Local News Roundup: August 5

Bim Skala Bim who ended an eight year hiatus at the close of 2009 by opening for of the The Mighty Mighty Bosstones’ Hometown Throwdown shows at the House of Blues in December and the headlining a show of their own at the Middle East Downstairs in Cambridge on New Year’s Eve, are back for a weekend of summer fun. The ska veterans will give fans across New England several opportunities to see the band this weekend. Tonight, the band will play Jerky’s Music Gall in Providence. Tomorrow, they’ll return to play the Middle East Downstairs. On Saturday, Bim Skala Bim hits Cape Cod for a show at the Beachcomber in Wellfleet before making their way to Hartford for a show at the Webster Underground on Sunday.

Without a doubt, the most anticipated concert of the summer is the Aerosmith & J.Geils Band “Double Play” show at Fenway Park on Saturday, August 14. The show was given even more local flavor this week when it was announced that Jenny Dee & The Deelinquents will open the show. Of course, the show is completely sold out but if you already got your tickets, be sure to check out the soul favorites on the big stage in centerfield at 5:30 sharp. If you’re looking for a preview or just an excuse for a good night out, you can see the band with Will Dailey & the Rivals this Friday when they rock Boston harbor as part of the Rock & Blues Concert Series. Tickets are $25.

Speaking of local products opening for big stars, TAB the Band (led by Adrian and Tony Perry, sons of Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry), have been tapped to open for the Stone Temple Pilots with Cage The Elephant show at the Bank of America Pavilion on Wednesday, September 1. as well as Slash with Myles Kennedy at the House of Blues on Wednesday, September 15.

A reminder to all local bands that organizers for the Life is good festival, scheduled for September 11 and 12 at Prowse Farm in Canton, are looking for local groups to open the festival. Bands can apply for one of two slots at the festival through Sonicbids. To submit a band for consideration, go to http://sonicbids.com/lifeisgood. The $10.00 submission fee will be completely donated to The Life is good Kids Foundation. Applications will be accepted through the end of today. Don’t miss out on a bill that features Ben Harper and Relentless7, Jason Mraz, Ziggy Marley, Guster and more.

Powered by hit singles “I Hate College” and “Drivin’ Me Crazy”, Cambridge rapper Sam Adams continues to ride a wave of momentum with the release of his debut album, Boston Boy. Between more recording sessions and shows across the country (he’s in California this weekend), Adams has announced a show at Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel in Providence on Tuesday, August 31. Tickets are $17 and on sale now through etix.com. The show will serve as kick-off for a fall tour that will hit many college campuses throughout September.

Precinct and PA’s Lounge are teaming up to throw a big ole party together at both Union Square hot spots this weekend. Dubbed “Deep Heaven Now”, 20 bands till rock the two clubs from 2 p.m. through midnight. Precinct will host Quilt, Chatham Rise, Broken River Prophet, Kuuluuko, Young Adults, Marie Stella, Static of the Gods, Roh Delikat, Sound Pool, Asteroid#4 and 28 Degrees Taurus. PA’s Lounge will host Joe Turner & the 7 Levels, Night Fruit, Telltale, The Vandelles, The Hush Now, MMOSS, Bob Trimble’s Flying Spiders, Abunai! and Doomstar!. Tickets are just $10 for access to both venues.

On your way to the festival of sorts, we recommended checking out the annual Rock & Roll Yard Sale, which will take place in Somerville’s Union Square in 3 to 7 p.m. Here you wil find plenty of goodies from vinyl, memorabilia, apparel and more. There will also be live sets from Sleepyhead, the ‘Mericans, Kickbacks / Tad Overbaugh and Thea Hopkins.

Looking ahead to later in the month, the great folks at Boston Band Crush are once again hosting “One Night Band”. Now in its second year, One Night Band is a day-long music experiment in which 40 selected Boston musicians are randomly shuffled into bands of five on a Saturday morning. The newly formed bands must prepare a four-song set (including one cover) to play that night in front of an audience at the Middle East Downstairs. Tickets for the show are just $10 and all proceeds from the 2010 event will again benefit ZUMIX, a local youth music program whose mission is “Empowered youth, who use music to make strong positive change in their lives, their communities, and the world.” Learn more about the event here and then head over to BBC for more interviews with each of the participating musicians.

One of our biggest gripes about local music on radio has been that three of the Boston’s top radio stations all air their local music programming on the same night at the same time . Thankfully, a slight change is on the way that will allow local music fans the chance to refrain from picking one show, turning the dials frequently or searching for podcast versions later. WFNX has announced that “New England Product” will be replace with a new show called “Boston Accents” that will air from 8 to 10 p.m. on Sundays. The show will continue to feature local music from throughout New England, not just Boston and Dave Duncan will remain as the show’s host. The new show will debut this Sunday, August 8. WZLX’s “Boston Emissions” hosted by Anngelle Wood (formerly on WBCN) and WAAF’s “Bay State Rock” hosted by Carmelita will both continue to air from 10 p.m. to midnight on Sundays. Boston Emissions is also available as a podcast on the WZLX website. All three programs do an excellent job of showing the rich local scene, so support each of them by listening!

And finally, voting for the Third Annual Boston Music Spotlight Battle of the Bands closes at midnight on Friday. Ten bands are competing for five slots: Aston, A Wish For Fire, Jacob Heal Project, Johnny Lingo Band, Kingston 530, One Fine Morning, Red Summer Sun, Streight Angular, Veneer and the Whiskey Poet Band. The top five bands will perform at the Battle on Friday, September 10 at Oliver’s Nightclub with winner receiving a grand prize package worth over $5,000. So, hurry up and vote for your favorite!