Localist

Rock 4 Kids

Ben Nichols and Cory Branan headline the Saturday benefit concert

by Amy Bowers

     This Saturday, Vino's and the Lyon College chapter of Kappa Sigma offer you Rock 4 Kids, a rare chance to enjoy a full day of excellent music while supporting a worthy local charity. It's the Lyon group's third benefit concert, and the lineups have grown stronger every year. The event began at Lyon College three years ago as a fraternity/sorority charity and has grown into a statewide event, bringing in bands from as far away as Boston and South Carolina. Blake Phillips, a Lyon student, started Rock as a way to get younger people involved in helping the community. Phillips, who was already connected to the local music scene as the brother of Bryce Phillips, drummer for The Contingencies, says, “I knew there was a lot a really great talent in Arkansas who just wanted a chance for exposure.”
      Lyon College hosted the first concert in Batesville, which featured il libertina, Ho-Hum, and Apollo Sunshine. The turnout was good, but Phillips and other organizers decided to relocate to a more accessible venue for the next round. They chose Vino's in Little Rock and the Arkansas Children's Hospital as the official charity, a perfect match for Phillips, who's enrolling in medical school next year. The show, which featured headliners Sugar and the Raw and American Princes, raised over $2,000 on a Sunday night.
      The third benefit concert, scheduled for Saturday, March 25, will last all day. It begins at 2 p.m., and a $10 ticket buys the opportunity to see an impressive ten-band lineup. Adam Hambrick takes the stage at exactly 2 p.m., followed by The Contingencies at 3, then PM Today at 4, and Deas Vail at 5, followed by Kingsdown at 6, and About Last Night at 7. Then the headliners take the stage beginning at 8 p.m. with Chase Pagan, Slow Runner from South Carolina at 9, Cory Branan of Memphis at 10, and Ben Nichols and Brian Venable of Lucero close the show with an acoustic set at 11 p.m.
      Phillips is hoping to see over 500 at the show, but more than anything, he wants to hand over more than $3,500 to the Arkansas Children's Hospital. He says he has no doubts that he will meet his goals, considering the success of last year's concert. These fund-raisers are off to a great start and Phillips hopes that they “ will become an annual installment in Little Rock.” He says he's happy to see Arkansas youth supporting his cause and only expects to see the community's involvement grow.

Amy Bowers is thinking about grad school and is trying to find a “real” job. And by real she means pro boxing. She also wants to send a shout out to Buddy Thumbs. Hire or holler at her via email at skullandarkansas@yahoo.com.