Jack O & the Tennessee Tearjerkers
at River Arts Fest
The two-day River Arts Festival takes over the South Main Arts District this weekend with more than 30 area musical acts performing across three stages and two days. Headlining the main stage on Saturday, October 22nd, are garage-rock hotshots Jack O & the Tennessee Tearjerkers, led by Jack Oblivian, who demonstrates his extreme facility with the form — blending soul, blues, glam, and punk into his garage-rock foundation — on the new Rat City, one of the year’s best local rock albums. Among the bands preceding the Tearjerkers on the main stage Saturday are local indie-scene leaders Limes, Bake Sale, and Wuvbirds. Other artists on tap for Saturday include rock veteran John Kilzer, country girl-group the Memphis Dawls, and blues-meets-Afropop band Afrissippi. Headlining the main stage on Sunday is the Delta Collective, recent winners of the Memphis Music Foundation’s “Music Launch” competition. Other bands scheduled on Sunday include many of the area’s best blues acts, such as Eric Hughes, Blind Mississippi Morris, and Robert Belfour. See riverartsfestmemphis.org for full festival information. — Chris Herrington