically quantify the impact modern outlets like Youtube, Facebook and the like have had on his band, he is given reminders of their existence on an almost daily basis.
“Just the other day at the airport, this mom asked if I was in the band, and I replied ‘Skid Row,'” he says. “Turns out she was a big fan, but her kid couldn’t have been less interested until he figured out we had a song on Guitar Hero. His eyes lit up and he became my buddy. I was validated!”
The Skid Row concert at Stearns Square is free and runs 7:30 to 9 p.m., rain or shine.
Catch the Nightcrawler every Wednesday at 8:50 a.m. on the Steve Cantara Radio Show, WRNX 100.9 FM. Send correspondence to Nightcrawler, PO Box 427, Somers, CT 0071; fax to (860) 698-9373 or email garycarra@aol.com.
