By Chip Chandler — Digital Content Producer
Memorial Day weekend will be tune-filled one, with visits by some hot touring bands and a celebration of some of Amarillo’s best original bands. Plus, the outdoor concert season kicks off Tuesday. Read on for tips on where to go and who to hear.
Kimberly Dunn
Texas singer Kimberly Dunn just hit town two weekends ago for an outdoor concert at Midnight Rodeo with Aaron Watson, but she’s excited to be back again so soon for a 10 p.m. show today at Hoot’s Pub, 2424 Hobbs Road .
“I love Amarillo. I’m not lying when I say that. I say that about some cities, but I really mean it about Amarillo,” Dunn said.
She’s also excited that she’s showing off a new sound with “High Horse,” the debut single from her upcoming album.
“The whole tune itself — words and music and all — is a really great representation of the new record,” Dunn said. “It’s really polished and electric.”
It’s not necessarily a new direction, she said, but “just more in line with who I am.”
She made her breakthrough with “Randy Rogers,” a song celebrating Texas country, but her new album will explore new sounds: “country music, rock and pop — all the corners of my musical inspirations growing up.”
“’Randy Rogers’ was to honor that part of my life, but I’m just going to stay honest to myself,” Dunn said. “I’m doing something I really, really feel good about.”
Cover is $8. Opening act is The Colton O’Neill Band.
Bad Magik Musik Festival
Head to Sam Houston Park on Saturday for a great sampler of some of the best original music being produced in Amarillo these days.
The Bad Magik Musik Festival runs from noon to 9 p.m. Saturday at the park, Line Avenue and Western St., a free party featuring some of the city’s top acts.
“We have jazz, indie music, we have folk, bluesy stuff – all the music that Sixth Street has to offer,” organizer Courtney Brown said. “The best of the best are going to be out there.”
- Noon: Juliard Jazz Dropouts
- 12:45 p.m.: City Will Shake
- 1:30 p.m.: Golden Spread
- 2:30 p.m.: The Foxfire Experiment
- 3:30 p.m.: Shandy Bandits
- 4:30 p.m.: Ray Wilson
- 5:30 p.m.: Maggie Burt
- 6:15 p.m.: Playa Lake
- 7 p.m.: Eddie & The Eat
- 8:15 p.m.: Mount Ivy
Music will be staged on the park’s stage, with vendors like Heroine Vintage, Rag & Bone Antiques, Game Quest and more selling items. Food will be available from Shi Lee’s Barbecue & Soul Food, Scratch Made Bakery & Café and Radical Ice.
Amarillo Botanical Gardens
Sadie’s Rangers — who'll soon release new album Carnival — will kick off the Amarillo Botanical Gardens’ summer music series at 7 p.m. June 2; doors open at 6 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors and free for garden members and children ages 12 or younger.
Austin’s Texas Pub
Amarillo country band Danny Ruiz & Gypsy Renegade will play at 10 p.m. Friday at the pub, 3121 S.W. Sixth Ave., followed by fellow local act Cory Mangum & The Damn Outlaws at 10 p.m. Saturday. Cover is $5 each night.
The 806
Austin-based experimental band Gold Leather will play at 9 p.m. Saturday at the coffee shop, 2812 S.W. Sixth Ave. Punk-country singer Stephen Lee will hit town for a 9 p.m. Monday show; look for my interview with Lee on Monday morning. And electro band Trouble in the Streets will play at 9 p.m. Wednesday. Shows are free, but donations are accepted.
575 Pizzeria
Folk singer Andy Chase performs at 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays at the local pizza franchise’s original location, 2803 Civic Circle.
Golden Light Cantina
Amarillo rock band City Will Shake will shake the walls of the cantina, 2906 S.W. Sixth Ave, at 10 p.m. Friday; cover is $8. Ameripolitan king Dale Watson will play at 10 p.m. Saturday; cover is $15 — and don't miss my interview with him. And Amarillo metal band Magi (f/k/a The Smeaton Brothers Band) will play at 10 p.m. June 2; cover is $5.
