Whew! So … what did you think of Open Mic Week? Good? Bad? Indifferent? We know somebody didn’t like it (or, well, me, which is fun), but we had a blast! A huge thank you goes out to all the venues for having the open mics, all the artists who were brave enough to get on stage and share their art, and, of course, all four of you for reading. It’s been a project in the works for a little bit now, so it’s fun to finally see it come to fruition. Now it’s on to the summer events, of which there will be many. So many announcements to make. So little time. Oh, and remember that tiny local brewery named Flying Dog? It looks like we’ll be there again for their summer sessions concert series. Koozies and all. But shhhhhh. We’ll talk more about that later. For now, we have a hell of a weekend of music. In fact, some might say this is the strongest weekend of music we’ve had to date in 2015. Could it be? Could it be? Decide for yourself. First of all, we have Alive @ Five this evening down at the creek, and we all know how packed that gets. We also have Miss Tess over in Shepherdstown, and you remember her from our Q&A, right? Right. Justin Kalk is bringing his shred-tastic orchestra to Cafe Nola for a Thursday night show, too, which is super great. There are the normal – surprise! – open mics. And, lest you be reminded: That’s only tonight! Because don’t forget: There’s the Maryland Craft Beer Festival! And that thing has a ton of great stuff on the docket, including former Frederick Playlist Presents … artist Big Hoax (above) as well as the very fine dudes in Heavy Lights, who you know we know well. And then – and then! – Big Cork Vineyards is having their grand opening with a slate of music, including the fine men in Grand Ole Ditch. Plus, you have Ben Eppard, who we spoke with this week, bringing his hitchhiking stories to The Hill Chapel. Holy moly, the options are endless. Because even if none of that sounds good (and if none of that sounds good, shame on you), we also have Rhin. We have DJ Two Teks. We have Ginada Pinata. We have Ronny Smith. We have Jack Funk. We have Willie and all of his Chaperones. And, of course, we have Slam Dunk. Come for the Jukebox Underdogs. Stay for the Sucker Punch. Don’t forget to tune into The Local Playlist tomorrow at 1 p.m. We’ll have a very special show with our dear friend Cassandra Mullinix, she of Bucket Of Rock fame, and pretty much every single photo you see on this website. You won’t want to miss it. Another thing you won’t want to miss? Some dudes wandering the craft beer festival with a boat load of super-mysterious, super-cool promotional placards for an event that will hopefully melt all of Frederick’s faces. But that’s a secret. We’re about to have some fun now, friends. Don’t give up on us just yet.
THURSDAY
Who: Secondhand Ramblers
Where: Isabella’s Tavern
When: 7 p.m.
Who: Open Mic
Where: The Blue Sky Bar And Grill
When: 8 p.m.
Who: Open Mic
Where: Bushwallers
When: Sign-up begins at 9 p.m.; play begins at 10 p.m.
Who: Bluegrass
Where: Beans In tHe Belfry
When: 7 p.m.
Who: Safe Harbor
Where: Ayse Meze Lounge
When: 5:30 p.m.
Who: Ronny Smith
Where: The Hill Chapel
When: 7:30 p.m.
Who: Justin Kalk Orchestra
Where: Cafe Nola
When: 9:30 p.m.
Who: Alive @ Five Featuring Ethereal Jive
Where: Carroll Creek
When: 5 p.m.
Who: Miss Tess And The Talkbacks
Where: The Opera House, Shepherdstown
When: 7 p.m.
FRIDAY
Who: The Danny Webber Trio
Where: Big Cork Vineyards
When: 6 p.m.
Who: Sound Of Sleat
Where: Beans In The Belfry
When: 7 p.m.
Who: Slam Dunk
Where: The Main Cup
When: 8:30 p.m.
Who: Truly Unruly Band
Where: Hard Times Cafe
When: 9 p.m.
Who: Southern Charm
Where: The Blue Sky Bar And Grill
When: 9 p.m.
Who: Sucker Punch
Where: Bushwallers
When: 10 p.m.
Who: Scott Barret with Barry Bryan
Where: The Frederick Coffee Company
When: 8 p.m.
Who: Liz Cooper
Where: Ayse Meze Lounge
When: 6 p.m.
Who: Jukebox Underdogs
Where: Elk Run Vineyard
When: 6 p.m.
Who: Alexander Mitchell
Where: Linganore Winecellars
When: 6 p.m.
Who: The Milkmen
Where: Milkhouse Farm Brewery
When: 6 p.m.
Who: DJ Two Teks
Where: Cafe Nola
When: 10 p.m.
Who: Rhin, Karma To Burn, Sixty Watt Shaman and CassiRaye
Where: The Opera House, Shepherdstown
When: 9 p.m.
SATURDAY
Who: Maryland Craft Beer Festival featuring Big Hoax, The Solicitors, Katie Powderly, Greasy Hands, Heavy Lights and more
Where: Carroll Creek
When: 1 p.m.
Who: Big Cork Vineyards Grand Opening featuring Grand Ole Ditch and The Reagan Years
Where: Big Cork Vineyards
When: 11 a.m.
Who: Wille Barry and his Chaperones
Where: Beans In The Belfry
When: 7 p.m.
Who: JJAM Band
Where: JR’s Sports Bar
When: 8 p.m.
Who: John Zahn Band
Where: Hard Times Cafe
When: 9 p.m.
Who: 7th Sun
Where: The Blue Sky Bar And Grill
When: 9 p.m.
Who: Drunk Naked Pirates
Where: Olde Towne Tavern
When: 10 p.m.
Who: Rew Smith Band
Where: Bushwallers
When: 10 p.m.
Who: Catoctin Mountain Highway
Where: Frederick Coffee Company
When: 8 p.m.
Who: Sarno & Hess
Where: Red Shedman Farm Brewery
When: 4 p.m.
Who: Ben Eppard
Where: The Hill Chapel
When: 7 p.m.
Who: Jack Funk, Nicky C And The Rattlesnake Bites
Where: Cafe Nola
When: 10 p.m.
Who: Ginada Pinata, Sacred Groove,
Where: The Opera House, Shepherdstown
When: 9 p.m.
Who: Darcy Dawn & Company
Where: The Cellar Door
When: 10 p.m.
