Have A Buzz-Worthy Weekend at This Honey Bee-Themed Arts Fest
Dally in the Alley, French Method, Sugar Candy Mountain and other music and arts shows the weekend of Sept. 6 and 7.
Welcome to “Milo Minute,” the 60 seconds (or thereabouts) you need to find a local show or fest to attend this weekend. And we mean ‘local.’
Longtime Detroit music journalist Jeff Milo has been plugging ears into the Detroit scene for years with his prolific Deep Cutz blog and his YouTube series, “The Milo Show.” Here, he gives us his rundown for what music to catch this weekend that isn’t… uh… playing Little Caesars Arena, if you catch our vibe.
This week: A honeybee festival, Dally in the Alley and some local shows.
Click on the player to hear Jeff Milo highlight his top local shows for the weekend.
Friday, Sept. 6
Festival of the Honeybee
Who’s playing: This is the Festival of the Honey Bee, a 7-year-running city-wide celebration of those magnificent pollinators, with bee-friendly art vendors and demonstrations, along with art, music and educational activities for all ages. Soul-rock ensemble Dani Darling are going to be performing, led by Dani Darling, as well as Kristianna & the DayNites.
Sample track: Here are Kristianna & the DayNites “Cherry Blossom“
French Method at UFO Factory
Who’s playing: French Method aren’t your typical pop-rock band, they’ve got a lot of personality and are mixing things up with some saxophone and some organ, and leaving the guitar at home.
Sounds like: If you’ve been following the scene for 5 years, then you’ve seen these faces and heard these voices. You’ve also probably heard of another eclectic songwriter known as John Ill, or Johnny Ill, the namesake of the guitarist and singer who leads an ensemble of players from the indie and punk realms.
Sample track: This is French Method with “Are You Alone”
Saturday, Sept. 7
Dally in the Alley
Who’s playing: Dally in the Alley is an all-time favorite of mine. It’s Detroit’s largest annual community festival and it’s hosted in the Cass Corridor district, contained between 2nd and 3rd Avenue. Vendors of art and food will be spread throughout this square of streets and alleys with three stages featuring live music all day long, rain or shine.
Sounds like: The lineup includes Leaf Erikson, Dani Darling, Crimson Alchemist, The Muggs, The Stools, Tony Nova, Jibs Brown and the Jambros, and many more.
Jemmi Hazeman & the Honey Riders, Sugar Candy Mountain at PJs Lager House
Who’s playing: Jemmi Hazeman & the Honey Riders are a vibe-heavy, super-catchy ambient psychedelic rock group that really has a knack for grooves and soaring choruses, with some dazzling spacey effects. They’re opening for a California band called Sugar Candy Mountain, touring into town.
Sounds like: Sugar Candy Mountain intriguingly name-check both the tropicalia pioneers Os Mutantes and pop-genius Brian Wilson in their bio, so that definitely entices me.
Sample track: Here’s a song from Jemmi Hazeman called “Nebula.”
