Local Events in Johnson County, Iowa

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Coralville Hills Iowa City
Lone Tree North Liberty Oakdale
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Columbus Clippers Baseball vs. Buffalo
Tue, 05 Jun 2012 19:05:00 +0000



Phone: 614-462-5250
Web: www.clippersbaseball.com

When: Jun 5, 2012 7:05:00 PM in Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Blake Shelton
Fri, 20 Jul 2012 20:00:00 +0000

When: Jul 20, 2012 8:00:00 PM in Monticello, Iowa

Drake Bulldogs vs Montana State Bobcats
Thu, 09 Aug 2012 18:00:00 +0000

When: Aug 9, 2012 6:00:00 PM in Des Moines, Iowa

Iowa Barnstormers vs Spokane Shock
Fri, 25 May 2012 19:05:00 +0000

Wells Fargo Arena
For the 2012 season, the Barnstormers will compete in the AFL’s Central Division. Iowa will play six division games comprised of home and home sets versus Chicago, Kansas City and San Antonio. Having relocated from Tulsa, the San Antonio Talons have become the Barnstormers newest division opponent. Iowa’s rivalry with Kansas City returns when the Barnstormers host the Command on Saturday, May 12. The teams then reverse roles for a rematch on Saturday, July 7th in Kansas City at the Sprint Center.

Other highlights of the 2012 schedule include home games against former AFL Champions, the Arizona Rattlers (April 14) and the San Jose Sabercats (April 28). Iowa travels to Jacksonville to take on the defending AFL Champion Sharks on Saturday, May 19th. The Barnstormers are also featured on national television when they host the Cleveland Gladiators on Friday, June 2nd live on the NFL Network. Iowa will host their 4th annual military night when the Pittsburgh Power comes to town on Saturday, June 30. The Barnstormers wrap up their regular season home schedule on July 21, when they battle San Antonio.

Once again this season, all Iowa Barnstormers home games will be played on Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield Field at Wells Fargo Arena. All 9 home games will be played on Friday and Saturday evenings with a kickoff time of 7:05pm
Tickets
Buy Tickets

Tickets on sale now!
$45, $29, $20, $18, $15
Season tickets are on sale now by calling 515-633-2255.

If your group would like to hear about discounted tickets for bringing large groups to a game, call Jason at 515-564-8146.

More Information
Iowa Barnstormers website


Group Sales
Group Sales Offer




© 2012 Iowa Events Center • 730 Third Street • Des Moines, IA 50309
Phone: 515-564-8000 • Fax: 515-564-8001 • info@iowaeventscenter.com


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Wells Fargo Arena
For the 2012 season, the Barnstormers will compete in the AFL’s Central Division. Iowa will play six division games comprised of home and home sets versus Chicago, Kansas City and San Antonio. Having relocated from Tulsa, the San Antonio Talons have become the Barnstormers newest division opponent. Iowa’s rivalry with Kansas City returns when the Barnstormers host the Command on Saturday, May 12. The teams then reverse roles for a rematch on Saturday, July 7th in Kansas City at the Sprint Center.

Other highlights of the 2012 schedule include home games against former AFL Champions, the Arizona Rattlers (April 14) and the San Jose Sabercats (April 28). Iowa travels to Jacksonville to take on the defending AFL Champion Sharks on Saturday, May 19th. The Barnstormers are also featured on national television when they host the Cleveland Gladiators on Friday, June 2nd live on the NFL Network. Iowa will host their 4th annual military night when the Pittsburgh Power comes to town on Saturday, June 30. The Barnstormers wrap up their regular season home schedule on July 21, when they battle San Antonio.

Once again this season, all Iowa Barnstormers home games will be played on Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield Field at Wells Fargo Arena. All 9 home games will be played on Friday and Saturday evenings with a kickoff time of 7:05pm
Tickets
Buy Tickets

Tickets on sale now!
$45, $29, $20, $18, $15
Season tickets are on sale now by calling 515-633-2255.

