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Santa. (Abby Toms)

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Kayla Brown & Mike Ingram »

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• Bentley's Pub »
  419 N. Neil St. Champaign, IL 61820
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Local boys Santa have seemingly finished their transition from college-bro-friendly acoustic rock band to sleek, tight indie-rockers. Lead vocalist Stan McConnell’s voice has strengthened as confidence in the material has set in, and his style sits somewhere close to that of the Magic Numbers’ Romeo Stodart. They’ve made up several copies of a new single to keep fans happy ahead of a full-length. The single was being forced into the hands of Local Music 5 show-goers a few weeks back, and I hope they all went home and popped it into the CD player. “Laundry Days” is a solid track, but the winner is “Dragonfly Papers,” which packs a great hook and some excellent harmony work (ably covered by Curb Service’s Larry Gates at LM5). This is definitely the best song I’ve heard from Santa, and if it’s any indication of what’s coming on their next album, I’m very excited. The new single hasn’t hit the MySpace page yet, so for now, you’ll have to pick up a physical copy for yourself at a Santa show (for free!). Their next local appearance will be at the Canopy Club on May 9 with Empyrean Soul, World’s First Flying Machine and Roses and Sake.

The Surreal Deal has a new residency in downtown Urbana following the loss of the Embassy Tavern. You can now catch the sweet jams of bands like the Allman Brothers, the Grateful Dead, Eric Clapton, and others as presented by some of the area’s best veteran players (Jeff Kerr, Billy Galt, Jesse Brown, and Josh Quirk—you’ll recognize them from just about every other band ever) at the Rosebowl Tavern on Sunday evenings. Apart from the core members of the Surreal Deal, special guests like Dave Easley and Brian Wilkie often pop up to add more layers. If you’ve never wandered into the Rosebowl, you should make a point to do so. It retains the charm that one of the oldest bars in the area should have, and it’s not just country fans that occupy the seats. An unconfirmed source was quoted as saying that the Rosebowl sits at the highest point in Urbana, at which point the unconfirmed source giggled and asked what time it was. The time for the show, though, is 9 p.m., and there is no cover charge.

I’ve spent a few paragraphs over my tenure here gushing about Terminus Victor, as they’re one of the few bands left in CU that will truly melt your face at a gig. We’re talking expertly written tunes that pack a punch, following in the footsteps of influences like Fugazi and Hum. Their name is always the first to come up when locals are talking about the best bands around, but I think the campus crowd has missed the boat on them. They’re back in action this Thursday at Cowboy Monkey (10 p.m.) alongside Alpha Mile and Backyard Shark. Hopefully the weather will cooperate, offering patio seating for those wanting to admire from afar, but trust me when I say you want to be right up in front of the stage for the meltiest face. Cover charge is $5.

If you’re sticking around campus on Thursday instead, two good causes are getting some love at the Canopy Club via a number of great young acts. The event is called Hand In Hand: An Intimate Evening Benefitting The Center For Women In Transition and Invisible Conflicts (CWT). The CWT is a nonprofit shelter for women and children and Invisible Conflicts is an organization started at Loyola with a mission to raise awareness about media-neglected conflicts in places like northern Uganda. Hathaways (fresh from a couple of months in South America), Carl Hauck, Connor Grant, Post Historic, Stan McConnell (of Santa) and more are scheduled to perform starting at 9 p.m. with a $7 cover at the door. EatCU.com and Howbowda Bagel are graciously helping to sponsor the event.

On Saturday Mike Droho and the Soundshaker (formerly of the Profits, now one sweet piece of man on beatbox) will make a tour stop at the Red Herring (5 p.m.). The Profits were a well-known band on the Midwest tour circuit before splintering into two groups, and Mike has made stops in town since the split as part of the Compass Rose (featuring strings and beatbox). Now he’s back and sharing the Herring’s stage with tourmate Random Llama and Columbus’ Eric Nassau. Cover is $5.

On Sunday afternoon, Exile On Main St. will once again offer live music. From noon until 5 p.m., several local acts will participate in a mini Bob Dylan cover-fest to mark the release of the new Dylan record. Carl Hauck, Angie Heaton, Jonathon Childers, Stan McConnell, Lucky Mulholland, Ryan Groff & Cole Rabenort, Sunset Stallion and more will perform. Find a schedule at http://www.bobdylanday.com.

On a personal note, I’m excited to have Kayla Brown coming home from Nashville for the weekend. We’ll be going crazy with a show at Bentley’s on Sunday evening at 7 p.m. Let’s see how much country Kayla has learned!

— Mike can be reached at forgottenwords@gmail.com.