Slow Parade

CRITIC’S PICK:
Fri., July 18
Slow Parade, Huey & the Heaven Sent, Bizner, The EARL — Decatur born and raised Matthew Pendrick has been working under the alias of Slow Parade for about a decade. On his third album, last year’s Maybe You’ll Come Around Again, he nails a swampy combination of country, rock and some blues that’s organic and unvarnished, if not quite raw. He’s got a naturally soulful voice not far from The Band’s Levon Helm mixed with Rick Danko and these newer songs capture the Americana spirit with subtlety and grace. It’s his best batch yet. Be sure to arrive in time to hear Huey & the Heaven Sent’s similarly styled country twang, featuring Huey’s yearning, windswept vocals and his band’s weeping pedal steel. They play tracks from a recent release How to Keep Things Alive. — Hal Horowitz