If your group would like to hear about discounted tickets for bringing large groups to a game, call Jason at 515-564-8146.

More Information
Iowa Barnstormers website


Group Sales
Group Sales Offer




© 2012 Iowa Events Center • 730 Third Street • Des Moines, IA 50309
Phone: 515-564-8000 • Fax: 515-564-8001 • info@iowaeventscenter.com


Wells Fargo Arena
For the 2012 season, the Barnstormers will compete in the AFL’s Central Division. Iowa will play six division games comprised of home and home sets versus Chicago, Kansas City and San Antonio. Having relocated from Tulsa, the San Antonio Talons have become the Barnstormers newest division opponent. Iowa’s rivalry with Kansas City returns when the Barnstormers host the Command on Saturday, May 12. The teams then reverse roles for a rematch on Saturday, July 7th in Kansas City at the Sprint Center.

Other highlights of the 2012 schedule include home games against former AFL Champions, the Arizona Rattlers (April 14) and the San Jose Sabercats (April 28). Iowa travels to Jacksonville to take on the defending AFL Champion Sharks on Saturday, May 19th. The Barnstormers are also featured on national television when they host the Cleveland Gladiators on Friday, June 2nd live on the NFL Network. Iowa will host their 4th annual military night when the Pittsburgh Power comes to town on Saturday, June 30. The Barnstormers wrap up their regular season home schedule on July 21, when they battle San Antonio.

Once again this season, all Iowa Barnstormers home games will be played on Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield Field at Wells Fargo Arena. All 9 home games will be played on Friday and Saturday evenings with a kickoff time of 7:05pm
Tickets
Buy Tickets

Tickets on sale now!
$45, $29, $20, $18, $15
Season tickets are on sale now by calling 515-633-2255.

If your group would like to hear about discounted tickets for bringing large groups to a game, call Jason at 515-564-8146.

More Information
Iowa Barnstormers website


Group Sales
Group Sales Offer




© 2012 Iowa Events Center • 730 Third Street • Des Moines, IA 50309
Phone: 515-564-8000 • Fax: 515-564-8001 • info@iowaeventscenter.com

Wells Fargo Arena
For the 2012 season, the Barnstormers will compete in the AFL’s Central Division. Iowa will play six division games comprised of home and home sets versus Chicago, Kansas City and San Antonio. Having relocated from Tulsa, the San Antonio Talons have become the Barnstormers newest division opponent. Iowa’s rivalry with Kansas City returns when the Barnstormers host the Command on Saturday, May 12. The teams then reverse roles for a rematch on Saturday, July 7th in Kansas City at the Sprint Center.

Other highlights of the 2012 schedule include home games against former AFL Champions, the Arizona Rattlers (April 14) and the San Jose Sabercats (April 28). Iowa travels to Jacksonville to take on the defending AFL Champion Sharks on Saturday, May 19th. The Barnstormers are also featured on national television when they host the Cleveland Gladiators on Friday, June 2nd live on the NFL Network. Iowa will host their 4th annual military night when the Pittsburgh Power comes to town on Saturday, June 30. The Barnstormers wrap up their regular season home schedule on July 21, when they battle San Antonio.

Once again this season, all Iowa Barnstormers home games will be played on Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield Field at Wells Fargo Arena. All 9 home games will be played on Friday and Saturday evenings with a kickoff time of 7:05pm
Tickets
Buy Tickets

Tickets on sale now!
$45, $29, $20, $18, $15
Season tickets are on sale now by calling 515-633-2255.

If your group would like to hear about discounted tickets for bringing large groups to a game, call Jason at 515-564-8146.

