Chapel Hill
Benji Hughes and Charles Latham
Local 506Singer-songwriters come in all shapes, sizes, styles, rhythms, moods and facial hair configurations. Charlotte’s Benji Hugheshe of an adventurous beard and equally adventurous double album on New West Recordstells his eye-on-society stories with a little funk and a lot of hooks. Imagine Chuck Prophet hijacking Magnetic Fields’ tour station wagon. Or, if you don’t like that, imagine folk-rock you can dance to. Former Triangle resident Charles Lathamhe called this area home from ’05 through ’07 and left us the album Beltline as a parting giftwrites folk songs with a poison pen and then delivers them with a punk-rocker’s directness. Lashing out (albeit gently, with strums and pop melodies) at the mundane is a favorite pastime, burning with a desire to, well, burn burn burn down Boringtown. And when he sings “A bear d beard a beard a beard does not make you a man” during “Hard On,” I sincerely doubt he’s directing it at Hughes. Catch ’em both for only $8; it’s an early Friday night show at Local 506 with a 9:30 p.m. start. And, if you still feel like dancing, catch the late show with California DJ Kid Kameleon and Chapel Hill’s One Duran at 11:30 p.m. The show is part of Signalfest’s new Final Fridays series, and tickets are $5. Rick Cornell
