Chris Barron wsg Jen Sygit and Spencer Mulder
Park Theatre, Holland
June 5, doors open at 7, show at 7:30
$9 advance, $15 day of show
brownpaperticket.com

Spin Doctors
Kalamazoo Greek Festival, Arcadia Place
June 4, 10 p.m., $10
kalamazoogreekfest.com

Chris Barron was one of two princes in the Nineties, now he's gone solo. The front man of the Grammy-nominated Spin Doctors — which boasted radio hits such as "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong" and "Two Princes" — almost had to quit music when he was stricken with vocal chord paralysis. He was given a 50/50 chance of talking normally, let alone being able to continue his singing career. Barron went through acupuncture, intensive vocal training and took prescription steroids to get his voice back on track and is now fully recovered. Currently, Barron is anticipating the release of his solo album, Pancho and the Kid, an album full of roots-y Americana music sung with the same unmistakable voice that filtered through the radio 17 years ago.

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Summer is finally here and Branden Mann’s jams are as hot as our favorite season. If you haven’t checked this guy out yet, then you definitely are missing out. With acoustic guitar in hand, the only thing that’s certain with Mann is great blues/rock. With a slew of shows this month — including a birthday show at Old Dog Tavern on June 25 — there is no excuse to miss out. For more information, check out brandenmann.com … Come out to Papa Pete’s to check out some experienced rockers. Kalamazoo metal band Bismuth will melt your face off. Composed of local music veterans from various bands including Dirtknap, Aeternal, and Brimstone, you will not want to miss Bismuth’s show with Chaos Foundry on June 19. This will also be in celebration of guitarist Boston’s birthday. For more information check out myspace.com/bismuthband … Come to Bell’s Brewery on June 26 to see local rock/roots/bluegrass act Ninth Street Bridge open up for the Corn Fed Girls. Ninth Street Bridge has five members, but boasts a 12-instrument lineup. There are smooth transitions between guitar, bass, banjo, fiddle, mandolin, dobro, etc. … At Papa Pete’s on June 26, head out for a great show featuring The Hex Bombs (Kalamazoo punk), Three Cents Short (Grand Rapids ska/pop/punk), The Red Lights (Grand Rapids reggae/ ska), and SuperDot! from Detroit, noted as Detroit’s longest running ska band … J. Oscar Bittinger and Octoberday Productions present Nick Fink’s Saloon Shows, a monthly concert series of “Acoustic-Folk-Pop-Rockery.” Drew Nelson is scheduled to perform on June 11. Visit joscarbittinger.com for more information.

Last year’s dreamy “American Idol” contestant who isn’t Adam Lambert is coming to The Intersection on June 2. Last year’s winner, Kris Allen, will bust out his acoustic tunes with special guests Green River Ordinance opening. Tickets are $25 for the 8 p.m. all ages show … The D-O-Double G is bringing his gin and juice to Fifth Third Ballpark on June 12. Snoop Dogg will be headlining WGRD’s Wingstock 2010. Also performing that night is Pop Evil, Drowning Pool, Jackyl, and Ricky Nix. Tickets are $26 for general admission, or $36 for the field.

National CD Releases ///
Four years removed from her last album, Christina Aguilera is back with her electronically driven fourth studio album, Bionic. It hits stores June 8 ... Singer-songwriter Jack Johnson is at it once again, strumming his guitar and brightening your day with his sixth studio album To The Sea out June 1 ... Now employed as Jimmy Fallon’s house band on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” The Roots will release its ninth studio album, How I Got Over on June 22 ... Fans of the Dixie Chicks will only need to carry around one CD once the trio releases a greatest hits album, Playlist: The Very Best of Dixie Chicks on June 1 ... After an extremely successful EP So Far Gone in 2009, rapper Drake is back with his first studio album, Thank Me Later, on June 15 ... Ozzy Osbourne is back again. The Prince of Darkness will release his tenth solo album, Scream, on June 22 ... Australian soul/pop singer Sia is set to release her new, upbeat album We are Born on June 22.

Harborfest is a FREE four-day festival happening in downtown South Haven from June 17–20. There will be more than enough music to fill the four days, as bands such as Joanne Shaw Taylor, Bryan Michael Fischer Band, Moon Roots, Shelagh Brown, The Big E performing the Elvis 1970 Comeback Special, Bob Malone, Endeavor, Tin Can Phone, and Me Three Mind are on the lineup. The festival also features the reunion show of Knee Deep Shag, a Kalamazoo-based powerpop band, which has had one of its songs used on “The CBS Morning Show.”

Grab an Oberon and head out to Bell’s Brewery on June 3–5. The brewery will be celebrating the opening of its beer garden on those days with live music from Ultraviolet Hippopotamus on June 3 and Greensky Bluegrass with special guests Head for the Hills on June 4 and 5 … East Lansing will be hosting its annual Festival of the Moon and Festival of the Sun on June 25 and 26, respectively. In honor of one of the shortest nights of the year, Festival of the Moon will feature craft brews and good food. Tickets are $10 in advance, $15 at the door, or $25 for a weekend pass. The next day, celebrate the solstice with some food and wine at the Festival of the Sun. Tickets for this day are $17 in advance, $20 at the door, or $25 for a weekend pass.

The circus-tastic Miss Pussykatt is celebrating her birthday in style on June 12. Her tiki-themed bash will be held at Billy’s Lounge and will feature hula girls, fire dancers, comedy acts, a limbo contest, and a contest for the best tiki attire. The party starts at 7 p.m. with an $8 cover that will go to benefit Pinups for Pitbulls, Super Happy Funtime Burlesque Tour, and the Daredevil Circus School. Live music will be provided by Cash O’Riley, Los Cobras, and The Party Stompers.

Twisted Rooster (1600 East Beltline, Grand Rapids) is set to open on July 21. The restaurant will feature the kind of food and atmosphere you would expect in an urban, downtown location. The Rooster brought in Chef Mark Noseda to create one-of-a-kind “twisted” items for its menu. REVUE got a sneak peek of some of the all-local food items on the menu last month. All we have to say is you'd better mark July 21 on your calendar.

Attention Phantom fans: This may be your last chance to see Phantom of the Opera. The tour that began in the Eighties is in its final run. Your opportunity to see the final Phantom will be at Wharton Center’s Cobb Great Hall on Michigan State University’s campus in East Lansing. The performance runs in East Lansing through June 6. Tickets are $30-$70. For more information, visit the Wharton Center’s website, whartoncenter.com.

Dr. Sketchy’s is turning one year old on June 26. The “Anti Art School” was created for laid back artists — the ones who want to down a few adult beverages and laugh with friends while sketching a live model. Artistic talent is not necessary in order to partake in Dr. Sketchy’s Anti Art School. For its one–year anniversary, Vivacious Miss Audacious, founder and headmistress of the Grand Rapids branch, will model. The June 26 event will be held at Sazerac Lounge on Plainfield from 5–9 p.m. and have a $10 cover.

"The thing I hate most about Hollywood is basically how stupid everyone is. It bothers me that nobody reads the paper in Los Angeles. I'm not even sure that the mayor reads the paper."

Everything smells left.

We have complete faith that you're a total dick.

Everything I do is intense, like camping.

Whenever I say something good, it's usually because my brain shuts down and words start spilling out of my mouth like vomit.