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Another late assignment from the Star, another place in Indy I surprisingly have never been to (or even heard of), another concert. This concert, though, was philanthropic.

The gig, featuring Cheetah Chrome, Deezer and Eddy Price (who performed before I got there), raised money for Norton Records. The New York label suffered from Hurricane Sandy, which wiped out a lot of the inventory at its Brooklyn warehouse. The Melody Inn hosted a raffle that awarded vinyls, posters, a record player and lots of other music merch, and the venue's tight quarters made for some very intimate connections between the audience and the performers, appropriate for such an occasion. Check out the photos, both here and at the Star, and try telling me you wouldn't start to love everyone there out of sheer good cause and proximity.

If you feel so inclined to "help the loud sound rebound," you can donate here. You could also get a Sandy-exclusive 45 sleeve, if you want something physical for your support. Full details on the website.

Deezen vocalist "Reverend Dan" O’Connell sings during a Norton Records benefit concert at the Melody Inn at 38th and Illinois streets, Friday, Jan. 18, 2013. Norton Records, based in New York City, suffered damage to its warehouse facility from Hurricane Sandy, and benefit concerts across the country have helped them raise money to clean and dry their collection. (Alex Farris / For The Star)

After taking photos of country, 70s funk, and hip-hop concerts, it was nice to cover my favorite music genre: rock.

I must confess that I had never heard of Grace Potter and the Nocturnals. When I heard that Potter had recorded with Kenny Chesney, I was worried that I would be covering something like Rascal Flatts. Fortunately, I was mistaken. Her stage presence, vocals, and all-out rockitude... well, I could take photos of that all day. Unlike most of my recent concert assignments, I paid full attention to both the visuals and the music, and I found myself ever-so-slightly tapping my feet and banging my head.

There's a 19-photo gallery at the Star.

Grace Potter & the Nocturnals performed at the Egyptian Room at Old National Centre, Saturday, Jan. 12, 2013. (Alex Farris / For The Star)

For my eight assignment in a little over a month for the Star, I took a drive down East 82nd Street, a part of town I don't see very often. (The biggest part of the area is the Fashion Mall, and I'm not much of a shopping person.) It took two nights to get enough photos, since the first night was on the first Thursday after New Year's Eve and thus pretty sparse. By the end, though, I'd made it to seven bars along the street, enough for a large photo gallery and huge play in today's Weekend section.

Latitude 39, 4016 E. 82nd Street, Saturday, Jan. 5, 2013. (Alex Farris / For The Star)