Murder by Death returned to Lawrence, KS, on March 7 for a show at historic Liberty Hall. The group is mid-way through their current tour celebrating 20 years as a band. The crowd was so happy to welcome them back to Lawrence. The night included a great moment when lead singer, Adam Turla, acknowledged their love and long history with the town, from playing house parties in the early 00’s, to Liberty hall on Saturday. The group was energetic and cohesive – you could tell they’ve been performing together for 20 years.
On Tuesday, April 16th, Haley Reinhart made a spectacular appearance at The Granada in Lawrence, KS. Photographer Elizabeth Messina made the trek out on the beautiful spring evening to enjoy an opening set by Jennah Bell, and an incredibly alluring evening with Reinhart, who drew a diverse, energetic crowd of onlookers. Highlights below.
On Valentine’s Day, Lawrence, KS favorites The Sluts opened for FIDLAR at 96.5 The Buzz’s holiday show at The Truman. Entertaining as ever, the duo Kristoffer Dover and Ryan Wise injected an intense energy into the audience, making it easy to blow FIDLAR away when they hit the stage. KC, we love you.
On Saturday, February 23rd, Emo Nite LA hit The Granada in Lawrence, KS. Photographer Ashleigh Lee hit up the event for us, and nabbed some shots so we don’t feel left out.
On July 21st, Scotty McCreery made an incredible appearance at Summer Splash in Salina, KS. Photographer Rayne Schmidtberger was on hand, and we have some snaps of the evening to share.
There are more than a few reasons to partake in Lawrence Field Day Festival this coming weekend. Now in its seventh installment, the 3-day annual event in Lawrence, Kansas continues to feature great live music from dozens of bands at a very affordable ticket price. The festival runs Thursday through Saturday.
Started by Cameron Hawk and Quinton Cheney in 2012, LFDF was envisioned as a live music showcase for Lawrence residents while University of Kansas was on summer break. Of course, students are welcome at LFDF, but the environment on Mass Avenue is different, in a good way, when there are about twenty-thousand fewer people clogging up the joint.
And, fewer students is the first reason you should attend. If you’ve had prior experiences in downtown Lawrence in which it took you five minutes to drive one block, or you’ve ended up parking 4 streets over, or you’ve had your shoes puked on by a drunken frat boy celebrating his 21st, then you really need to come to LFDF. You will finally be able to devote your attention to music.
Another perfect reason to attend is the cost. It sounds almost unbelievable, but you can get a wristband with 3-day access to five venues and sixty bands for only $15. So far this summer, I’ve heard of no festival offering so much music for such a low price. And the great music is the other best reason to attend.
Lawrence Field Day Fest has featured several genres of music, but there is an undeniable focus on rock, and secondarily on hip-hop. Although Lawrence and Kansas City are well-represented, this year’s fest is pulling in talent from Denver, St. Louis, Minneapolis, and other cities. Let’s do a look and listen on some of this year’s bands.
Truck Stop Love will make a visit from the past. The early-90s rockers are back after a 25-year hiatus and a couple of personnel changes. Known for their county fuzz rock, the Manhattan, KS band hits the Bottleneck for the Black Site Records Showcase on Saturday at 11 pm.
If you missed Bruiser Queen when they played the Riot Room in Kansas City back in March, you’ll have an opportunity to take in some good indie garage pop from the St. Louis two-piece. Just show up at Jackpot Music Hall at 9:15 pm on Friday.
The Ghoulies want to show you punk rock with a bluesy, garage feel. Adding an organ to the mix only amps up the excitement for this Denver band that’s been busy touring all summer. See them at the Replay Lounge on Saturday at 11:45 pm.
The Bottleneck has been involved in LFDF since the inception, and will have about 20 acts during the Fest. Don’t miss metal rockers Hyborian of Kansas City at 12:15 am Friday night. Bringing a mystical and sci-fi vibe to metal, Hyborian built their own studio in the West Bottoms.
The immutable laws of physics will prevent you from seeing the complete sets of all 60+ bands at LFDF, but some of the other acts that I’ll make a point to see this weekend are The Uncouth, Westerners, Momma’s Boy, Headlight Rivals, The Sluts, The Goodbye Sort, Vigil and Thieves, and Stiff Middle Fingers.
On June 7th, Dropkick Murphys and Flogging Molly entertained the masses on a warm summer-like evening in Bonner Springs, Kansas. Photographer Ashleigh Lee was on-hand to get us a glimpse into the madness.
On May 22nd, the legendary punk rock band Hawthorne Heights made an incredible appearance at The Granada in Lawrence, Kansas. Photographer Ashleigh Lee was on hand to nab some of our favorite moments.