Category Archives: Music

Weekend Music Events: Where You Should Be and When

So there are a ton of exciting things happening music and concert-wise this weekend through the Three Rivers Arts Festival starting Friday, June 7th as well as the start of the “Weather Permitting” concert series this Sunday, June 9th. Here’s a chronological list of all the bands coming by day and time of performance as well as what stage they will be performing on.

Three Rivers Arts Festival: 

Because there are multiple stages, you may find this map to be helpful.

Friday June 7th: 

12:00pm-1:00pm Indie pop rock band Jd Eicher and the Goodnights will be playing on the Dollar Bank Stage

Acousticafe, “Pittsburgh’s Best new singer/songwriters”, will be performing on the Second Stage at Gateway Center from 5:00pm-7:00pm

Jazz band Poogie Bell will be playing from 5:30pm-9:00pm in Katz Plaza

And the River City Brass Band will play at Point Stage Park  from 5:00pm-6:00 pm

6:15pm- 6:55pm Happy, dance music from Donora also on the Dollar Bank Stage

7:30pm-9:00pm The Headliner for Friday night is California-native, indie folk rock band Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros.

English: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros ...

English: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros performing at Lollapalooza Chile Español: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros tocando en Lollapalooza Chile (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Known for the popular singles “Home”,  “Janglin”, and “40 Day Dream” from their debut album Up from Below, as well as songs from last year’s follow-up album Here,  Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros will cap off the evening on the Dollar Bank Stage. The band will also be releasing a self-titled third album set to release on July 23rd. As a side note lead singer Alex Ebert is also the lead singer of Ima Robot, the group responsible for the awesome theme song of the popular USA network series Suits. 

All fan-hood aside, I digress from the rest of the weekend music happenings.

Saturday June 8th: 

Arts Greenhouse Collective, a local hip hop education program, will school you with original beats and rhymes while performing from 12:00pm-12:30pm as well as 2:00pm-2:30pm on the Family Stage at Giant Eagle Creativity Zone.

Soundwaves Steel Band will be performing from 12:30pm-1:00pm as well as 1:30pm-2:00pm also on the Family Stage at Giant Eagle Creativity Zone

The Unknown String Band, “folk-grass pickin’ partners” from Pittsburgh will be on the Second Stage at Gateway Center from 1:00pm-2:00pm

The Shelf Life String Band, a bluegrass string quintet, will be performing from 3:00pm-4:00pm and from 5:00pm-5:45pm on the Second Stage at Gateway Center

YMCA Lighthouse Music Crew & Step Team, which features youth hip-hop and step routine, will perform on the  Family Stage at Giant Eagle Creativity Zone from 3:00pm-4:00pm

The Arts Festival will feature a ton of other great bluegrass bands on Saturday. Starting with the Allegheny Drifters from 2:00pm-3:00pm on the Dollar Bank Stage.

Great American Taxi will be bringing bluegrass infused rock Americana to the Dollar Bank Stage from 6:00 pm-7:15pm

Saturday night will cap off with bluegrass and American music legend Ralph Stanley, who will also be performing on the Dollar Bank Stage from 7:30pm-9:00pm

Sunday June 9th:

Acousticafe will play a second show from 1:00pm-5:00pm on the Second Stage at Gateway Center

AcoustiKids (a branch off of Acousticafe) will perform a show for children on the Family Stage at Giant Eagle Creativity Zone from 2:00pm-4:00pm

WYEP Re(imagiNATION) Showcase will be, well, showcasing some of Pittsburgh’s emerging teen musicians from 4:00pm-6:00pm on the Family Stage at Giant Eagle Creativity Zone

Big With Seed, an 8-piece “groove-laden rock” band, will perform from 1:00pm-2:30pm on the Dollar Bank Stage

Sleep Experiments will be bringing “ambient dream pop” to the Dollar Bank Stage from 3:00pm-4:00pm

The Deceptions will perform a rock, folk, Americana fusion from 4:30pm-5:30pm  on the Dollar Bank Stage

Grand Piano, a 6-piece local rock band, will perform on the Dollar Bank Stage from 6:00pm-7:00pm