More Information
Iowa Barnstormers website


Group Sales
Group Sales Offer




Wells Fargo Arena
For the 2012 season, the Barnstormers will compete in the AFL’s Central Division. Iowa will play six division games comprised of home and home sets versus Chicago, Kansas City and San Antonio. Having relocated from Tulsa, the San Antonio Talons have become the Barnstormers newest division opponent. Iowa’s rivalry with Kansas City returns when the Barnstormers host the Command on Saturday, May 12. The teams then reverse roles for a rematch on Saturday, July 7th in Kansas City at the Sprint Center.

Other highlights of the 2012 schedule include home games against former AFL Champions, the Arizona Rattlers (April 14) and the San Jose Sabercats (April 28). Iowa travels to Jacksonville to take on the defending AFL Champion Sharks on Saturday, May 19th. The Barnstormers are also featured on national television when they host the Cleveland Gladiators on Friday, June 2nd live on the NFL Network. Iowa will host their 4th annual military night when the Pittsburgh Power comes to town on Saturday, June 30. The Barnstormers wrap up their regular season home schedule on July 21, when they battle San Antonio.

Once again this season, all Iowa Barnstormers home games will be played on Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield Field at Wells Fargo Arena. All 9 home games will be played on Friday and Saturday evenings with a kickoff time of 7:05pm
Tickets
Buy Tickets

Tickets on sale now!
$45, $29, $20, $18, $15
Season tickets are on sale now by calling 515-633-2255.

If your group would like to hear about discounted tickets for bringing large groups to a game, call Jason at 515-564-8146.

More Information
Iowa Barnstormers website


Group Sales
Group Sales Offer





When: May 25, 2012 7:05:00 PM in Des Moines, Iowa
Cost: $45, $29, $20, $18, $15

Girl Talk
Mon, 25 Jun 2012 20:00:00 +0000

Girl Talk

Pittsburgh artist Gregg Gillis (aka Girl Talk) has scrupulously created music from samples for over eight years. His fourth album, Feed the Animals, continues his sonic evolution towards his party-infested live show. While his first album, Secret Diary (2002), was full of purposeful glitches and noise, his subsequent albums, Unstoppable (2004) and the groundbreaking Night Ripper (2006), moved closer and closer towards dance-able mixes of varying genres, often including dozens of audio sources in a stream of juxtaposed hooks. With the fourth Girl Talk album on the Illegal Art label, Gillis steps even closer towards a creation that is centered on pop musicality rather than attention-deficit sample splicing. Girl Talk has been known to underground audiences for several years, but it wasn't until 2006 that Gillis crossed over and caught the attention of a larger audience. With Rolling Stone, SPIN, Blender, Pitchfork, and even Beck including Night Ripper in their _best albums of 2006_ lists, Girl Talk has gone on to be booked by major festivals (Coachella, Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo, Virgin, All Points West, Pitchfork, DEMF, etc.), and solicited for remixes (Beck, Thrill Jockey, Tokyo Police Club, Grizzly Bear, Simian Mobile Disco, Peter Bjorn & John, TeddyBears, and Of Montreal). And with roughly 200 live shows over the last couple of years, Gillis has consistently played larger venues to capacity crowds (every date on his 2007 North American tour with Dan Deacon sold out). A