Fan Fair

It’s time again for the annual country music meet-and-greet in which many of Music Row’s biggest stars sign autographs, mug for snapshots and perform for their biggest admirers—the 15,000 to 20,000 genial out-of-towners who’ll be converging on the city this week. Billed as the “World’s Biggest Country Music Festival,” Fan Fair will once again be held downtown, making not just the major label showcases at the Gaylord Entertainment Center and the Adelphia Coliseum more accessible to locals, but the rough-cut country played in the honky-tonks on Lower Broad more inviting to tourists. The Country Music Association and the record labels on the Row do a bang-up job of promoting official events. But among the worthy, lesser-known shows this weekend are free matinee performances at the Country Music Hall of Fame, notably the good-time honky-tonk of Trent Summar and the New Row Mob on Friday at 5:30 p.m., and the Dolly-inspired twang of Opry sweetheart Elizabeth Cook on Saturday at 3:15 p.m. Also not to be missed is the Webb Pierce Tribute Concert from 2-4 p.m. at Opry Mills on Saturday. The incredible, alt-leaning lineup that organizer Gail Davies has pulled together for the event includes Dale Watson, Chuck Mead, Rosie Flores, Kevin Welch, Robbie Fulks, Joy Lynn White, Mandy Barnett, Daryle Singletary, Opry star Billy Walker and a handful of others. One final show that isn’t likely to get hyped as much as Kenny Chesney’s or SheDaisy’s this week is the 5th Annual Urban Country Music Showcase, sponsored by Frankie Staton and the Black Country Music Association. This year’s event, which takes place 6 p.m. June 12 at Douglas Corner Cafe, features Valierie Ellis, a radiant, bell-toned singer à la Suzy Bogguss, and Dwight Quick, an Outlaw-inspired singer-songwriter who’s drawn comparisons to firebrand Billy Joe Shaver. Fork over the $10 cover charge, and you’ll be doing more to support African Americans in country music than anyone on Music Row.

Picks by Todd Anderson, Martin Brady, Chris Davis, Jonathan Flax, Bill Friskics-Warren, Paul Griffith, Jonathan Marx, Margaret Renkl, Jim Ridley, Jack Silverman, Angela Wibking and Ron Wynn.

Thursday, 13th

The Melvins The Melvins have spent nearly two decades creating a subgenre of aggressive stoner rock that ranges from short, melodic, KISS-influenced songs to expansive, ambient, bass-heavy dirges framed by the lockstep brutality of Dale Crover’s drumming, King Buzzo’s ridiculously sustained guitar and, since 1998, bassist Kevin Rutmanis’ dissonant punctuality. The group’s longevity is surpassed only by the level of invention they invest in what may seem to some a tired genre. Head to Exit/In early; this show will likely sell out.

—C.D.

Sandman, “Montana’s Rappin’ Cowboy” It’s been a while since the Sandman’s been seen around these parts. He was one-third of The Workhorses of Yesteryear, a group with Southern roots who moved here from Olympia, Wash. The Workhorses blended old-school rap (think parachute pants) with laid-back country-tinged music. The result was organic and loose and went perfectly with the trio’s warm-hearted vocals. Solo, Sandman is more rap than country, but there’s still a twang in his relaxed flow. His humorous songs touch on the important things in life, such as trucks, break dancing and tornadoes. When Sandman moved back to Olympia, the other Workhorses joined Rebecca Stout’s group Baby Stout. We wouldn’t be surprised if they joined Sandman onstage at Bongo After Hours Theatre.

—T.A.

Freedy Johnston The last time Johnston was in town, his midweek acoustic performance at 12th & Porter was pitted against fellow critics’ darlings Grant Lee Phillips (at the Belcourt) and former Pavement front man Steven Malkmus (at 328 Performance Hall). Whether due to the poor turnout or not, Johnston had a minor meltdown, verbally sparring with his audience, stopping mid-song for a five-minute time-out and staring down an overly cacophonous cash register as though it were out to get him. Was it weird. Still, Johnston is without question one of the most literate American songwriters to emerge in the last 10 years, and his latest stop in Nashville, once again acoustic and once again at 12th & Porter, should be worth seeing. The equally evocative and yearning Matthew Ryan opens.

—J.F.

Friday, 14th

The Sways This duo of Nashville transplants—singer Carey Kotsionis and guitarist Adam Landry—make rootsy, melodic pop that’ll put you in mind of what Marti Jones and Don Dixon were doing around the time Jones’ luminous Unsophisticated Time came out. The main difference is that The Sways draw on ragtime music and the blues as well, resulting in a sound that’s also akin to that of Bonnie Raitt circa Give It Up, or any number of tracks Lucinda Williams has recorded over the years. The Sways are more than just the sum of their influences, though. Produced by John Keaney and Michael Corbett, the duo’s debut, Hard Candy, is an unassuming little wonder consisting entirely of smart, deeply felt originals, most of which Kotsionis and Landry no doubt will perform when they play an 8 p.m. in-store at Turtle’s Music on West End.