High Noon on the Square
Folk singer Andy Chase kicks off Center City of Amarillo’s summer series at noon Wednesday on the lawn of the Potter County Courthouse, Sixth Avenue and Tyler Street in downtown Amarillo. Lunch service begins at 11:45 a.m. with hamburgers from Youngblood’s Café; lunch is $8, but the music is free.
Hoot’s Pub
In addition to Kimberly Dunn (see above) on Friday, the pub, 2424 S. Hobbs St., will host The Funky Junkies and Dave Regal in a 10 p.m. Saturday show that’s also a birthday party for bartender and musician Cameron Heard; cover is $7. And the Old 97s, the Americana greats, will return to town for a 10 p.m. June 2 show; cover is $15 in advance and $20 day of show.
Leftwood’s
Some of Amarillo’s grooviest musicians — Mount Ivy and Dave Regal — will team up for a 10 p.m. Friday show at the now-nonsmoking bar, 2511 S.W. Sixth Ave.; cover is $5. Then, at 10 p.m. Saturday, a blast of Austin weirdness rolls into town with the return of Beat Bodega, featuring Amarillo native Sam Quattlebaum; cover is $5. And finally, Texas rock band Mothership flies back in for a 10 p.m. June 2 show; cover is $5.
Midnight Rodeo
Neo-traditionalist Case Hardin will play the club, 4400 S. Georgia St., at 9 p.m. Saturday. Cover is $6 for ages 21 and older or $10 for ages 18 to 20. The club also kicks off its Summer Teen Nights dance parties at 7 p.m. Sunday; cover is $8 for ages 13 to 18. No adults and no liquor are allowed.
Palace Coffee Co.
Amarillo jazz musicians Jim Laughlin, Mark Cota, Christie Echols and Benny Boy Hilton will play at 8:30 p.m. Friday at the downtown Amarillo location, 817 S. Polk St. The show is free, but donations are accepted.
Smokey Joe’s
Da Boogiemen will play the 6th Street restaurant, 2903 S.W. Sixth Ave., at 8 p.m. Friday. Then, Mesquite County will perform one of its last shows at 8 p.m. Saturday. No cover for either night.
Skooterz
Amarillo rockers Mustard will host a Memorial Rock Fest at 8 p.m. Saturday at the biker bar, 4100 Bushland Blvd. Dallas metal band Among the Ruin will open, followed by Amarillo rock band Boss 420 at 10 and Mustard at midnight. Cover is $6.
Starlight Theatre
The first of the year’s Sounds of the Season concerts kicks off with Mason Jar & The Shine Brothers at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Sam Houston Park, Line Avenue and Western Street. Admission is free.
Wild Bill’s Fillin’ Station
Lubbock singer-songwriter Dave Martinez will play at 6:30 p.m. Friday at the burger joint, 3514 S.W. Sixth Ave.
Open mics
Maggie Burt hosts an open jam at 9 p.m. Tuesdays at Hoot’s Pub. …Trent Britten hosts at 8 p.m. Tuesdays at Sixth Street Saloon, 609 S. Independence St. … Thomas Thompson hosts an open-mic night at 9 p.m. on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month at The 806, 2812 S.W. Sixth Ave. … Mike Chism and Lee Scheetz host open mic nights at 9 p.m. Wednesdays at Whiskey River, 4001 S.W. 51st Ave. … Clint Culwell hosts open mics at 9 p.m. Thursdays at Austin’s Texas Pub.
(Thanks to Amarillo Music Scene on Facebook for help in compiling these. Check there for daily updates.)
Chip Chandler is a digital content producer for Panhandle PBS. He can be contacted at Chip.Chandler@actx.edu, at @chipchandler1 on Twitter and at www.facebook.com/chipchandlerwriter on Facebook.
