(OCEAN GROVE, NJ) -- Brian Dunne, critically acclaimed singer/songwriter and member of the popular rock band Fantastic Cat, will perform on Saturday, November 16, 2024 as part of the Split Level Concerts series at Jersey Shore Arts Center in Ocean Grove.  Showtime is at 8:00pm.  Jake Thistle, a New Jersey artist on the rise, will open the show.

Brian Dunne is not your grandma’s antiseptic, pseudo baby boomer singer/songwriter. Known for his laugh-to-keep-from-crying, darkly humorous lyrics, Dunne’s work reconfigures the limiting nature of the genre into something less cotton-candy-young-love, more burn-down-the-banks. This DIY ethos, born from a healthy New York cynicism self-conceptualized, funded, and dragged to every willing venue, found an easy home at the Kill Rock Stars label along the likes of The Decemberists, Jeff Hanson, and Sleater-Kinney. Dunne is bending the sounds of American rock into masterfully composed, existentially poignant, wildly catchy renderings of being alive.

Recent solo releases by Dunne include Loser on the Ropes (2023) and Selling Things (2020).  Fantastic Cat releases with Dunne include Now That's What I Call Fantastic Cat (2024) and The Very Best of Fantastic Cat (2022).

Advance tickets are $27 ($32 on day of show) and are available for purchase online. Jersey Shore Arts Center is located at 66 South Main Street, Ocean Grove, New Jersey.

Based in New Jersey, singer/songwriter Jake Thistle has been entertaining audiences for years. Jake has been hired to perform in Europe and across the US, and for crowds of thousands at major music events. His first studio single, "Ghosted Road," garnered the Best Americana Song of 2022 Award from Indie Boulevard Magazine. The Hollywood Sentinel had this to say about Thistle's original, The Dreamer: "JAKE has it all. The looks, the voice, the talent, and even a great song here...be prepared to be blown away." Releases include Live at Transparent Clinch Gallery (2024), The Half Left Out (2023), and Down the Line (2020).

Jersey Shore Arts Center and Split Level Concerts are proud to partner with Brookdale Public Radio 90.5 The Night and Musicians On A Mission (MOAM) to promote the concert series. Musicians On A Mission is a non-profit organization dedicated to creating connection and inspiring giving through music.

MOAM will be on hand at all of the Split Level concerts, collecting cash donations for a MOAM charity chosen for each concert. November’s beneficiary of cash donations will be Holiday Express. MOAM will also be collecting non-perishable food donations to benefit Fulfill. As a thank you for your cash or food donation(s), be sure to enter their raffle for a chance to win a gift card generously provided by their series sponsor, Pascal and Sabine.

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