Steel Strings to Wrap Up Ballwin Friday Night

August may already be gone, but that doesn't mean your Fridays in September need to head south for the winter. This week, two local venues in Ballwin have special acts booked that might be the perfect way to relax after a hard work week.

Salt of the Earth
Salt of the Earth melds rock, bluegrass, folk and pop music using a combination of low-fi guitar arrangements and heavy reliance on vocal harmonies. Mike Schrand picks up the quartet's rhythm duties on bass, with the rest of the group typically falling back on guitars or banjo.

For some, the back-to-basics style of music may raise an eyebrow. For mature listeners with an ear for subtly, however, the band offers well blended layers of Americana with a fun selection of songs.

Who: Salt of the Earth
Where:
When: 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 2

Bud Summers
Acoustic singer-songwriter Bud Summers fuses together acoustic storytelling with jazz and blues chops that he's refined throughout St. Louis.

Growing up, Summers learned violin piano, piano, and around age 12, guitar, which no doubt were inspired in part by a musical family that included Summers' father, a standup bassist, and his mother, who instilled in her children an appreciation for opera and musicals.

In addition to holding a music performance degree from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville, Summers' music career includes the release of the 2008 album "Golden," and a pending follow-up titled "Eon."

Who: Bud Summers
Where:
When: 6:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 2