year after the critically acclaimed Night Ripper release, Gillis quit his job as a biomedical engineer and now focuses on music full time. With his newly acquired lifestyle he can now work on music during the week and fly out to play shows on the weekend. With only a laptop in hand, the Girl Talk live show is more portable than a traditional band and has afforded Gillis the opportunity to travel the world with minimal overhead. A visceral culture of audience involvement has also become key to the live Girl Talk experience. Performances oftentimes feature the stage being mobbed with a sweaty mass of dancers who surround Gillis as he triggers samples and create mixes, new and old, out of loops from his hard drive. Such performances have quickly become one of the most entertaining and exhilarating live shows many have experienced as Girl Talk has the extraordinary ability to get the crowd ecstatic and keep the thrill going for the entire concert. The new album, Feed the Animals, collects the material that was developed over the last two years as part of Gillis' ever-changing live show. With hours of material in hand, it still took months to meticulously edit together the seamless album that combines 300+ samples in 50 minutes. Such fastidious care is what separates Girl Talk from the dime-a-dozen remixes that are posted to the Internet daily. In comparison to the previous release, Gillis has described this new album as expanded, with a larger range of tempos and samples. Yet, at the same time the focus has shifted from technical prowess to the flow and balance of each segment in an effort to successful translate the over-the-top party feel of the Girl Talk live show into album form. Before Girl Talk suddenly reached critical acclaim, a typical show would attract 15-30 people. During those initial years it was an extreme oddity for someone to show up with a laptop and play elaborately constructed mixes of pop samples. In the last couple of years, though, not only have Gillis' live shows exploded, but he is also being recognized for his innovations. From Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips nominating him for the Shortlist Music Prize to Representative Mike Doyle speaking about him to Congress (in relation to copyright laws), Gillis has quickly become a public figure. Emerging from his underground Pittsburgh roots, he is now being lauded as the future of electronic music by techno pioneer Richie Hawtin, while celebrities such as Paris Hilton are vying to dance onstage during a Girl Talk show. Gillis modestly takes it all in stride and has stated in interviews that he will eventually go back to a normal job, all the while reveling in the party while it lasts. While Girl Talk's music is often categorized alongside mashups, or DJ mixes, it is critical to note how distinct his assemblages are from the conventional mixing of two simultaneous tracks. Gillis' roots lie more in the rich history of sample-based compostion as demonstrated by artists such as Dickie Goodman, Negativland, John Oswald, Steinski, Public Enemy (The Bomb Squad era), and countless others. Rather than taking mashups to an extreme, Girl Talk is more focused on the art of the sampling and developing new tracks that have their own character, and surpass the original elements. Such transformative work is what helps qualify his output as being protected by the _fair use_ principle of U.S. Copyright Law.



