Las Vegas Weekly

September 6, 2008 · 1:20 PM

Neon Reverb: Downtown Music Festival Schedule

By Jennifer Grafiada

The Stript is part '80s hair metal, part Sunset Strip glam-punk and a whole lot of classic rock.

If you’ve been feeling deprived of lively local music and cool downtown culture, Neon Reverb is arriving to inject you with a vital dose.

With Vegoose, Las Vegas’ sole large-scale music festival, now defunct, Neon Reverb founders Thirry Harlin and James Woodbridge are on a mission to create their own local music festival and at the same time enliven the streets of Downtown Las Vegas. According to Neon Reverb’s MySpace, they plan to “galvanize downtown Las Vegas as the center of a thriving and growing music scene.” I had thought “galvanize” was synonymous with “pulverize,” so when I read this I imagined a violent overturning of cement, a kind of anarchist revolutionary overthrow. Fortunately, I was wrong. “Galvanize” actually means “to stimulate as if by electric current,” as in the music of these dozens of local (and a few nonlocal) bands are going to reverberate through the streets, bars, lounges and concert venues of our neon city and electrify everyone within earshot.

Band talk with The Clydesdale

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Tickets are available for single concerts ($5-$10), full days ($10-$20), or the entire festival ($50). Bands, which tend toward rock, indie, alternative and folk as well as country-folk (The Clydesdale) and worldbeat, experimental, electronica and indie pop (Pan de Sal), will be performing from Thursday, September 11 until Sunday, September 14 at the Beauty Bar, The Bunkhouse Saloon, Jillian’s and The Brass Lounge. Concert-hopping is encouraged. An end party will be held Sunday night at the Griffin (free admission), with DJs in the backroom.

Country folk band The Clydesdale lists Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash and Led Zepplin among their influences.

Don't be surprised if a Pan de Sal start singing in Tagalog or Portuguese, blowing on a didgeridoo or even hand you a set of maracas so you can participate in the communal musical celebration.

The rockabilly Yeller Bellies can promise you this: "Their songs are familiar as an old friend, yet dangerous and exciting as a new lover. ... And they might save your soul. . . if they don't pawn it to pay off old debts first."

Lips Like Morphine layers synth and keyboard on top of drums and guitar to create their catchy new wave sound.

Grab your friends, a few bucks, a jacket and a drink and quench your thirst for some genuine Vegas cool.

Thursday, September 11

Beauty Bar Schedule:

9 p.m. - The Novelty Act (LV)

9:50 p.m. - Close to Modern (LV)

10:30 p.m. - Quiest-ce Que C'est (QQC from San Diego)

Bunkhouse schedule:

12 a.m. - Mere Mortals (LA)

1 a.m. - I'm the Rabbit(LV)

Friday, September 12

Brass Lounge schedule:

10 p.m. - The Big Friendly Corporation (LV)

10:50 p.m. - The Pacific (LA)

Beauty Bar schedule:

11 p.m. - Louise LeHir (acoustic set) (LV)

1 a.m. - The Silent Comedy (San Diego)

Jillian's Upstairs schedule (18+):

10:30 p.m. - The Opera (LV)

11:30 p.m. - Black Merlin (LV)

Saturday, September 13

Jillian's schedule (all ages):

6:30 p.m. - Val-Halla (LV)

7:15 p.m. - When You Wake (LV)

8 p.m. - Think (LV)

8:45 p.m. - The Stript (LV)

9:30 p.m. - As He Defeats (LV)

Beauty Bar schedule:

10 p.m. - Pan de Sal (LV)

10:50 p.m. - Turboweekend (Denmark)

Brass Lounge schedule:

11:30 p.m. - Lips Like Morphine (LV)

12:15 a.m. - Castaneda (Los Feliz)

The Bunkhouse schedule

12:15 a.m. - Yeller Bellies (LV)

1 a.m. - The Clydesdale (LV)

1:45 a.m. - Dusty Rhodes and the River Band (Anaheim, CA)

Sunday, September 14

The Bunkhouse schedule:

9 p.m. - Army of the Red Sparrow (LV)

9:45 p.m. - Las Vegas Club (LV)

Beauty Bar schedule:

10:30 p.m. - Demasiado (San Diego)

11:15 p.m. - Secret Top Local Band (LV)

11:30 p.m. @ The Griffin - Festival closing party with local DJS in the backroom!

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