Peter Newland of FAT and RadioXile is bringing the show to Theodores’ at 201 Worthington St. on Friday.
Peter Newland There will be a symbolic passing of the torch in the local music scene on Friday when members of FAT headline Theodores’ in downtown Springfield and simultaneously introduce the Northampton-based Lux Deluxe to a Springfield audience.
Peter Newland of FAT and RadioXile is bringing the show to Theodores’ at 201 Worthington St. through his Jam 4 Springfield organization.
“It is an opportunity to connect the old guard to the new breed,” said Newland. “We want to re-create the Amherst/Northampton-Springfield connection that generated the energy that drove the great Valley bands of the 60s and 70s.”
Newland will perform his originals with RadioXile and FAT classics with Jim Kaminski, William “Benjie” Benajamin, and Guy Devito. He is excited about bringing Lux Deluxe in for their Springfield debut.
“This young band plays well beyond their years,” he said. “I hear strains of The Band, Stones, Little Feat. Great songwriters. Good beats. I feel they could have easily been playing the Rusty Nail or Woody’s back in the 70s.”
Ned King, lead singer of Lux Deluxe, says the band is looking forward to the introduction.
“For us, it’s hugely important to tap into new markets and attract new fans,” he said. “Springfield is one of those places where great bands have been developing for decades, bands like Fat, The Breakdown, and In The Flesh and artists like Frank Manzi and Taj Mahal. It’s a place where we want to be known.”
Having a legendary group like FAT as part of the debut is a bonus.
“When our parents found out we were doing the show at Theodores’ with Peter, they had a lot of stories about Fat and the impact they had on the local music scene,” King said. “ Its a pretty exciting experience for us to play with one of the best live acts from our area, and we are honored to carry on the torch of great live rock bands from Western Mass.”
King promises the Springfield debut will feature what he refers to as “high octane” energy.
“LuxDeluxe is the type of band that lives for the moments when it’s on stage,” he said. “We have learned an enormous amount from the great live bands of the 70s like The Rolling Stones, J. Geils and NRBQ as well as from going on tour. On the road we noticed that the way we would catch people’s interest was by throwing all caution to the wind and playing our hearts out until the last second of the set.”
The Friday night show begins at 9 p.m. Theodores’ is on Worthington Street in Springfield.