When: Jun 25, 2012 8:00:00 PM in West Des Moines, Iowa
Cost: $25-$30

Hurt
Sun, 20 May 2012 18:30:00 +0000

Hurt

"We wanted this to be a record of extremes," HURT frontman J. Loren says of the band's sixth album The Crux. "We wanted it to be its own musical world that the listener can step into, and then return to again and again, and find something new to discover every time." Indeed, The Crux marks a vibrant creative rebirth for HURT, which has already earned a reputation as a band with a penchant for bold musical invention and unsparing lyrical insight. The new album finds the quartet-singer/lyricist/violinist Loren, guitarist Michael Roberts, bassist Rek Mohr and new drummer Victor Ribas-staking out exciting new musical territory to deliver a personally charged song cycle. The music's hard-rock punch is matched by Loren's carefully crafted, vividly introspective lyrics, which explore the darker margins of the human condition and tackle thorny issues of spirituality and self-knowledge. The album, produced by Roberts and the band and mixed by John Kurzweg (Puddle of Mudd, Godsmack), offers 11 riveting examples of HURT's distinctive mix of sonic impact and subtle dynamics, as manifested in the songs' multi-layered instrumental settings as well as Loren's distinctive violin textures and expressive string arrangements. New songs "How We End Up Alone," "So When," "Eden," "Links and Waves," and "Numbers" (which gained significant pre-album airplay when a demo version was released to radio) incorporate soaring, anthemic choruses and spare, pensive passages and evocative widescreen soundscapes. The Crux-HURT's first release on the Dallas based independent label Carved Records-decisively demonstrates how the band, after weathering personnel shifts and a split with a major label, has emerged intact as a dynamic, self-contained unit creating music on its own uncompromising terms. "It was really important for us to get this right, so we took our time and put everything we had into it," Loren says. "I think it's the closest that we've ever come to capturing what we've been trying to capture since the band started." The restless spirit that drives The Crux has been a constant throughout HURT's dozen-year career. Loren grew up steeped in classical music in rural Virginia, and was composing classical pieces by the age of 10. He was 15 when he formed the first lineup of HURT by cutting demos of his original songs and playing many of the instruments himself on the band's early recordings. HURT's self-titled, self-released 2000 debut album and its 2003 followup The Consumation garnered considerable word-of-mouth attention, and the band's grass-roots success and growing reputation as a live act helped to win them a deal with Capitol Records. HURT's two Capitol albums, Vol. 1 (2006) and Vol. II (2007) plus the re-issue of The Re-Consumation (2008), a reworked, expanded edition of their earlier indie release-saw the band substantially expanding its national audience, spawning such rock radio anthems as "Rapture," "Falls Apart," "Ten Ton Brick," "Wars" and "Numbers." Tours with some of rock's biggest acts, including Staind, Three Days Grace, Alice in Chains, Seether and Breaking Benjamin, helped to further broaden HURT's uncommonly loyal and devoted fan base. Despite their growing success, HURT's transition from D.I.Y. self-reliance to the mainstream music-industry machine proved to be an uncomfortable one in some respects, and by 2009, HURT was back in independent territory. True to form, the band chose to forge ahead and continue making music without corporate life support, and the band rose to the occasion to create the raw, unadorned Goodbye to the Machine, recorded quickly and with a minimum of production frills. That album helped to set the stage for the creative leap of The Crux. "We put three years of work into The Crux," Loren notes. "We wrote and recorded Goodbye to the Machine really quickly. After that, I swore to myself that we wouldn't rush it the next time. So as Goodbye to the Machine was coming out, I began working on The Crux, and I decided that I would put my whole heart and soul and life into it. "The first goal with this project was to return to the sound that people knew and loved about the band," he says of The Crux. "The next goal was to do a lot of self-exploration. There were a lot of ideas thrown around, and we stripped down every song idea and worked on those from scratch. It was a long process, but it was very satisfying. You really have to mess with things and experiment and push yourself. It was very much like working on a classical piece, fine-tuning it to make sure that it was as effective as it could be." True to Loren's intention of putting his all into the project, the birth cycle of The Crux proved to be a personal challenge as much as a musical one. "What you're hearing on this record is definitely what I was feeling when I was making it, and what I was feeling is not the best place to be," he asserts. "I found myself displaced, to the point where I was unable to even talk to my family. I had broken just about every bond I could and I was at my lowest point, and there was nothing left for me to do but to work on this album. But sometimes that's where the best things come from. I think that everyone in the band actually delved into some form of insanity during the making of this album, and we had to pull together as a team and bring each other out of it. We were working on things in such depth that we all went a little crazy. "This new iteration of the band is something that I'm very proud of," Loren continues. "These are the finest musicians I've ever worked with, and we've regained the sense of brotherhood that the band had in the beginning, with everyone united to achieve a common goal. That feeling is the best place to be, because I couldn't really open myself up if I didn't trust everybody in the group." Prior to The Crux's release, HURT road-tested their new material and reinvented many of their older songs with their first all-acoustic tour, which allowed the band to reconnect with its fans in an intimate setting. The ability to pursue such projects is just one manifestation of the flexibility that comes with HURT's new independent status-a status that's much better suited to the band's iconoclastic nature. "Being independent again has been incredibly liberating," Loren states. "I know that we're a hard band to classify or put into an easy genre, but I don't really care. If you're going to do something that's from the heart and from the soul, you can't betray it for the sake of convenience. You just have to do your best and be as honest as you can, and then hang up your hat for the night, try to get some sleep, and try to be even better the next day.



When: May 20, 2012 6:30:00 PM in Des Moines, Iowa
Cost: $15.00 - $18.00

Lotus Plaza
Tue, 10 Jul 2012 20:00:00 +0000

Lotus Plaza

Lotus Plaza is the solo project of Deerhunter's Lockett pundt. Pundt has cited his greatest musical influences as being Stereolab, My Bloody Valentine, and Roxy Music, "on a subliminal level."



