The Hell’s Half Mile Music Committee is stoked and titillated to announce the stellar lineup playing 2014’s first Indie Showcase. Come Saturday, Jan. 25, some of Michigan’s finest bands are to take the stage at BeMo’s, 701 S. Madison Ave. — Mistaken For Satellites from Flint, Bay City’s hometown duo YUM, and the Kickstand Band and the HandGrenades, both from Detroit.
The four groups’ sounds are distinctive but complimentary, the showcase’s roster designed to effect a mixtape-style vibe. Mistaken For Satellites describe their style as a fusion of indie/alt. rock with jazz, funk, and folk, and their 2012 EP, A Time When We Were Glorious, displays this quirky amalgamation amid a crystalline production. The Kickstand Band is a three-piece that uniquely melds ’50s and ’60s pop, R&B and surf rock with chugging guitars and a distinctive interplay between the vocals of Gordon Smith and Allison Young. They released the LP Puppy Love in November 2012 and the five-song EP Summer Means Fun in July 2013.
While both Mistaken For Satellites and the Kickstand Band are newcomers to Hell’s Half Mile, YUM and the HandGrenades are returning favorites, having played in previous showcases in 2013 and during the actual festival. YUM, a bluesy garage rock outfit composed of Elise Poirier and Cody Marecek, was a show-stealer at the festival’s music event at Old City Hall on Friday, Sept. 27, and they released their debut album the following month (available on their Bandcamp page here).
The forthcoming showcase is the third time the HandGrenades have played under the HHM banner, having brought their brand of straight-up rock ‘n’ roll meets ‘60s pop melodies and vocal harmonies to a June show at BeMo’s and the main music night of the festival proper. After releasing a five-song EP in 2011, the HandGrenades dropped a full-length, The Morning After, in March 2012, followed by two singles, “Impossible” and “Easier” in December 2012.
Doors open at 8 p.m., with Mistaken For Satellites to begin at 9 p.m. Admission is free. Also set for the same day of the show is the first entry in the Hell’s Half Mile Film Series. Though the film in question is yet to be determined, it will be screened at the Delta College Planetarium prior to the show at BeMo’s. Organizers plan on having a special guest from the film attend the event as well. The second Indie Showcase at BeMo’s is slated for Saturday, March 15. Check back later for when that lineup is unveiled.