Memphis Concrète Presents: Fosterfalls, Amy Bestevez, Argiflex, Pas Moi
8PM, Wednesday, June 7th
The Hi-Tone (Small Room)
$10
At long last we’re building up to the first Memphis Concrète Fest since prior to the pandemic, when a stunning phalanx of experimental musicians from near and afar will set up shop in Crosstown and proceed to get thrillingly weird. Before the festival, though, you’ll want to check out this intriguing four-act showcase promoted by Concrète mastermind Robert Traxler, where the unhinged kaleidoscopic hyperpop of Amy Bestevez and the beguiling dream-folk of Fosterfalls rub shoulders with dependably-awesome avant noisers Pas Moi and a visiting Argiflex. Consider this night the best kind of appetizer to the imminent main course.
Steel Pulse
8PM, Thursday, June 8th
Minglewood Hall
$30
Although reggae music often brings to mind images of relaxing on a tropical beach in an exotic location, the music is also one of the most political and revolutionary genres around. This is certainly true for Steel Pulse, the Birmingham, England band that first formed in 1975. Over the course of nearly 4 decades, Steel Pulse has engaged around the topics of racial injustice and human rights on a global scale, earning them legions of fans around the globe. As reggae revolutionaries, Steel Pulse is revered by the younger generation of artists and remains a powerful and captivating live act. You don’t want to miss this one.
Tink & Friends: Thanks 4 Everything Tour Pt. 2
8pm, Friday June 9
The Orpheum
$44+
“I wrote this album specifically for single ladies. I wanted to give the girls a set of songs to play after the breakup. This is for anyone reclaiming their time. Reclaiming their joy. Sometimes we have to appreciate the good with the bad, hence Thanks 4 Nothing,” Tink said when asked of the theme behind her latest album. And that’s exactly what she delivered. The rapper and R&B singer’s Thanks 4 Nothing is full of painfully honest tracks that explore the journey of heartbreak and the triumph of finding yourself on the other side of healing. With powerful and direct lyrics over lavish production courtesy of Hitmaka, her stories are ones you’ll want to hear in person this Friday at the Orpheum.
Anand Wilder
7:30pm, Friday June 9
Overton Park Shell
Free
Back around 2010, there was an influx of experimental indie rock bands in the music scene. One of the most essential groups from this period was Yeasayer, who contributed hits like “O.N.E.” and “Ambling Alp” to the indie rock landscape. The band broke up in 2019, but a few years after the split founding member Anand Wilder reemerged as a solo artist. His sound is a touch softer and more acoustic than his former band, but still maintains Wilder’s undeniable knack for writing catchy hooks. His first solo album, I Don’t Know My Words, was released in 2022 to both critical and fan praise. This Friday he’ll showcase this new project at Overton Park Shell as part of their Orion Free Concert Series (yes, free!). So grab your lawn chairs, your blankets, and your coolers and get lost in Wilder’s mystical, ambient musical world.
Summerween!
8PM, Saturday, June 10th
Black Lodge
$20
“Because We Won’t Wait For October,” the flyer reads, and ain’t that the truth. For those of us deeply invested in the spooky season and unwilling to put aside our fantasies of Jack-O-Lanterns and candy corn in favor of stifling summer humidity, Black Lodge’s upcoming Summerween mini-fest should be just what Dr. Loomis ordered. The lineup’s a real treat-bag of lovable local indie-rockers, with Lipstick Stains bringing their usual furious punk energy and Joybomb and Sunweight contributing all sorts of merry power-pop good vibes. Selector Jack and Brian Hamilton will be piloting the turntables, as well, so make no excuse to miss this one – there’s only two types of day to the year, after all: Halloween, and days we spend waiting for Halloween.
