Saturday, May 5th, we’ll be hosting Allen Clapp & his Orchestra, Arts & Leisure, and Knock Knock here at Bows!
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Allen Clapp right here at Bows!
Allen Clapp has been recording music with Allen Clapp and his Orchestra since the 90s, but he was also a part of well known band The Orange Peels, which he started with his wife Jill. He recently came out with a new album, “Mixed Greens”. This will be the second time he’s played at Bows. Allen Clapp and his Orchestra doesn’t fit into a specific genre; Clapp described himself as more of a fan of songs than bands. “My style is kind of the style of a songwriter who communicates feelings and ideas through different styles of song forms — and that means my records are usually pretty eclectic,” he said. “I’ve always been kind of fascinated by west-coast pop music from the 60s and 70s, so that’s a major influence, and British pop from the 60s through the 80s, including the early Indie-Pop movement, largely on the Sarah Records catalog and the Bus Stop Label and the like.”
For “Mixed Greens”, Allen’s influences were similarly varied–everything from Bob Dylan to Eurodisco. He’s also the president of a boutique record label called Mystery Lawn music, which he started as a way to help bands put out records they recorded at his studio (Mystery Lawn Studio). “The plan now is to buy a big bus, convert it to biodiesel, and take all the Mystery Lawn bands on a big Motown-style tour this summer,” he said. “Stay tuned!”
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Arts & Leisure
Arts & Leisure, created by three former members of Baby Grand, began a little over a year ago, but they haven’t played many shows since then. “It seemed appropriate after so many years and so many line-up changes to just start fresh,” said band member Cory Vick, “hit the reset button and see what happens.” Arts & Leisure’s style is along the same lines as Baby Grand (60s pop, 70s power pop, 80s new wave, and 90s shoegaze), but as bandmember Cory Vick said, they “dumbed it down”. In other words, they stripped down to the basics–two guitars, bass, and drums–but included two singer/songwriters. Cory described Arts & Leisure’s sound as “Dream-Gaze-Go-Go-Pop (Show Glam)”.
Arts & Leisure is currently working on their first full length album at Stoney Ridge that they hope to have out by the end of this year.
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Knock Knock
Knock Knock is a self-described “brand new exciting band”–they’ve been around since about 1999, and since then their sound has changed a bit. “I’d like to think of us as an indie band that wants to write classic rock songs,” said band member Allen. “We have lots of influences but the way I’d like people to think of it is somewhere between The Talking Heads and The Everley Brothers. However, to be realistic, we are leaning towards more of a power pop thing lately, so Big Star, Tom Petty and the Replacements might be more of our sound.”
Knock Knock has come out with three albums total: ”Warm Fronts, Cold Shoulders”, “Girls on the Run”, and most recently, “We Will Raise Your Child”. “The new album has been very well received in the News and Review and Midtown Monthly,” said Allen. “It’s been played on local radio and was recently heard blasting out of a house around the neighborhood of 26th and F.” The band plans to release a single next, but Allen said they work “slooooooooooooowly.”
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Show starts at 8
$5 Door Charge
RSVP to the Facebook Event Here.
