This Saturday night is the 7th Annual Crossroads Music Festival, centered around 16th & McGee, featuring 28 bands and DJs on 6 stages. This year features a great line-up of bands representing many different styles of music.

See bands like Thee Water MoccaSins, The Grisly Hand, Fourth of July, Sons of Great Dane, Cherokee Rock Rifle, David George, Supermassive Black Holes and more at Crosstown Station, Press, Czar, The Brick, Mercy Seat Alley, and Kansas City Cafe.

You can buy a Festival Pass in advance for $10 at Vinyl Renaissance or for $12 at any of the venues listed above. That will allow you to go between venues at will and will give you priority access to full venues. You can buy a pass the day of at Crosstown Station for $15. If you don’t want a pass, each venue will also have it’s own cover charge.

For all the details, go to the Crossroads Music Festival site or click on the image to buy tickets.

Well, I’ve been pretty lazy this week and I’m finally getting around to posting a few pictures of the local bands at Kanrocksas last weekend. I didn’t get to see a lot of them, but the few I did see sounded great. Hearts of Darkness played on Stageasaurus Rex on Saturday morning. Ink Magazine had an acoustic stage in the VIP area where several bands played (I caught Maps For Travelers, who were surprisingly good unplugged, and Making Movies), and then there was the campground stage that featured several local bands (I saw The Dead Girls). Just a few pictures below. Click for full size versions.

Maps For Travelers

Making Movies

The Dead Girls

Check out Episode 8 over at the episodes page. Or you can subscribe on iTunes and get it delivered directly to you automatically!

As always, tell your music-loving friends about the show. Any bands you know that might want to have their music played can submit their music HERE.

When Kanrocksas was announced, the first question I (and many others) had was whether or not they were going to include local bands into the line-up. As we get closer to the first weekend in August, things are becoming more clear and the answer is not only “yes” but a resounding, enthusiastic “HELL YEAH!”

Local bands will be very present at Kanrocksas. One band is going to get to play the main stage, which is being decided by a series of free showcases every Friday night at Wild Bill’s at The Legends. There will also be a stage by the camping area that will feature local bands. Now, Ink Magazine announces another stage to feature local bands. This one will be in the VIP area and will have local bands playing acoustic. You can click on the picture for a larger version, but here are the bands scheduled to play:

• Maps For Travelers
• She’s A Keeper
• Sons Of Great Dane
• Spirit Is The Spirit
• Waiting For Signal
• Making Movies
• and more!

This is very awesome and the amount of love that Kanrocksas is showing the local music scene is outstanding. They’re really working hard to make this festival huge while also keeping it very “Kansas City”. I can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to Aug. 5-6.

I just realized I never posted on here that Episode 7 is up over on the Episodes Page. If you haven’t listened to it yet, check it out. It’s got new stuff from Bravefellow and The Dead Girls, plus we go back to the 90′s with some classic Frogpond. It’s a good listen.

Also remember that you can get the podcast on iTunes as well. Just search for Amplify KC in the iTunes store. You can subscribe to it so you get new episodes automatically, and you can also rate it and give feedback so I know what you like and don’t like.

Episode 8 should get done this weekend, but I’d still love some new music for it. My library is real light on the hard rock/metal side of things, so if you know of any heavier bands from the KC area that would like to be played on the show, please send them to the website and have them submit their stuff here.

Every Friday night in July, join me at Wild Bill’s Legendary Steakhouse and Saloon at the Legends and watch several of the best local bands compete for a spot in the Kanrocksas line-up!

One band will win the chance to play on the main stage along side bands like Muse, The Black Keys, The Flaming Lips, Ween, The Joy Formidable and many more! Plus, 4 other bands will get to play on a stage in the camping area presented by The Pitch, 103.7 The Dam and 95.7 The Vibe! You can help determine which bands win! Selection is 50% audience vote and 50% Judges Panel (which I will be on, so if your band is competing, I’m not above bribery… kidding… maybe).

Plus there will be Kanrocksas tickets and swag given away. so you’ll have a chance to come out a winner too. The party starts at 10:30 each Friday night, no cover and 21+ after 10pm.

To see which bands are competing each Friday night, go here. And on Saturday nights, they’ll have a DJ competition to select DJs to play on the main stage and in the Critical Mass tent.

Come party with me and some of the best bands in KC every Friday night in July at Wild Bill’s Legendary Steakhouse and Saloon and help decide who will get to play at Kanrocksas!

I know it’s been a while since there was a new episode. But episode 6 is finally up and available for your listening pleasure.

I’m always looking for new stuff to play. If you haven’t yet submitted your music or if you have new music that you haven’t sent me, please do so. And tell your music loving friends to check out the show either right here or on iTunes. Thanks for listening!

If you made it out to the “Midcoast Cares: A Benefit For Joplin” concert on June 1st at Crosstown Station, then you saw an outpouring of love and support for the people of Joplin. All together, more than $11,000 was raised. If you weren’t able to make it out, there are still plenty of ways you can help by donating to any number of charitable organizations.

There is also another benefit concert coming up. Rock 4 Heart & Home features Jillian Riscoe & the 21st Century, 49 Stones and The Endless Summer. It’s two events, actually. The first is on Friday, June 10th with an acoustic in-store performance at Big Momma’s Coffee & Espresso Bar in Springfield (217 E. Commercial St.) from 8-11.

Then, on Sat. June 11 at Northpark Mall in Joplin (101 N. Rangeline Rd.), there is a benefit concert and candlelight vigil from 6-10.

These are free shows, but they are asking for donations and tips which will be donated to various organizations.

Episode 5 is up now. It features all the details and some of the bands that will be playing the upcoming “Midcoast Cares: A Benefit For Joplin” concert on June 1st at Crosstown Station (see previous post). It also has new music from Not A Planet and Making Movies. You should listen to it and be happy.

As you are probably aware by now, on the afternoon of May 22 the town of Joplin, MO was devastated by a tornado, completely destroying a large portion of the city. Hundreds of people were killed, many more still missing and thousands left homeless and their lives changed forever.

The people of Joplin desperately need help.

The local music community of Kansas City is stepping up to provide aid and support to the people of Joplin. Within hours of the event, the Midcoast Cares: A Benefit for Joplin concert began being organized.

It’s happening on Wednesday, June 1st at Crosstown Station (1522 McGee St. next to the KC Star building).

Doors at 5, show at 6, 21+.

Bands playing at the show:

• Beautiful Bodies
• Cowboy Indian Bear
• Steady P
• Maps For Travelers
• Sheppa of Nomathmatics
• The Grisly Hand
• Heroes & Villains
• Vi Tran Band
• David George Band
• Rural Grit All Stars
• Atlantic Fadeout
• Town Mountain
• Ha Ha Tonka (edit 5-27)

In addition to awesome music, there will be raffles and silent auctions, and all the proceeds will go to Heart To Heart International for disaster relief to Joplin.

GO HERE to get your tickets. GA tickets are only $10, or you can get a $20 VIP ticket with will also get you 2 drink tickets for delicious Boulevard Beer. And if you’re one of the first 150 to get a VIP ticket, you’ll also get a limited edition Midcoast Cares: A Benefit for Joplin t-shirt.

Please come out to the show and support this great cause. If you can’t make it to the show you can donate directly to Heart To Heart International.

Do whatever you can. Donate blood, bottled water or anything else you can do to help. Every little bit will make a huge difference.