Music Forecast 1.8-1.14: Grazzhopper, the Sapwoods, the Black Lillies, and more
Grazzhopper, 40 Watt Dreams
Tulsa, Oklahoma’s Grazzhopper is a duo — banjoist and guitarist Cody Brewer and guitarist Dylan Angleton, who share vocal duties — but you’d be forgiven for thinking there were at least three other players in the band. Together, Brewer and Angleton create intricate folk songs that have as fierce a heart as any banging rock band. Grazzhopper’s sound pulls you in, wraps you in a warm blanket, and takes you for a midnight joy ride down dirt roads under starry skies. The pair stop Thursday at the Bottleneck, where Lawrence folk-rock band 40 Watt Dreams — led by the always charming Katie West — opens.
Thursday, January 8, the Bottleneck (737 New Hampshire,
Lawrence, 785-841-5483)
Gnarly Davidson, SeaKings, Temp Tats
Gnarly Davidson’s members like to call their outfit a beer-rock band. Well, with all due respect, we’d like to challenge that. The grinding, blistering metal that this Lawrence band makes sounds better when drinking whiskey. No — shooting whiskey. Fellow Lawrence act SeaKings may be less aggressive but still isn’t the kind of band that rewards sobriety, what with its petulant, late-1990s sound. Same goes for Temp Tats, a new rock band that takes itself about as seriously as a butterfly tramp stamp.
Friday, January 9, Replay Lounge (946 Massachusetts, Lawrence, 785-749-7676)
The Sapwoods, Drew Black and Dirty Electric, Merit Badge
Midwestern rock doesn’t always get proper respect (thanks largely to people who have never spent much time in the Midwest, but anyway). Among the remedies to that perception: Iowa City, Iowa’s Sapwoods, a band that puts a pop polish on Springsteen-inspired anthems. Anyone with functioning ears should find something to like in the five-piece’s proud music. Sharing the bill are Merit Badge, a brand-new KC rock act ready to prove its skills, and the unapologetically loud-in-any-region Drew Black and Dirty Electric.
Saturday, January 10, RecordBar (1020 Westport Road, 816-753-5207)
The Black Lillies
Straight out of Knoxville, Tennessee, the Black Lillies make a ruckus that lives squarely at the intersection of country and blues. The songs on last year’s Runaway Freeway Blues were equal parts rowdy (the highly danceable “Smokestack Lady”) and delicate (“The Fall”). Lead singer Cruz Contreras has a pliable voice that hoists the album from green valleys to impressive peaks. The Black Lillies’ secret weapon, though, must be Trisha Gene Brady, whose supple harmonies keep the musical journey well lighted. Wednesday at Knuckleheads, travel the rustic highs and lows with the band.
Wednesday, January 14, Knuckleheads Saloon (2715 Rochester, 816-483-1456)