And the first weekend of Arts Fest Music will cap off with Cello Fury featuring Joy Ike and Scott Blasey of the Clarks, this one-night only collaboration will perform from 7:30pm-9:00pm on the Dollar Bank Stage

WEATHER PERMITTING CONCERT SERIES BEGINNING JUNE 9TH:Weather Permitting Concert Series June 9th Poster

Starting June 9th Shadyside Nursery will be hosting a concert series in collaboration with Fukuda and Pandemic titled “Weather Permitting PGH.” Together they’re bringing a great mix of music, relaxation, food, drink, and summer fun every Sunday evening from 5:00 pm-9:00 pm. The concert series is called Weather Permitting and it boasts a “chilled out, relaxed, bring a blanket and some wine, nurse the hangover, bring the kids” environment.

The weekly outdoor concert will take place every Sunday through the rest of summer and is looking to bring in a diverse audience through, for lack of a better word, a diverse collection of musical groups, food vendors/trucks and children’s activities.

Admission is $10, which includes a complimentary beverage with proof of ID. Kids get in free, again this weekly event is family friendly. Shadyside Nursery is located on 510 Maryland Avenue (at the corner of Ellsworth Ave.) This looks like a great event if you’re looking to experience something a little different each week.

This Sunday’s Performers Include:

Lungs Face Feet, a local 8 piece brass, accordion, percussion band. They’re great fun as evidenced here:

Check out them out on Facebook.

Sunday will also feature Taluna, a Mediterranean folk/”Spacefolk” band from Italy.

Listen to more Taluna on their website.

Phew, that’s a lot to digest (and that’s not another strange band name, don’t worry). See you out there this weekend, I’ll be cutting it up at a few of these shows. Check back each week for more weekend music updates.

Happening This Week

American Idiot
Tuesday – Sunday
Heinz Hall, Cultural District

An all-new musical based on Green Day’s Grammy Award-winning multi-platinum album.
More info/tickets:  http://culturaldistrict.org/venues/heinz-hall

 

Night Of The Living Dead
Friday 5p
Senator John Heinz History Center, Strip District

This classic, locally-made 1968 horror movie is the terrifying take of a group of people trapped in a rural farmhouse who are attacked by unnamed “living dead” monsters. Ghostly attire is encouraged but not required.
More info: (412) 454-6000 

 

Manor At Midnight Oscar Classics: Chinatown
Saturday Midnight
Manor Theatre, Squirrel Hill

The Manor Theatre ends their midnight Oscar run with 1974’s Chinatown, a searing murder mystery directed by Roman Polanski, starring Jack Nicholson as an LA private eye on the trail of some very unsavory characters.
More info:  http://www.manorpgh.com/img/ManoratMIdnightOscar.pdf

 

Some information provided by The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Five Things To Do This Week (and One Next Week)

Akira
Tuesday 7p
ToonSeum, Cultural District

Based on the groundbreaking cartoon series, this 1988 animated Japanese film is set in an obsessively detailed version of a post-apocalyptic Japan.
More info: http://www.toonseum.org/

 

Obscure Game Night
Wednesday 9p
Hambone’s, Lawrenceville

Not much on the website, but it looks as if it’s a night dedicated to weird and obscure board games. Sounds ridiculously fun.
More info:  http://www.barsmart.com/bars/events.cfm?evnt=2A987CA4-A612-8638-C3FCEB69BDE5D8DD&id=990

 

MAKEnight
Thursday 6p-9p
Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh, North Side

Create keepsake items, feast on local artisan foods & specialty cocktails, more. Ages 21+.
More info:  http://www.pghcitypaper.com/pittsburgh/makenight/Event?oid=1610569

 

Gojira with Devin Townsend and The Atlas Moth
Saturday 8p
Mr. Smalls, Millvale

If you’re at all into metal, this is an awesome lineup. That’s a lot of musicianship for one evening.
More info/tickets:  http://www.mrsmalls.com/NewPHP/home.php?section=events

 

