Weekend of local rock volume 39

You should have received a sampling of these bands last night on my FNV episode (well, 2 of the 3 anyway.) But here’s my rundown of Third Friday’s music. The stated intention of this month’s edition of 3F was to feature female-fronted bands.

One thing about attending an event such as this was that all three bands were playing at the same time, so I could only sample some of each. I’ll work in this case from east to west geographically, and since Pugsly was situated down East Main Street they’ll go first.

In watching and listening to the group briefly, one thing I liked about Pugsly is that they don’t forget the bass. Maybe it was the sound mix, but this group almost seems like they have a lead bass rather than a guitar. Their sound carried well down the street.

They also have a sense of humor, which is good for a stage presence. It was kind of a shame they drew the worst spot for their setup because not many people traveled down Main Street to watch them play.

Moving down to the courthouse, we found Semiblind. They are a versatile, veteran group which has the advantage of being able to play in two configurations. They started out as an acoustic duo…

…then transitioned to their normal ‘electric’ lineup once the bassist and drummer arrived.

Anyone who knows me knows I’m part of an unofficial fan club for the group. But one can’t argue with their success and hard work because Semiblind in its various configurations is in demand and playing practically every weekend this summer all over Delmarva, from Chincoteague to Stevensville. And while they do sprinkle in originals from time to time, the songs I heard last week were classic rockers they placed their stamp on.

Meanwhile, on the Plaza itself the all-female group The Zen Monkeys held court.

As you may be able to tell by the sheer number of instruments on stage, these ladies perform a very eclectic mix of original songs – in fact, in the times I looked on they didn’t use the drums. That’s pretty unusual for a rock band, but so is using a washboard as they did on one song. Suffice to say, The Zen Monkeys are difficult to categorize. They would have probably been at home on the Flavors stage.

But I’m still not done, even though I’ve covered the three ‘official’ bands. These two guys were playing jazz down at the west end of the Plaza.

They weren’t part of the bill because they’re not female, but one thing I’ve noticed about 3F is that things aren’t necessarily planned or scripted. Two guys want to show up and play a little jazz? More power to them; just keep a little distance apart so you’re not playing on top of each other.

Certainly on the third Friday in July there will be music downtown of some sort. Come on down and enjoy.