Emanuel Wallace
Brite Winter Festival
With more than 60 bands lighting up the Brite Winter music festival in 2015 — including Maps & Atlases and Welshly Arms in the headlining slots — this year's installment feels bigger than the ones that came before it. "We increased our music budget by 50 percent to allow us to draw bigger talent," program director Justin Markert says. "We're also throwing some new ideas into the mix this year by booking a number of hip-hop and electronic artists to diversify the festival and fill a void from past years." The music starts at 4 p.m. and bands will play across eight stages throughout Ohio City. Admission is free. (Eric Sandy)
Into the Blue: Grateful Dead Revival Night
Regardless of your take on the Grateful Dead, the band to which Into the Blue, an ensemble of local musicians, pays tribute, the group maintains a damn important stature in the rock ’n’ roll canon. Into the Blue revives that spirit and lends it the respect Jerry & Co. rightfully deserve. Anyone interesting in hearing — and seeing — great music flow from the stage should check out what these guys are doing. Fellow musicians and artists will glean inspiration. 9 p.m., $12. Beachland Ballroom. (Sandy)
Kat Edmonson/Robert Ellis
Some singer-songwriters become overnight sensations. Others take the long, hard road and perform in small clubs before gradually graduating to bigger venues. The ones who take the more difficult route tend to have more lasting power. That certainly appears to be the case with Kat Edmonson. Her first album, 2009's Take to the Sky, received rave reviews and she's built upon that success with 2012's Way Down Low and last year's The Big Picture. Edmonson, who has a girlish voice, worked with Mitchell Froom (Suzanne Vega, Paul McCartney) on The Big Picture. The songs sound like they came straight out of the American songbook. 8 p.m., $20 ADV, $22 DOS. Music Box Supper Club.
Sunday, Feb. 22
Cheetah Chrome/Archie & the Bunkers
Formerly of classic Cleveland punk bands the Dead Boys and Rocket from the Tombs, guitarist Cheetah Chrome has lived such a colorful life that he even wrote a book about it in 2010. While Chrome no longer tours with Rocket from the the Tombs, he still records and tours as a solo artist. He performs at the Beachland tonight at 8:30. Prior to that, he’ll “play songs, answer questions and tell stories” at a special in-store at 4 p.m. at My Mind’s Eye, the Lakewood record store. 8:30 p.m., $12 ADV, $14 DOS. Beachland Tavern.
Albert Lee
Albert Lee’s list of session employers reads like the guest list at a Hall of Fame luncheon: Eric Clapton, Jerry Lee Lewis, the Everly Brothers, and Emmylou Harris, among others. His name is often mentioned alongside some of the greatest guitarists of all time, like Jimmy Page and Earl Scruggs. But Lee’s astronomical talent hasn’t translated to record sales. His work with Head Hands & Feet in the ’70s earned him a cult following among country-rock fans (who were sparse at the time), and his solo career followed a similar arc. But Lee didn’t get into this for the acclaim or money. Just listen to his supple finger-picking style and witness his humble stage demeanor, and it’s apparent he’s doing this for the music. This is a rare opportunity to see one of the world’s best guitarists in his element.7:30 p.m., $25. Beachland Ballroom. (Brian Baker)
