Cape After Dark: Tune in to the local music scene

Scanning the music scene in Cape Girardeau can be like switching the dial on a radio station. The bands are a little similar, but each with their own style. You can hear live music Thursday to Sunday with occasional weekly shows. For the newbie, it can be hard to decide who to see. So for those of you that are new to the local music scene, these bands are some of the local favorites.

Bruce Zimmerman and the Water Street Band

Bruce Zimmerman keeps a busy schedule, playing at Port Cape the first and third Sunday of each month and doing acoustic sets at Stooges in Jackson and the River Ridge Winery in Commerce, Mo.

Although he can often be found playing acoustic guitar, Zimmerman is better known as the Gibson-hauling blues front man of the Water Street Band.

Bruce Zimmerman and the Water Street Band has been drawing a packed crowd to Port Cape for 20 years.

Even after 20 years of playing the same town, same venue and same night of the week, their combination of blues and classic rock, sometimes with a dash of Cajun flavor, keeps fans coming back for more.

"It is good music you can count on," said David Knapp, who has been listening to the band since it started. Fans can count on good music, because it is backed by good musicians.

Annie Schauster said the band uses instruments that a lot of bands don't have.

"They have it all; even saxophone, harmonica and congas," she said.

The added instruments give the music a fun, more colorful sound that gets everyone dancing on Water Street.

Bruce Zimmerman's next scheduled performance is Aug. 29 at the Common Pleas Courthouse Gazebo.

Fill

For anyone who enjoys jazz music or is simply looking for something different, Fill is the band to see.

They started as a quirky guitar and bass duo, whose complicated song structures made it almost impossible to find a drummer to accompany them.

But when Wes Ables (bass) and Chris Stephens (guitar) met drummer Brandon Glenn, he fit the bill easily.

This progressive jazz trio has been creating and performing music in Cape Girardeau for two years.

They have grown musically during this time, and Ables said they are "better, tighter and even more experimental."

Fill plays all original music, and its complicated song structures are more like compositions than songs. As structured as it is, there are times in their performances where anything goes.

The guitar and bass might syncopate their notes or intertwine their phrasing, and then they may do the complete opposite and alternate. They recently started playing the second Thursday each month at Buckner's Brewing Co.

"When a band plays on Thursday, it seems like Friday night for everyone there," Ables said.

Fill will be kicking off the weekend early with a performance tonight at Rude Dog Pub. Its next scheduled performance is Aug. 30 at Broussard's, with opening act Alabaster Brown.

John D. Hale Band

Country music fans should look no further than the John D. Hale Band.

This group is a blend of country, rock and bluegrass, which gives its music a definite Americana feel. Hale has tried to steer away from writing mainstream country music, and he has developed his own style of honest country.

Fans such as Chris Phillips say they recognize this honesty and it speaks to them.

"They speak the truth about life and they speak to me, even though I don't know them personally," Phillips said.

Hale was raised on the 5-H ranch, an exotic animal ranch in Jackson. Many of his fans are from this area and know him personally.

Doug Ludwig grew up with Hale. He said that he got the band their first gig in Columbia, Mo.

"Now there is a click at Mizzou that really likes these guys," he said.

Hale said seeing his friends in the crowd is one of the best feelings during a show.

"We do a lot of touring and traveling, so it's good to play around home and see some familiar faces," he said.

They are on the road for the rest of the month, but will return to Cape Girardeau for a performance at Club Moxy on Sept. 6.