Local Motion, Weekend Edition

When people tell me St. Louis is a boring place to live, it blows my mind. Lately I've had trouble finding a reason to stay in at night (just ask my pile of dirty laundry -- oh, hello there!), what with all the shows and club nights popping up all over. This weekend is no different for fans of local music -- especially those into hopping from place to place in search of the rock and/or roll.

My column this week (everyone read it, right? Right? Yes? Well, OK, here's a link in case you accidentally missed it) mentions a ton of stuff going down, but there are even more shows/events/happenings I couldn't squeeze in. I know, I know, absolute insanity!

Tonight: Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center benefit. I know I keep talking about Berlin Whale, but really, their energy is so refreshing; just peep the new mp3s on their MySpace, yo. How can the slow build of "Sweet Sixteen" not start your weekend off right?! They'll be playing a benefit for the Lemp tonight (they were added since I wrote that column blurb on this gig); show starts at 8 p.m.

Tomorrow: The Grovefest, all day. (Psst, stop in at La Dolce Via first and then head on over.) Cruise into the Grove neighborhood on Manchester between Sarah and Boyle and see Arch Rival Rollergirls, munch on tasty foodstuffs and much more. And hey look, we're sponsoring some music stages! Lineup is still unclear, but I do know that Bunnygrunt, 7 Shot Screamers, Gentleman Auction House and Superfun Yeah Yeah Rocketship are playing. A whole slew of DJs will be there too, including stalwart Scotty Mac. Update: The local mp3 blog I peruse, Dividing By Zero Will Get You Nowhere, has a more concrete lineup of bands here. Tip o' the hat to Jeff.

London Calling, at the Upstairs Lounge (3131 South Grand Boulevard; 314-773-3388). Get your Blur on starting at 9 p.m. Watch South Grand's finest inebriated dancers get their swerve on (at least after midnight). Plus, it's a 3 a.m. bar, and you know things never get interesting until after the 1:30 bars close.

Sunday: Your best bet is probably the My Brightest Diamond in-store performance at Vintage Vinyl (6610 Delmar Boulevard, University City; 314-721-4096) at 1:30 p.m., seeing as how the Sufjan Stevens show they're opening at the Pageant is super-duper sold out. Feel the Illinoise, y'all.

Alternately, you can spend Sunday recovering from the rest of the weekend, which is what I usually do. Next week looks packed with shows, so perhaps a quiet night in watching The Simpsons is in order. Or rampant daydreaming about how awesome the Three 6 Mafia reality show just commissioned by MTV is going to be.

Perhaps it's not so hard out there for a pimp anymore. -Annie Zaleski