Showing posts with label Music in the Park. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Music in the Park. Show all posts

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

AFTERMATH: Sterling Moniker and the Music in Park Series

Last Thursday, I had the pleasure of attending Sterling Moniker’s performance at the Rather Park as a part of the City of Huntsville's Music in the Park Series. It was a nice night for outside music. The air was cool and breezy instead of the normal hot and humid weather we have in Texas 72% of the time throughout the year.

As stated in a previous article, Sterling Moniker consists of five members. You can mostly see them all in the picture below: 
(Miranda Hightower, Charles Herron, DeKeenan Bell, Kevin Lotts (Drums), John Clark) 

(Kevin Lotts--It's hard to take good pictures of drummers, because
 they are usually too cool for the camera and busy ROCKIN' OUT)

I really enjoyed their performance and so did the crowd. Some were even dancing!


Like they informed us before their show, the band played both covers and original songs.  The covers included music by The Beatles, The White Stripes, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Queens of the Stone Age, Franz Ferdinand, and The Cranberries. The original song that they played was called the "Man With No Name." This song was written by Charles Herron and was inspired by Clint Eastwood. I definitely enjoyed it, and would like a follow up song written inspired by Toshiro Mifune.

Miranda was nervous, but she shouldn't have been because she sang beautifully.

(Miranda Hightower and Charles Herron )

DeKeenan was confident on stage and in the crowd. He was nice enough to smile for the camera.
(Nice shirt, DeKeenan!)

Oh, and there WAS a surprise performance by John Clark of a Hootie and the Blowfish song, which we reported as possibly happening in our previous article.
(John Clark singing some Hootie)
I am looking forward to seeing future performances from this band and attending future Music in the Park Thursdays. I am no musical expert, but my ears definitely liked what they heard from the entire band.

One thing I did notice, though, was that the band ran out of songs towards the end of the set and began doing repeats. Nobody minded because it was a chance to hear favorite songs again, but I hope as these Music in the Park Thursdays continue, that the City of Huntsville might consider is having two bands perform, or even just an acoustic opening act for the headlining band. It is hard for any band to handle a two hour set by themselves.

I talked briefly with Kimm Thomas, The Director of Tourism and Cultural Services. She said that that while Music in the Park is going to end for this year in November, it will be back again next February and run throughout the spring. This series will hopefully be a regular event each year.

One of the goals that the City of Huntsville has with the Music in the Park Series is to promote the 2nd Annual Town Creek Music Festival. We wrote about this year’s Town Creek Festival HERE.


This year’s Town Creek Music Festival was a learning experience for the City of Huntsville. Next year’s festival will most likely be in a smaller venue. The location they are currently thinking of is the Town Creek Park behind the City Hall building, because there is already a stage, lighting, etc.  built into that location. All of those things had to be built or set-up at the Eastham-Thomason Park (the location they held the festival at this year).
 
It will also be easier for them to select bands for the festival next year, because they are now working with multiple bands thanks to the Music in the Park Series.  The biggest problem they have is getting the word out that the Music in the Park even exists.
We will do our best to spread the word for both the Music in the Park series and the Town Creek Music Festival, because we love seeing more music venues for local artists. Huntsville has a lot of talented artists, and so it is exciting when there are new venues for them to perform.

Hopefully, Sterling Moniker will perform at the Town Creek Festival next year with even more original songs or even again for the Music in the Park Series. They are definitely a crowd favorite.
Visit our Facebook page HERE to see more pictures from this event.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Music in the Park: Sterling Moniker (Thurs., Oct 6)

Music in the Park: Sterling Moniker
FREE LIVE MUSIC
Thursday, October 6th, 2011 from 6:00pm - 8:00pm
Rather Park
University Avenue and 13th street
(across the street from the First Community Bank)

One of Huntsville's newest bands, Sterling Moniker, will be playing at Rather Park THIS Thursday! There is no charge for this event, and the band will be giving away free demos. Snacks will be on sale. You are encouraged to bring blankets or chairs. 

Sterling Moniker consists of the beautiful Miranda Hightower (vocals / lyrics), Charles  "The Joker" Herron (guitars / lyrics), John Clark (guitars), DeKeenan Bell (bass guitar / funkmaster), and Kevin Lotts (drums). They consider their music to be a combination of blues, alternative, and psychedelic rock revival.  
Photo by Larry Miller
Jess caught up with Miranda last week to talk about the band and their upcoming show. Miranda said she is a little nervous, but we know she and the band will do an excellent job. The band will be playing covers and originals on the 6th. Covers include music by The Beatles, The White Stripes, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Queens of the Stone Age, Franz Ferdinand, and The Cranberries. The original songs are a mixture of genres - alternative, blues, and psychedelic rock.


Miranda's favorite song to play is "Man With No Name." This is a Sterling Moniker original, and you may get to hear it at the show this Thursday. She describes it as a "haunting, soulful song with a 'walking through the desert' feel." The song is about Clint Eastwood, and it was written by Charlie. We can't wait to hear it. 


We also hear that there may be a surprise performance by John that will consist of a Hootie and the Blowfish song, but you didn't hear that from us!

You can listen to their music RIGHT NOW at indiemusichighway.com. Just search for "Sterling Moniker" in the Rock section.  

Click HERE to see the official event page for this event on Facebook.

The unofficial after-party will be at Margarita's with karaoke by Variety Sounds!

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Music in the Park: September Schedule

The Music in the Park series is finally about to start! This program was going to originally run throughout the summer, but was cancelled due to the hot weather (so glad we are finally having nice weather again!). This program will run from September 15, 2011 to November 17, 2011. They are still working on the schedule for October and November, but here is the September Schedule.

Music in the Park: September Schedule
Thursdays from 6:00pm until 8:00pm
FREE EVENT! 

September 15th: Jarrod Sterrett & The Hired Guns
Location: Sam Houston Statue Amphitheater

September 22nd: The Last Great Assault
Location: Rather Park

September 29th: Dog & Kat Show
Location: Jane Monday Amphitheater


For more information contact the City of Huntsville Tourism Department at (936) 291-9726. They may still be seeking local bands to fill in some of the Thursdays in October or November.
(Official Flier)


Wednesday, August 10, 2011

City of Huntsville seeking "Music in the Park" Talent

Are you in a band or know about one that is looking for places to perform in Huntsville?

The City of Huntsville is currently looking for local bands for its upcoming "Music in the Park" series. The City of Huntsville attempted to start the "Music in the Park" series during the summer but decided to push it back until September 15th due to the hotter than normal temperatures this summer has brought. Hopefully, the weather will not get in the way for the September 15th start date. This series will take place every Thursday from that start date until November 17th from 6:00pm until 8:00pm. 

The possible locations include the following:
  • Rather Park
  • Jane Monday Amphitheater
  • Sam Houston Statue Amphitheater 
  • Kate Barr Ross Park
All local artists or bands who are interested in being booked should contact Kimm Thomas at 936-295-5932. Call as soon as possible before all of the dates that are still available are filled by other local artists and groups! Don't be lazy and miss out on this great and most likely easy to book opportunity! 
There are a lot of great bands in this town, and so the "Music in the Park" series will hopefully be very entertaining and feature many talented local artists!