Brett Barest On The Upstate Music Scene: Sunday Funday

I have to admit that the best nights to catch a show are often the worst nights for me to catch a show right now. I host trivia at Quest Brewing Company every Wednesday, Thursdays are for my son’s Wade Hampton JV football games, and Friday nights are used to prepare for the TD Saturday Market with my wife. By the time Saturday evening shows roll around we are usually looking more toward the bedroom door for some sleep instead of the front door to go out to a show.

And yes, I know just how old all of that makes me sound and I am totally fine with that.

All of this said, the best day for me to catch live music is often on Sunday and, thankfully, Greenville’s music scene is in an incredible position to deliver just that this weekend. Just a quick glance at this week’s calendar shows four totally different and unique opportunities to take in some really great live music all over town. From lazy, acoustic duos to punk rock royalty and all points in between, there is plenty to choose from to make for the perfect Sunday listening experience. Heck, there is even a live show paired with an assembly of the dumbest people our society has to offer but I will get back to that later…

The biggest bang for your buck this Sunday will be happening at The Spinning Jenny for a very special Benefit for the Bahamas fundraiser. A full six hours of live music kicks off with a set from The Acoustic Guitar group at 2pm, builds with appearances by The West End String Band, Darby Wilcox, Marvin King Revue, and The Zack Tisdale Band before Little Lesley & the Bloodshots closes out the day with a full bore set of rockabilly. That is a heck of a lot of music for a mere $10 donation to help AmeriCares assist those in need in the Bahamas in the wake of Hurricane Dorian. Door prizes, vendors, a silent auction, food, and drink just add even more reasons to spend your Sunday in Downtown Greer.

Spinning Jenny Sunday Lineup

For a more intimate performance, Horizon Records and Bohemian Café invite you to celebrate the release of The Shady Recruits new self-titled album Sunday at 3pm. The five piece ensemble is a unique arrangement of local and regional musicians from other bands coming together for a funk and jazz fueled side project. The Marcus King Band’s Jack Ryan and Justin Johnson are teamed with Charles Hedgepath (The Work, The Bad Popes), David Katilius (Scrumptious, Adam Knight’s Buried Alive), and Marcus White (Voodoo Visionary) for a great lineup and completely original – and often times improvisational – funky jam band sound. Bohemian Café will host the live set and Horizon will have plenty of copies of the new album available for purchase.

As the day turns into evening, Quest Brewing Company is always a great spot to enjoy some live music with their Sunday Unwind Series starting at 5pm. This week sees the return of The Bachman Brothers with their brand of old time sound to the brewery. The great thing about shows at Quest (besides the music and beer, of course) is the ability to enjoy an outside show when the weather is nice or to move inside to the brew house when the weather requires. Either way, it is always an inviting place to catch a show and should be a great way to spend your Sunday.

The biggest show of the weekend is, unsurprisingly, at The Radio Room and features hardcore punk sensations H2O. Born out of New York City’s 1990’s punk scene, H2O made their bones touring relentlessly, joining the Warped Tour of the late ‘90’s, and opening for the likes of Social Distortion, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Rancid, and everybody else I was listening to back then. Somehow, the inexplicably never made it onto my radar, what with no internet, Spotify, iTunes, and the like, so I am only showing up to the party in time for their 25^th anniversary tour. Better late than never, I suppose. Swing First, Pet Peeves, and Brigades lead off the four band set making for yet another big night of music at The Radio Room.

Finally, the funniest event of the weekend comes in the form of Flatober Fest at The Firmament. This is both a concert and a conference celebrating the voices of – you guessed it – the flat Earth movement. I honestly thought that this “theory” was a joke in the same vein as the Flying Spaghetti Monster but it seems that these folks truly believe that we live on a giant Frisbee floating through space and I cannot wrap my mind around that. I can only imagine what an assembly of such moonbats might actually look like and I have to admit that I am more than a little intrigued. To be clear, this is in no way a knock on The Firmament for hosting the event; kudos to them for offering a space for all groups no matter how ridiculous and, on a separate note, bringing in The Wooks Thursday night (seriously, check that one out if you can).

Whatever you decide to do this Sunday – or any other day that ends in “y” that has great music available here in the Upstate – be safe, enjoy the show, and don’t worry about falling off the edge of this little thing called Earth. We’re going to be alright, you guys.