Pat McGee Band

Three of the Five members of the Pat McGee band rock'n rolled through the queen city friday night. The Visulite hosted Pat McGee, Brian Fechino & Chardy McEwan and in turn they provided the Charlotte crowd with a fantastic night of music and entertainment. Engaging the crowd as usual Pat joined in the festivities as at least one groom-to-be celebrated his bachelor party.

A few photos from the show can be seen at this link.

Cheers,

Monty Chandler

The Stellas

I find that one of the challenges with living in a city that has such a wide and diverse musical scene is that it is difficult, if not impossible, to get out to see all of the talent that you want to catch up with.

I have been hearing about a Charlotte Rock-n-roll band named The Stellas for quite some time now but it seems that we have never been in the same place at the same time. Saturday night was another of those times. I was at The Evening Muse in the NoDa part of town and The Stellas were at the Tremont Musica Hall in downtown Charlotte. A couple of the ladies from Triple S Bookings were also at The Evening Muse and told me about the Stellas show. They made the case that it would not be difficult to bridge that gap.

So all of this is simply the backdrop as to how I finally made the physical connection with The Stellas. As an old guy, I have grown up with rock-n-roll and certainly was interested in filling the void between what I had heard about and what I had yet to see. The Stellas are a full on rock band, with a huge amount of energy. To be honest I felt like I was in a pub in London listening to the Euro sound of rock-n-roll. I'd encourage you to visit their Myspace page and have a listen to a few of their tunes.


To see photos from their show visit this link. Hope you enjoy.


Cheers,


Monty

Ken Peltier Band, w/Brook Faulk

My previous comments about Melissa Mitchell not withstanding, by far the most enjoyable band I had the pleasure of seeing perform during my travels in Alaska was the Ken Peltier Band with featured guest singer Brook Faulk. This group has a great country sound with a very capable blues ability as well.

What struck me was the family feel this band has within itself and with the people who come to watch them perform. Intimate is a great word which describes the atmosphere they create and their audience relationship.

I saw this group perform at the Alaska State Fair in Palmer, AK as well as at Eddies Underground in Anchorage. Both venues were packed with fans of this band - and the dance floor was festive and hopping!

The musical ability of every member of the band is outstanding. The musical leader of the band is drummer Mike Lashbrook. Mike does an excellent job keeping time and rhythm, but also has an excellent voice and sings lead on a number of popular tunes. Bonnie Thayer plays Bass and provides back-up vocal support, but on occasion she takes the vocal lead. Doug McCullough plays a very smooth lead guitar and excels at everything from country twang to a driving blues lead that will melt your heart. Of course the founder of the band, acoustic guitar player and lead singer is none other than Ken Peltier. Ken is one of those singers that can emulate many great country singers sound as well as croon his own tunes to make a young womans heart flutter as well as fill the dance floor with two-steppers and line dancers.

On both occasions in which I had the opportunity to see the band perform I was blessed with an incredible addition by the name of Brook Faulk. Brook is a beautiful woman with a powerful, yet sultry, voice with the range to carry a blues song home and the touch of a country singer which will bring a tear to your eye. Brook has an stunning stage presence and a lovely voice capable of mind blowing musical diversity. Brook told me that she will be touring the lower 48 sometimes towards the end of this year, so keep an eye out for this budding star.

Another Alaskan icon is a singer/songwriter named Hobo Jim Varsos. Hobo Jim performs routinely with the Ken Peltier band at various shows around the state. Jim is a true Alaskan troubadour. A few photos from his set at Eddies Underground can be seen via this link.

Photos from both Ken Peltier Band shows I saw can be seen via this link.

Ken Peltier's Myspace link is here.

Brook Faulk's Myspace link is here.

Cheers,

Monty Chandler

Homegrown, Featuring Melissa Mitchell

As I traveled around Alaska late summer I managed to see a few bands and photograph some shows. I am a huge fan of singer/songwriters who are creating unique music all their own. To this end I only purchased one CD and that was Melissa Mitchell's "Alma". Melissa has a beautifully powerful voice with unique lyrics that tell her story and will touch your soul.

I'd encourage you to look this band up on myspace to have a listen for yourself. I'm sure you will agree that this is a very talented lady whose music is a welcome addition to your collection.

Click here to view the photos from the Homegrown show featuring Melissa Mitchell.

Cheers,

Monty Chandler

Johnny Utah Band

The Johnny Utah Band performed at the Alaska State Fair August 27th 2008. A band local to the Anchorage area, they performed rock cover music which was entertaining.

A local lead guitar player named Dan Lesperance really held the band together with his riveting abilities to make a guitar sing. Hopefully the young musicians in the Johnny Utah band will learn from Dans' tutoring and professional example and continue to chase the dream.

Click here to see the images from the performance of the Johnny Utah Band.



Cheers,



Monty