Katie Lafond: Press

I'm With The Band: Thoughts For Food preview

ByPaddy Fineran

Not a tough column to write this week. At least I don't have to search all over trying to figure out who's performing where. There's probably more going on this weekend but everything is pretty much revolving around one event. Why's that? Well, let's look at some numbers. Over the years More than 500 bands, solo artists and duo acts, tens of thousands of live music lovers in the audience, dozens of versions of Mustang Sally, more than $330,000 and 85,000 pounds of food donated, several new chances every year to find a new favorite artist, enough cans of condensed chicken noodle soup to build the great wall of Racine and a dozen or so Kosterman family reunions. It's Thoughts For Food time.

Let's look at the numbers for this year. There will be 40 acts performing on 10 stages for the main event Saturday along with another eight bands hitting the All-Ages stage on Friday. That kind of stuff keeps Thoughts as the unofficial number one beer party with music for food party on one night (sorry, no beer at the All-Ages show) in the Midwest. Seriously, 40 acts on one night and all it costs you is $10 and two or more nonperishable food items. The All-Ages show costs you only $5 and two or more nonperishable food items.

Thoughts is such a unique event because it doesn't focus on anything in particular. It's not a jazz festival but it has jazz (Lake Effect). It's not a blues festival but has the blues and R&B music of bands like Mean Jake , Pavlik, Stellmann & Martin and Roy Edwards. It wouldn't be Racine if there weren't rock bands hitting the various stages including Gypsy Creed, Hwy13, EZ Livn', Full Flavor, Andes, Fell Boyzs (file also under funk, R&B), Rude Rooster and 89 Mojo. Of course there are plenty (too many to mention) Hits bands, aka cover bands. The area's hottest genre is acoustic/Americana/Front Porch and the multi-venue benefit concert has some good ones there as well including my favorite four-and-two-third piece roots revivalists the Saturday Night Preachers. Power pop heroes Feet of Clay may have had to pull out due to circumstances beyond their control but Looming Larger and Hey Alright are more than capable of stepping up. If you want a big party band check out Fun Factory and Root River Band. The singer/songwriters on the bill like Jill Plaisted, Zachary Scot Johnson and John Bowen serve up more intimate performances. There's also an AC/DC Tribute band called Razor's Edge, the instrumental rock band Lyden Moon featuring a guitarist called one of the best in the world by none other than guitar freak Michael Angelo Batio, beloved local favorites like Untrained Laymen and some cats in green attire called The Ecolimes. I know I've missed some and I'm sorry but there're so darn many of you.

I'll be honest. I like the All-Ages show almost as much as the mammoth 21+ event mainly because it's mostly brand new music for me. My favorite of the eight acts would have to be 17-year-old talented ,well beyond her years singer/songwriter Katie Lafond. Also at the All-Ages stage at the YMCA will bepop/punk acts This Day and Age, Zero The Hero and Just Getting By, alternative acts Wench and Illuminate and Metal acts Of Apollo and Ocellus. Not bad, huh?

Well there's actually more. Thoughts For Food committee member JJ McAuliffe is hosting another pre-party bash at his southside club the night before the main event. Singer/songwriter Nate Davis, comedic musician Billy Orphan and the Smiler Grogan Case, the jazz band not the tuna factory robbery (look it up) will all be donating music for the cause. Orphan is excellent at writing funny songs as well as coming up with tremendous mash-ups. I'm a big fan of his putting the lyrics of the Who's "Pinball Wizard" to the music of John Cash's "Folsum Prison Blues."

The unofficial Thoughts For Food pre-party is Friday, March 4, at McAuliffe's Pub, 3700 Meachem Road.

The Thoughts For Food All-Ages show is 5:30-10:30 p.m. Friday, March 4, at YMCA, 725 Lake Ave.

Thoughts For Food is 7 p.m-close at nine venues in the River North area mainly on or just off Main Street north of the bridge. Details are at thoughtsforfood.org

A WAMI nomination!