Welcome to Brown Paper Tickets’ newest weekly, music-centric blog feature The Mid-Week Beat.

Every Wednesday, Brown Paper Tickets will be introducing you to bands and musical events from around the globe. In the future we’ll feature interviews with some of our favorite bands, record reviews of upcoming releases, music-related stories, previews of specific genres, suggestions of upcoming music festivals and much more. We hope this will become your weekly stop for all the music lovers in the Brown Paper Tickets universe so be sure to check back each week and discover your new favorite band, song, festival, venue or genre.

Here are three bands that we’ve been digging who have shows coming up next week in Washington, Louisiana and North Carolina.

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Formed in 2002, Two Gallants are a folk-rock duo from San Francisco, California. They took their name from a short story by James Joyce’s “Dubliners” and self-released two albums (now out-of-print) before signing to Alive Records for their “official” debut “The Throes.” In 2005, they signed with Saddle Creek Records, releasing two albums and one EP on the label.

Our featured song, “My Love Won’t Wait” comes from their fourth album “The Bloom and the Blight” which was released on September 4th, 2012. The album is their first record in five years and their first effort on Dave Matthews’ (of the Dave Matthews Band) label, ATO Records.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFk16-n-QKE?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

The band is currently on tour for “The Bloom and the Blight” and the tour kicks off in Bellingham, Washington on Tuesday, January 16 at the The Shakedown with fellow San Franciscans Future Twin. If you’re in the area, be sure to pick up tickets to see their, always memorable, live show.

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The next night, ATO Records alumni The Whigs will be performing in the Big Easy.

Formed in 2002 and hailing from Athens, Georgia, The Whigs are a power trio with a sound reminiscent of fellow Southerners Kings of Leon. The band has released three studio albums and have toured the world with the aforementioned Kings of Leon and The Black Keys.

Our featured track “Waiting” comes from their latest album “Enjoy the Company” which was also released in September of 2012 on Athens-based label New West Records. The album is slated for release in the UK next month.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0z_xWVYRHhg?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

The Whigs will be performing in New Orleans, Louisiana next week on Wednesday, January 17 at the The Circle Bar with local garage-rock heroes Bantam Foxes. You can pick up advanced tickets right over here.

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Finally, since we’re on the topic of great Southern bands,  you all should check out another incredible band of Georgians, Gringo Star, from Atlanta. The band blends a punk rock ethos with a heavy dose of 50’s Americana and 60’s garage/psych, leading Paste Magazine to say that they “…easily slip in somewhere between fellow Atlanta natives The Black Lips’ chaos-infused compositions and MGMT’s sing-along medleys.”

They’ve release two albums, 2009′s “All Y’all” and 2011′s “Count Yer Lucky Stars” which contains our featured song “Shadow.” They are currently on tour celebrating the December 4th release of their 7″ single “Going Way Out” b/w “Taller” and they have have a new full-length album slated for release in early Spring 2013.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5BS29t5wmU?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

You can catch them live in Asheville, North Carolina next Wednesday, January 16 at the Emerald Lounge with The Critters and Drag Sounds. Tickets are available right over here.

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We hope you all enjoyed the inaugural Mid-Week Beat.

Feel free to send in suggestions of bands that are currently rocking your world. Also, if you’re in a band that’s playing a show ticketed by Brown Paper Tickets, let us know. We might just feature you and your upcoming show in an upcoming Mid-Week Beat. See you all next week!