R I V E R F E S T 2 01 4
SATURDAY 5/24
ROBERT RANDOLPH AND THE FAMILY BAND
6:15 p.m., Bud Light Stage (Clinton Presidential Center)
There was some thought among music aficionados back 10 years or so ago that Robert Randolph was blowing up nationally and might end up being this generation’s Sly and the Family Stone, if not a Dave Matthews or Ben Harper-type big festival act, one that by now would be out of reach for performing a Little Rock concert. Not that RRFB has underachieved or anything, it’s just that Riverfest and medium-sized festivals are what they do best, bringing together the masses for a rocking funk jam. Outside of “Ain’t Nothing Wrong With That,” hit songs haven’t really been this band’s thing, but the show is still as spectacular is it was to anybody that saw Randolph and crew open for Eric Clapton here years ago. Randolph, of course, rocks the pedal-steel guitar in a very soulful and un-countrified sort of way, and that powers a band that connects to a crowd ready to get up and move. Expect a raucous version of “Shake Your Hips” during their Riverfest show, maybe with the ladies encouraged to join the band on stage. T-Bone Burnett produced the band’s 2010 album, “We Walk This Road.” JH
BUCKCHERRY
8:15 p.m., Bud Light Stage (Clinton Presidential Center)
Riverfest is designed as a crowd pleaser. That means booking all the most popular genres. But it’s also designed with a relatively small talent budget, which means that the lineup is a mixture of name stars (CeeLo Green) and acts whose peak has passed and now play county fairs and festivals you’ve never heard of? Judging by past experience, this won’t temper the enthusiasm of the Riverfest crowd. Can’t get The Black Keys or AC/DC? There’s always Buckcherry. They come with plenty of rock ’n’ roll bona fides. They’re named for a spoonerism of Chuck Berry. Or rather a drag queen named Buck Cherry. Lead singer Josh Todd and lead guitarist Keith Nelson performed for a while with ex-Guns N’ Roses members Slash, Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum in a band that would later become Velvet Revolver before Slash fired Todd and Nelson and hired Scott Weiland. Their most popular songs are called “Crazy Bitch” (“You’re crazy bitch / But you fuck so good, I’m on top of it”) and “Sorry” (“Cause everything inside it never comes out right / And when I see you cry it makes me want to die”). What else could you want? LM
THREE DAYS GRACE
9:45 p.m., Bud Light Stage (Clinton Presidential Center)
Three Days Grace is a rock quartet from Ontario fond of leather, black and facial hair. Consisting of Neil Sanderson, Brad Walst, Barry Stock and Matt Walst, the band favors melodic yet lyrically dark alt-metal. Their 20
MAY 22, 2014
ARKANSAS TIMES
HOT, COOL AND VICIOUS: Salt-N-Pepa will play the Coors Light / Arkansas Federal Credit Union Stage 8 p.m. Saturday.
biggest hit, “I Hate Everything About You,” should be familiar to those who were anguished, Hot Topic-loving high school students in the mid-2000s. Other standouts include “Break” and “Animal I Have Become.” The band recently underwent some changes in lineup, with Matt Walst replacing longtime vocalist Adam Gontier in March, and it recently released the single “Painkiller,” its first recording with Walst. Fans of introspective altmetal should check these dudes out. MS
SALT-N-PEPA
8 p.m., Coors Light / Arkansas Federal Credit Union Stage (First Security Amphitheater)
Salt-N-Pepa, the stretchy-pant-loving and doorknockerearring-sporting trio of ladies from Queens, N.Y., is responsible for jams that we all know and love: “Whattaman,” “Shoop,” “Push It” and “Let’s Talk About Sex.” Salt, Pepa and their DJ, Spinderella, conquered the charts (and some challenging fashions) in the late ’80s and early ’90s as one of hip-hop’s pioneering acts, male or female. Notable for injecting a little feminism into their booty-shaking as they parsed some rather raunchy topics from a woman’s point of view, they secured American Music Award nominations, a Grammy and something a little more elusive for women in hip-hop: respect. The trio disbanded in the late ’90s, but reunited in 2009 and have since shared the stage with everyone from Biz Markie to Public Enemy. So don’t even pretend you don’t know the words (I’ve seen what happens in an adequately drunk room when “Push It” comes
on) and watch some of rap’s trailblazers do their thing. MS
CEELO GREEN
9:45 p.m., Coors Light / Arkansas Federal Credit Union Stage (First Security Amphitheater)
Back when “Dirty South” was the name of a song instead of a catch-all brand, Outkast and Goodie Mob brought a jolt of creativity and regional pride to rap in the mid-’90s. Goodie Mob was a great group (if not historically great like Outkast), but it was clear even then that CeeLo Green’s talents were bigger than one group, or even one genre. He sang and slurred and rapped his way through scene-stealing verses with country swagger and something too often lacking in the rap and R&B of the time: soul. (His contribution to an Outkast song still stands for me as one of rap’s most jarringly tender opening lines: “I don’t recall ever graduating at all / Sometimes I feel I’m just a disappointment to y’all.”) The rest is history: five Grammy awards for solo work and Gnarls Barkley, his soul collaboration with producer Danger Mouse; the hit “Crazy,” which at times has felt like the most ubiquitous song on the planet; a solo track with such infectious Motown vibes that it was a mammoth hit even though it was called “Fuck You”; reality television stints and a Super Bowl halftime show with Madonna. He’s also a dynamite live performer, a bundle of manic energy — I was once on the receiving end of a CeeLo stage dive in the Goodie Mob days and collapsed beneath his weight. He’s a big dude, so watch out. DR