When: Jul 10, 2012 8:00:00 PM in Des Moines, Iowa
Cost: $10.00 - $12.00

Heartless Bastards
Fri, 27 Jul 2012 21:00:00 +0000

Heartless Bastards

Brimming with confidence and creativity, Arrow sees Heartless Bastards pushing their distinctive sound forward with their most eclectic, energetic collection thus far. The album - the Austin, Texas-based band's first release with Partisan Records - is marked as ever by singer/guitarist/songwriter Erika Wennerstrom's remarkable voice, at turns primal and pleading, heartfelt and heroic. Songs like "Parted Ways" and the searing "Low Low Low" expertly capture the Bastards' multi-dimensional rock in all its strength and spirit. Following upon the difficult introspection of 2009′s acclaimed third album, The Mountain, Arrow stands as a powerhouse new beginning for Heartless Bastards. "The Mountain was me going through some things after being in a relationship for nine years," Wennerstrom says. "This album is kind of like me being comfortable again." Arrow serves as the recorded debut of Heartless Bastards' current iteration, their latest and greatest line-up since Wennerstrom first convened the band back in 2003. Drummer Dave Colvin and bassist Jesse Ebagh - both of whom played on the Bastards' first-ever demo recordings - returned to the fold in order to play live behind The Mountain. Soon after embarking on tour, Wennerstrom decided to put more meat on the band's raw bones by enlisting guitarist Mark Nathan, who had ostensibly come aboard to handle the live sound. "I wanted to add another guitar," Wennerstrom says, "so I asked Mark, 'What do you think of joining the band?' and he was into it. I've always planned on being a four-piece, but it just takes a while to find somebody that you feel you click with. I'd rather have it be stripped down than just have somebody there for the sake of having them there." The expanded line-up brought additional color and dynamism to the Heartless Bastards' already colorfully dynamic rock 'n' roll. With their sound honed to a razor's edge by night after night of playing live, Heartless Bastards were soon ready to record for posterity. But having spent so much of the past year on tour, Wennerstrom knew she needed some downtime in order to turn her musical ideas into fully-fledged songs. In Fall 2010, she embarked on the first of what would be several solo road trips designed to clear the cobwebs and help focus her songwriting. Wennerstrom visited friends and family in Ohio, hung out at All Tomorrow's Parties in the Catskills, spent alone time in Arkansas, a lake cabin in the Allegheny Mountains and at a ranch in West Texas. "It was really nice," she says. "I didn't feel like I was getting much done, but I realized that a lot of that experience ended up being reflected in the songs. I didn't get a lot of the writing done right then, on that trip, but I feel like getting out there really helped me later on." 2011 saw Heartless Bastards hitting the highway once more, taking the opportunity to road-test Wennerstrom's new songs on a bare-bones "acoustic" tour as well on a series of dates supporting Drive-By Truckers. The band set to work on Arrow just two short days after their return to Austin, a revved-up, well-oiled rock 'n' roll machine. "We just went right in," Wennerstrom says. "There's a definite sound that comes from a band that's been on the road and I really feel like it's translated on the album." The band spent the next month with producer Jim Eno at his Public Hi-Fi home studio. Eno - known far and wide as the drummer in Spoon - guided the Bastards through the recording process, helping them to infuse their myriad influences and ambitions into the songs. "Jim was really great to work with," Wennerstrom says. "He asked me what kind of approach I wanted to take towards each song and we'd take it in that direction. It was like, what were you thinking for each song, as far as inspiration?" Arrow showcases the depth and breath of the band's indelible sound, with songs like "Got To Have Rock and Roll" and "Down In The Canyon" lighting upon spaghetti western film scores, Seventies soul, psychedelia, funk, blues, glam, and mudhole-stomping hard rock. Two years of nearly non-stop touring resulted in an astonishing musical telepathy among Heartless Bastards, with all four players intuitively able to craft Wennerstrom's songs into maximum form. "I'm so in synch with this band," she says. "Songs seem to go where I want them to go and it doesn't take a whole lot of time. Even though I'm not very communicative, they know me well enough and get it." Kicking off with the widescreen vision of "Marathon," the album is more wholly fleshed than anything in the Bastards' prior oeuvre, while simultaneously securing the band in all their straight-on, unadorned majesty. Arrow is the glorious sound of a four-piece rock 'n' roll outfit in full flight, with little outside accompaniment bar conga player Matthew "Sweet Lou" Holmes's performance on the evocative "Skin and Bone." "It's a pretty stripped-down album in a lot of ways," Wennerstrom says. "There's really not a lot added to these tracks, they're really mostly live takes. We talked about adding things, but when we listened back, we thought, 'I don't know if this really needs more.'" With Arrow complete, Heartless Bastards are now itching to get back out there. Inveterate road warriors, the band is at their electrifying best while on stage, making deep connections with both their audience and their music. "It can be hard at times," Wennerstrom says, "but I love it. I love playing on stage. It's that hour and a half, that time that we're up there, that I love most. There's a lot of sitting around, trying to find things to fill in the time, but then we finally start to play, it's so worth it and rewarding." Arrow sees Heartless Bastards doing what all great bands do - furthering their artistic scope with each successive effort. With its impressive range and undeniable vigor, the album flies straight, honest and true, the finest distillation yet of this extraordinary rock 'n' roll band's fiery, unforgettable sound. "I feel like this is the strongest record I've ever done," Wennerstrom says. "I feel like playing with these guys, us all being so connected, really helped make it so fully realized. I'm really, really happy with it."



