Andy Frasco, a twenty-three year old blues/jazz musician hailing from the San Fernando Valley in Southern California, is nothing short of an enigma. Influenced by Damien Rice, Sam Cooke, Professor Longhair, Van Morrison and Tom Waits, Frasco’s style is as uninhibited as those artists who inspire him. Let’s call it Party Blues. He has jammed with artists such as Leon Russell, Galactic, Jakob Dylan, Pretty Lights, Butch Walker, The Flobots, Spill Canvas, Suburban Legends, Nural, Tyler Hilton, & John Mayer. Joining him is his band the UN with Ernie Chang – Saxophone, Chris Lorentz – Bass, Neal Daniels – Drums, and Shawn Eckels – Guitar.

Opener: Mandatory Air with the Miller Sisters

Bouncing from indie folk to art rock to experimental folk before settling into a rich, dusty brand of Neil Young-inspired alt country, Blitzen Trapper is a band you don’t want to miss. The band formed in 2000 in Portland, Oregon, with songwriter Eric Earley leading a lineup that also included Erik Menteer (guitar, keyboard), Brian Adrian Koch (drums, vocals), Michael Van Pelt (bass), Drew Laughery (keyboard), and Marty Marquis (keyboard, vocals). Blitzen Trapper reaches back to ’70s country and Southern rock influences without losing their contemporary appeal. Sure to be a pleaser!

Opener: The Shook Twins

Joe Lewis and his six bandmates churn a slab of rock & roll, blues and funk, laced with a double shot of 100-proof punkitude. Growing up in Austin and Round Rock, Joe took it all in—Delta and Chicago blues, Memphis soul, Detroit garage punk—and what came out the other end was, and is, unlike anything else out there. “I don’t know, man—I just kinda dove into it,” Lewis continues. “These neighbors of mine were in this country band and they got to go on tour all the time, and I had to go to work in this stupid factory. I was like, ‘Man, I gotta get in on that.’ So I pulled a guitar down off the wall of a pawn shop where I was workin’ at the time and learned stuff as I went along. The people I was playing with wanted to practice all the time, and I was like, ‘No, man, let’s get out there—I wanna try to do this.’ I pretty much learned on stage.”

Opener: Jet Black Ninja Funkgrass Unit

Aside from the band’s marching band themed costumes, percussion corps and brass, M4 is far from a “marching band” in any traditional sense (though the band has been known to parade down Main Street before taking the stage). M4 is anchored by funky electric bass, and has been evolving into a more guitar- and vocal-driven musical experience. In one 90-minute set the band will take you on a journey from the swamps of Louisiana to the gypsy camps of eastern Europe to the African jungle by way of Brazil, along the way stopping to sample the deepest grooves of the best of American funk, rock, jazz and boiling it all together in cinematic fashion with high-stepping stilt-acrobatics and sexy dancers. This genre-busting approach is usually the territory of DJs, but this band is real people making music and art in real time—and every show is different. M4 is akin to a team sport with a roster of nearly 30 performers to choose from, though the band tours with approximately 8 horns, 5 drummers, bass, guitar, and 5 dancers/stiltwalkers.

Opener: Scott McDougall

It’s not just great song writing, warm guitars, a nut-tight rhythm section, and the occasional blues harp riffs that make The Stone Foxes’ so good; the Bay Area band consisting of brothers Shannon and Spence Koehler, and Aaron Mort have captured something else on their recordings and live shows that makes them huge, and very, very cool. While The Stone Foxes may be influenced by the greats of the late 60s and early 70s like The Band, Bob Dylan, and Led Zeppelin, they never sound like they’re trying to be anything but exactly who they are. But then they don’t need to: their style of blues-rock stands on its own.

Opener: Alta Boys

Rosie Ledet & The Zydeco Playboys have quickly become the act to watch on the zydeco circuit. Brimming with coy sensuality, Rosie’s music is fresh and daring while still retaining its links to its bayou Creole heritage. Rosie has a rare combination of talent, not only in the zydeco world, but in any musical genre. She can write top-notch award winning songs, hang with the best of them on her instrument, and can sing circles around her peers. Rosie is among the few zydeco artists who still sing and write some of their own material in Creole French.

Opener: Random Canyon Growlers

Rodriguez’ journey from teenage violin student to touring the world with the likes of Chip Taylor (famed songwriter of “Wild Thing), Lucinda Williams and Alejandro Escovedo, has resulted in a prodigious output of recordings – eight albums in as many years. Carrie brings incredible talent, energy, and entertainment to the stage. A joy for all!

Opener: Bluegrass Camp All-Stars

Seamlessly blending their rock and Celtic influences into a high energy, anthemic and lyrically poignant mix, the band whose lineup since 2002 includes co-founder Keith Roberts (vocals, guitar), fellow Dubliner Brendan Holmes (bass, vocals), American-born members Bob Boulding (guitar, vocals), Chas Waltz (violin, keyboards, harp, mandolin, vocals) and Dave Ingraham (drums, percussion)—jumps energetically from ballad to barn burner, documenting as they go the vibrant yet chaotic world they find themselves in.

Opener: Elk Attack