The free weekend concerts will include performances by local favorites Ernie Johnson From Detroit and Strange Mechanics, plus touring artists GA-20 and Neal Francis, who both record for an imprint of Loveland-based Colemine Records
Boston Blues exploders GA-20Photo: John O’DonnellBlue Ash’s Fretboard Brewing Company turns 2 this year and to celebrate, the music-themed brewery/brewpub is throwing a big weekend music bash. Naturally.
“This adventure is about the beautiful harmony between music and beer,” reads part of Fretboard’s mission statement on Facebook, and since opening, it has presented weekly live shows primarily featuring artists from Greater Cincinnati’s rich music scene, all without a cover charge.
Fretboard has also brewed up some tasty beers, of course, with music also playing a role. There have been music-themed brews like Reba (a “Strawberry Blonde” ale) and Crazy Train (a Belgian pale ale). They’ve even collaborated with Cincinnati’s biggest musical export, Bootsy Collins, for whom they created an India pale ale called the Bootsy Brewski IPA (with some proceeds going to the Bootsy Collins Foundation).
This weekend’s (Nov. 8 and 9) second-anniversary shindig will kick off Friday with a pair of popular local acts — Funk/Jam group Strange Mechanics and AfroBeat/Funk collective Ernie Johnson From Detroit.
On Saturday, two touring acts who record for Karma Chief Records — the eclectic off-shoot imprint of renowned Loveland-based Soul label Colemine Records.
With a vintage sound shaped by avowed influences like Dr. John, Leon Russell, Allen Toussaint, The Meters, The Band and Billy Preston, Neal Francis has spent the past couple of years working toward the release of new music and building a crack 10-piece backing band. Last year, the former member of Chicago Funk act The Heard completed work in L.A. and Chicago on his debut solo album, Changes, which Karma Chief issued in September.
Francis’ labelmates GA-20 (from the Boston area) round out Saturday’s lineup at Fretboard.
Unlike the vast majority of contemporary Blues acts, in their songwriting and recording, GA-20 deftly captures the vintage grit of classic Blues and R&B records. That kind of sepia-toned recording process draws the ear closer — it’s one thing to be influenced by the early records of Buddy Guy and Otis Rush, but it’s another thing to accurately convey a soulfulness similar to that dripping from those artists’ seminal releases. The spot-free magic of modern recording technology has its advantages, but it’s also capable of sanitizing to the point of ruin.
That’s not a problem for GA-20’s Matthew Stubbs and Pat Faherty, as they show on their fantastic debut album, Lonely Soul. The twosome’s sound is heavy, raw and perfectly sparse — the tracks on Lonely Soul are full-bodied but only feature their guitar work, Faherty’s vocals, a studio drummer and a few special guests, including Luther Dickinson on slide guitar and some harmonica from Charlie Musselwhite, who Stubbs toured with for more than a decade (he’s also worked with artists like Junior Watson and John Hammond).
Listening to Lonely Soul is an experience akin to hearing the earliest Black Keys recordings — there’s a timelessness in the sound but also an exhilarating contemporary kick of modern verve and swagger.
7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Nov. 8 and 9. Free. Fretboard Brewing, 5800 Creek Road, Blue Ash, fretboardbrewing.com.