When: Jul 27, 2012 9:00:00 PM in Des Moines, Iowa
Cost: $13.00 - $15.00

Mickey Avalon
Wed, 27 Jun 2012 18:30:00 +0000

Supporting Acts: Millionaires

Mickey Avalon

With a childhood rough enough to guarantee him rock star success, by the time he was out of his teenage years -- at least according to the few details he's given -- Mickey Avalon had sold pot (with his mother), been addicted to heroin and dope, worked as a graffiti artist in L.A., converted to Orthodox Judaism (his parents were both non-practicing Jews, and his paternal grandparents were survivors of Auschwitz), got married and had a daughter, prostituted himself for drug money, watched his father die, and found his sister's dead body. All of this gave ample material for his rhymes, which he started writing after his pal, the former MTV VJ Simon Rex, encouraged him to compose his own songs. Avalon, Rex (who rapped under the name Dirt Nasty), and Armen Melik (aka Andre Legacy) began recording and releasing their own material as the Dyslexic Speedreaders, an irreverent group that gave a satirical and often lascivious look into the L.A. club and drug culture. Avalon's stage presence, which mixed a kind of hyper- and often ambiguous sexuality akin to the trashy glam rockers of the '70s, gained the attention of DJ and aspiring manager Kev-E-Kev, who was soon helping Avalon hawk his self-titled CD -- wrapped in a newspaper advertising adult services -- on the streets. His music, in particular the song "Jane Fonda," thanks to its appearance in the HBO series Entourage as well its availability on his MySpace site, started gaining an audience, and in 2006 his album was reissued as the first release from MySpace Records in joint collaboration with Interscope.



When: Jun 27, 2012 6:30:00 PM in Des Moines, Iowa
Cost: $15.00 - $17.00

The Faint
Fri, 17 Aug 2012 21:00:00 +0000

The Faint

The Omaha quintet has always been perceived as a series of paradoxes: Nebraskans trafficking in electro-pop anthems; a five-person outfit who insist on songwriting democracy; punk rockers laying down their guitars for a decidedly untypical kind of punk rock.



When: Aug 17, 2012 9:00:00 PM in Des Moines, Iowa
Cost: $15.00