For those of you not in the know, the Blowout is a 4-day fest of local Detroit music. Held primarily in the enclave of depravity we call Hamtramck, the Blowout features 200 bands in 15 venues, all generally within walking distance (there's also a tram for slackers). Admission is $20 for a weekend wristband that get you into any and all participating venues. The weather usually sucks but it is always a good time nonetheless.
Obviously, it is impossible to see everything so I've taken the liberty of making some suggestions for each night. With so many cool bands to see, you're gonna have to make some tough decisions but I've tried to narrow it down a bit for ya.
Wednesday, March 3: Pre-party
Held at the Majestic Complex, the pre-party (otherwise known as the Schmoozefest) is a showcase of bands the folks at MT have decided are "representative" of the past year's MT coverage. Two bands worth braving the schmooziola are The Displays (straight up rawk ala Sights) and Chapstik (face-melting heavy ROCK). Both bands are playing the Magic Stick big stage at 12 & 12:45, respectively.
Thursday, March 4
In my opinion, the Thursday lineup tends to be weak and I usually need a day to recover from the schmooze, but here are a handful of bands you might want to catch:
SNAKEWING (Small's 8:40), INVADER (Small's 10:40), THE CROOKS(Painted Lady 10:20), BLACK IRISH (Painted Lady 11:20), THE PHAGE (New Dodge 11pm) & 60 SECOND CRUSH (New Dodge @ Midnight), THE HADITUPTOHERES (Belmont @ Midnight) and Fur (Atlas Bar @ Midnight).
Friday, March 5
This is a night of tough choices because all the good bands seem to be playing around the same time so I've narrowed it down by venue. You might want to pick one and just park it.
G OF C HALL (Formerly K of C): GOREVETTE (11pm) & DETROIT COBRAS (1am)
New Dodge: THE SIGHTS (Midnight) & THE HARD LESSONS (1am)
Small's: WOLFBAIT (11:40pm) & BLUE SNAGGLETOOTH (12:40am)
Painted Lady: THE SWAMP SISTERS (10:20pm)
Saturday, March 6
Last night of the Blowout always reminds me of the last hours of Mardi Gras...So make the most of it, it'll be a whole year before it comes back around. Cheers!
New Dodge: The Mydols @ 9:20pm.
***Small's: Shakey Jakes @ 11:40pm. Do yourself a favor and go see them, seriously.
Paycheck's: DUENDE! (10:20pm) & THE BEGGARS (12:20)
Or just head to the G of C Hall for what I've dubbed the "Hipster Showcase": CHILD BITE (11pm), SILVERGHOST (Midnight) & MILLIONS OF BRAZILIANS @1am.
If you don't want to take my word for it, here's the full schedule.
XXX~Elizabitch
