If ever there was a proper arena-rock-style band to handle a festival at a local stadium (even if it’s in the breezeway), power-trio Leslie fits the bill perfectly. The riffy rockers headline this month’s Party at the Joe on Thursday at the Joseph P. Riley Jr. Stadium at 7 p.m. Singer/guitarist Sadler Vaden, drummer Jonathan Carman, and bassist Jason Fox recently utilized Kickstarter to fund their latest studio album,
Lord, Have Mercy, a solid collection of guitar-pop gems and hard-rock anthems recorded in Memphis with engineer Paul Ebersold. On stage, the young threesome shake, shimmy, and shuffle like seasoned rock gods. Local disc spinner Natty Heavy brings his natural heaviness to the Joe for the opening set.
— T. Ballard Lesemann