Column for October 13, 2010

Marigolds Wine, located on Flandro Drive near Golds Gym, is fast becoming not only a center for wine and gourmet delicacies, but also for live music. On Thursdays, Marigolds’ is hosting an open mic night, from 5 to 8:00 p.m. Marigolds is open to those 21 and over. Visit www.marigoldswine.com for more information.

On Friday and Saturday, the 15th and 16th, Jory Dax performs funk-based blues at Marigolds starting at 7:00 p.m. Music entertainment is free. Jeff Young, guitar and vocals, and long-time friend Henry Evans, percussion, started The Jory Dax Band several years ago. The Jory Dax Band has been an on-again-off-again favorite band in the area, with fits and spurts of success and plenty of member changes. But every time they’ve played, the audience response has been encouraging and supportive.

Young, based in Pocatello, is an inarguably a talented guitar player; perhaps not in virtuoso technique, but certainly in passion and lightning-quick fretwork. I’ve sat in the audience surrounded by other guitar players and musicians who, in a soft whisper for my ears only, have compared Young’s potential to Robin Trower and Stevie Ray Vaughn. If you’ve missed Jory Dax in the past, now’s a good time to get in on the groove.

At Portneuf Valley Brewing this weekend, Train Wreck, based from Idaho Falls, takes the stage on Friday the 15th. Music entertainment is free and open to all ages, starting at 8;30 p.m. And on Saturday the 16th, Unstable Ground is at the pub playing rock and country.

Train Wreck is a duo project with Shawn Good and Amber Lytle. I interviewed Good last year for the Grand Opening of the Vinyl Perk, and shortly thereafter he began his collaboration with Lytle. Listen for covers of songs from Ani Difranco, Blake Shelton, Cream, Otis Redding, Lynard Skynard, Jack Johnson, Eric Clapton, Missy Higgins, Melissa Ethridge, and more.

“I think TrainWreck appeals most to its fans because of the diversity of music that we represent,” Good said. “Coming to a TrainWreck show, you're not going to hear just one type of music. You're more than likely going to hear a song from every radio station on the airwaves, except for the gospel channel. That’s why we call ourselves TrainWreck, because it's all these genres of music meshed into one set.”

The duo has played throughout southeast Idaho, either separately as solo musicians or together. They’ve played at Vino Rosso and The Cellar in Idaho Falls, Fort Hall and the Vinyl Perk in Pocatello. For more, find Train Wreck on Facebook.

Unstable Ground is a locally-based rock and country cover band, a regular favorite at the pub. The four-piece band is fronted by Gene Taylor and Mark Holbrook on guitars and vocals, backed by bassist Chris Willock and Eric Stanley on drums. The band is also scheduled at Marigolds in mid-November.

Keep in touch with Unstable Ground by email at contact@unstablegroundband.com, or visit their website at www.unstableground.com.

Some other big concerts coming up in and around the area soon include Destino, an opera and pop fusion group, performing at the Blackfoot Performing Arts Center on Thursday the 21st. Tickets for Destino are $20 for adults and $15 students under 18, available at blackfootpac.com, Tweedy's Music in Blackfoot, or by calling (208) 317-5508.

Judy Collins, pianist and folk singer / songwriter is in concert at the Colonial Theater in Idaho Falls on Friday the 22nd. Tickets are $35 in advance or $38 at the door. For more, call (208) 522-0471.

On Sunday the 24th , The First National Bar hosts a fund-raising concert for a recent house fire victim with Forgiveness Denied, Valley of Unrest, the Art of Repulsion and more. Call (208) 233-1516.

And tickets are on sale now for The Freakers Ball at the Old Ernst Building in Idaho Falls, presented by 78 Productions. Royal Bliss headlines with support from Anchored, Somewhere In the Middle and Some Day Sane. Tickets are $15 in advance, available online at www.78productions.net or at CD World in Idaho Falls. The concert is open to all ages; minors 17 and under must be accompanied by an adult.

Royal Bliss recently spent six weeks in Nashville, TN, recording a new album, due for release in spring 2011. I heard a preview of the new record a few weeks ago, and it’s heavy, man. Fans will love it.

Also on the 29th, Straight No Chaser is scheduled to perform at the Idaho Falls civic Auditorium. Tickets are available online at www.idahofallsarts.org.

Linda Alexander
slowloosegravel@yahoo.com
slowloosegravel.blogspot.com