Classic rockers with a sense of humor will want to be at the Middle East (472 Mass Ave, Cambridge) on August 4, when LEZ ZEPPELIN — yes, an all-female band doing Led Zep songs with overtones that Robert Plant never intended — has its CD-release party. Keeping things in the R-rated realm, the same club hosts an event at the Somerville Theatre (Davis Square) August 10, when porn star RON JEREMY and anti-porn crusader CRAIG ROSS hold a debate about — you guessed it — porn.
Also lighting up the circuit is a roomful of colorful characters. Once notorious for not making shows, the eccentric chanteuse CAT POWER apparently made it through an entire tour last year and did some fine, soulful rock to boot. She brings her Dirty Delta Blues band to Avalon (15 Lansdowne Street, Boston) on July 8. In terms of sheer eccentricity, her male counterpart may be RYAN ADAMS, the former alt-country sensation who’s lately been doing rap, metal, and Lord knows what else. He’s at the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square on June 29. Coming to Club Passim (47 Palmer Street, Harvard Square) is songwriter WILLIE NILE, who made a few critically acclaimed albums in the 1980s and has only recently reappeared. He plays with local singer JENNIFER MATTHEWS on June 22. Another of the best songwriters around, JASON ISBELL, recently fell out with his long-time band the Drive-By Truckers. He brings his new solo band to TT the Bear’s Place (10 Brookline Street, Cambridge) on July 16. Those with adventurous tastes will want to hit Johnny D’s (17 Holland Street, Davis Square, Somerville ) on August 28, when JIMMY CARL BLACK — the “Indian of the group” in the original Mothers of Invention — joins forces with Southern oddball EUGENE CHADBOURNE.
Summer should also be a good excuse to get out of town. And you haven’t had the full Cape Cod experience unless you’ve been to Wellfleet’s BEACHCOMBER (1120 Cahoon Hollow Road, Wellfleet). The only music club with waves and dunes in its backyard — there’s truly nothing like it in Boston. For the 27th consecutive year, the great freewheeling rock-and-roll band the Incredible Casuals hold court every Sunday from 4 to 8 pm. You’ll find everyone from preteens to grandparents getting down. Also recommended is the club’s annual “Boston garage weekend” on June 29 and 30, with local favorites the Dogmatics, Downbeat 5, the Prime Movers, Andrea Gillis and many more. Indie-pop favorites They Might be Giants also hit the Beachcomber for a rare club show on July 27. Another popular beachside venue is the CLUB CASINO at Hampton Beach (69 Ocean Boulevard, Hampton Beach, NH), whose schedule tends to be more eclectic than most concert halls, messing up alternative rock (Ween, June 10), jam bands (moe., July 7 and 8), blues (B.B. King, August 1; George Thorogood, August 17 and 18), country (Trisha Yearwood, July 16; Travis Tritt August 16) and even disco (KC & the Sunshine Band, July 25).
If getting to the beach isn’t good enough, you can always get right on the water. The BLUES BARGE at Boston Harbor Hotel is one of the best summer bargains around. Beginning June 21 from 7 to 10 pm, a weekly line-up of blues headliners plays right in the water — they’re docked on a barge, you’re on land — and there’s no charge unless you want to get a table for dinner. Heavy hitters set to appear are Duke Robillard on June 28, Toni Lynn Washington on July 12, and James Montgomery on July 5 and August 23.