Pulp Fiction
Saturday Midnight
Manor Theatre, Squirrel Hill

Tarantino’s classic 1994 film shown in all its glory on the silver screen. If you’re like me, you were too young to see it when it was new.
More info:  http://www.manorpgh.com/img/ManoratMIdnightOscar.pdf

 

Arcade Comedy Theater Grand Opening
Friday, Feb 15 8p
Cultural District

I’m a week early on this one, but let’s support our newest comedy club. Their mission statement: “Arcade Comedy Theater provides an interactive platform for players of all levels, both onstage and off, to experience various forms of theatrical comedy, from proven standards to offbeat styles.”
More info:  http://arcadecomedytheater.com/

 

Some information provided by:
http://old.post-gazette.com/events/
http://www.pghcitypaper.com/pittsburgh/EventSearch

Four Things To Do This Week

This week: Oscar season kicks off and one of the best musicals of all time visits Pittsburgh!

 

Steel City Poetry Slam
Tuesday, ~9:30p, $5
Shadow Lounge, Shadyside

The Steel City Poetry Slam is held on the third Tuesday of every month at the Shadow Lounge on Baum Blvd. Sign up sheet goes out usually between 9:15 and 9:30pm, and the slam starts shortly thereafter.

More info: https://www.facebook.com/steelcityslam

 

Pittsburgh Job Fair
Monday, 11a
Holiday Inn, North Hills

All job seekers are encouraged to network, submit resumes and connect with hiring managers from some of the area’s top local employers.

 

Les Miserables
Tuesday 1/15 Sunday 1/27
Benedum Center For The Performing Arts

Based on Victor Hugo’s classic 1862 French novel, this stage musical has touched lives around the world with the powerful story of ex-convict Jean Valjean and his life-long struggle for redemption during the French Revolution. See the musical behind the movie that’s nominated for a Best Picture Oscar, among other awards.

Tickets: http://trustarts.culturaldistrict.org/production/32852/les-miserables#tab=buy_tickets

 

Manor At Midnight: Oscar Classics
Every Saturday through 2/23
The Manor, Squirrel Hill

My favorite local theater is showing classic Oscar films, leading up to the big event every Saturday at midnight. This week: the beautiful One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest

More info: http://www.manorpgh.com/img/ManoratMIdnightOscar.pdf

Four Things To Do This Week

Here’s your first weekly preview of 2013!

 

Check Out The New Franktuary
M-W: 11a–midnight
Th–Sat: 11a–2a
Sun: 12p–midnight
3810 Butler St, Lawrenceville

The much anticipated upscale hotdog shop is finally opening in Lawrenceville. I, for one, am thrilled because I’m never able to be downtown during the day to enjoy their original location.
Franktuary: http://franktuary.com/lawrenceville/
Check out our other coverage here: http://iheartpgh.com/2013/01/04/a-sneak-peek-at-franktuary-the-second-coming/

 

Downtown Reddit Bar Crawl
Vote for a time here: http://doodle.com/bkxy4rpni4tvyeye

Good drinks, good people, good god let’s party now that the holidays are over.
Reddit thread: http://www.reddit.com/r/pittsburgh/comments/160o9z/vote_for_rpittsburgh_bar_crawl_date/

 

Pittsburgh Improv Jam (21+)
Thursday 10p, $3
Cabaret at Theater Square, Downtown

Improv comics from all over Pittsburgh take the stage performing unscripted scenes in this fast and frenetic improv jam. The show features randomly-generated teams and truly unpredictable comedy that the audience can watch — or even sign up to perform.
More: http://old.post-gazette.com/events/default.asp?mode=3&id=290

 

Title Town Soul & Funk Party
Saturday 9p, $5
Brillobox, Bloomfield

This monthly program features local disc jockey Gordy G. and guests spinning 60’s and 70’s soul, funk, classic rhythm & blues and Motown at the Brillobox. This month, “Title Town” welcomes special guest DJ Riel, host of the Steel City Soul Club.
More: http://www.brillobox.net/events/view/title-town-dj-dance-party/

 

Some content provided by Post Gazette: http://old.post-gazette.com/events/