Rochester-based blues guitarist Chris Beard, as one of his better-known songs will tell you, was “Born to Play the Blues.” The son of Joe Beard (a great blues talent who is just beginning to be known outside of musicians’ circles but has long been admired within them), Chris picked up his first guitar at the age of five and since then has simply done what comes naturally. The first song he figured out was Booker T. & the MGs’ “Green Onions,” a stylish and funky mix that takes some real panache to play, and a choice which characterizes the kind of music he’s been drawn to throughout his career. Chris and his band play at the Lafayette Tap Room on Friday (Aug. 17) at 9pm.

Come out to the UB Center for the Arts this Saturday (Aug. 18) to enjoy Indian food and culture at the India Day Mela Festival, from 2-10pm. This year’s event is being held in conjunction with India’s 60th Independence Anniversary, which will be commemorated with a fireworks display at sundown. Games, childrens’ activities, entertainment and exotic regional foods—chicken tikka, shish kebob, samosas, curries and Indian sweets—are just part of the festivities. Ethnic clothes, crafts and jewelry will be sold by vendors until 7pm, when the cultural program begins in the Center for the Arts Auditorium. This will include classical Indian music and performances of the Bhangra and other traditional folk dances.

Zydeco band LeeRon Zydeco & the Hot Tamales and reggae group the Dreadbeats host Zydeco-Reggae Fest Five this Sunday (Aug. 19), at the Rose Garden Grove in Williamsville. The outdoor event runs from 2pm until dusk, with performances throughout the day by numerous local musicians, and an open percussion jam for kids and adults. Festival host Ron Davis (a.k.a. LeeRon Zydeco) will be giving out samples of his famous “Bite of the Bayou” food specialties, and other Cajun-Caribbean food and drink will be available. The Rose Garden Grove offers a spacious tented area so the event can take place rain or shine, and cajun dance lessons will be offered for those who want a little help geting into the groove.

The first ever Buffalo Original Music Fest is being held at the Colden Country Inn on Sunday (Aug. 19), from 2-9pm. Sponsored by band No Effect, the BOM Fest ’07 celebrates bands in the Buffalo area, some well known and some not. The line-up features Flood the Shoreline, the Fracture, the Feast, Adam Zadok Band, Amnesty Box, Magictonez, Davey O, Mari Anderson, Rick Heenan, Noa Bursie, and If Paige Wins. Festival founders Dean Bell (pictured), Mark Bouthillier and Missy Ray (the members of No Effect) are hoping to promote these emerging bands by hosting record producers and representatives from television and radio stations around the area. From Davey O, a folk acoustic guitarist, to the Fracture, an alternative rock band with a metal twist, there’s a range of talented artists to enjoy. CD’s of all participating performers will be available for purchase.

If cute is what you aim for, the Nagoya, Japan-based electronica duo Lullatone just might be the sweetest thing since pigtails. Inspired, as their website attests, by “daydreaming and humming in the bathtub,” Lullatone began when Kentucky-born Shawn James Seymour began composing modern lullabies for his Japanese girlfriend, Yoshimi Tomida (with whom he also collaborates in the visual art collective bunnybunnybunny). After relocating to Nagoya, the duo began developing Seymour’s sound into “pillow pop music with a bedtime beat.” Mixing simple melodic electronica with toy instruments and sweet wispy vocals, the group’s fragile micro-melodies bristle with shimmering casiotones and subliminal beats crafted from the sound of pillows being struck. Joining Lullatone on stage at Soundlab on Monday, (Aug. 20) is Normal Love, an instrumental quintet comprised of amplified violin, two electric guitars, electric bass and drums that will surely provide a study in contrast. The show starts at 9pm.

Chase Middaugh (pictured) of the duo Novelist started the solo project mutus liber in 2006, as a further experiment in electronic sound composition. The result is a range of ambient music made by a variety of instruments and “found sounds,” alternating between highly-crafted soundscapes and organic black noise. mutus liber plays at Soundlab next Thursday (Aug. 23) with Nadja and the Beta Cloud. Nadja is a duo comprised of Aidan Baker (guitar, piano, percussion, woodwind and vocals) and Leah Buckareff (bass and vocals). Nadja’s ambient, guitar-based music is also dark and experimental, pushing the drone/doom/metal genre to melodic, ethereal heights. Beta Cloud, the solo project of Carl Pace, utilizes analog synths, samplers and other instruments, often synched with projected visual imagery. The show starts at 9pm.