list.in.to.chicago this week: 06.16.2003

Well, this weekend is MOBfest, which ostensibly stands for "Music Over Business." I'm not a huge fan of the three-day festival, but I'll defer that rant to the website later in the week. Suffice it to say, there are a lot of Chicago bands playing this weekend, particularly those who have only a few degrees of separation from festival organizers. Saturday night, in particular, got too crowded to list all the shows that might be worthwhile, so check the official website for the full schedule.

Pick of the week
Apparently, my biggest recommendation is to stay outdoors on Friday, with the free shows along Michigan Avenue in the afternoon and Taste of Randolph Street later on. If I had to pick one for the week, though, it would likely be Orchestra Baobab at HotHouse on Wednesday. Because you can never have too much Afropop.

list.in.to.COZ
Nitrous Foxide returns to active duty this Saturday at Goose Island Wrigleyville, which may usher in more frequent shows from the cover band going into the second half of the year. And Vaughan's on Tuesday, of course.

Recap
Saw The Changes on Wednesday and Soulfix on Friday, and both struck me as having a good, coherent sense of balance. Sort of a united front coming at you as a listener, rather than a bunch of individual players and parts. That's definitely a good thing. And while The Changes closed with a raucous Clash cover, it included one of the most uninspiring jumps off of an amplifier I've seen in a while. More of a "stepping off" of the amps. They'll have to work on that one.

6.16   monday
Long Count Quartet (Joy Blue)
If it's jazz, it must be Monday...

6.17   tuesday
Open Mike (Vaughan's)   SEE COZ LIVE!
Imagine I said something witty that would get you to come out and have a drink and listen to some acoustic music on a Tuesday.

Hot Action Cop, Euforeum, Silver Lining, Blackbox (Bottom Lounge)
I've seen it said that Hot Action Cop may be the worst band ever. This has led to speculation that they were, in fact, the true identity of minor Internet legend Bitch Slap, although that speculation has since been proven false.

6.18   wednesday
Orchestra Baobab (HotHouse)
These guys are legendary. Only they're legendary in Senegal, so you probably haven't heard of them. The other Senegalese guy who you may have heard of, Youssou N'Dour (who sings on Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes"), has apparently played a big role in the recent resurgence of this group.

Pearl Jam with Idlewild (United Center)
If I haven't mentioned that ex-Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron is one of the best contemporary rock drummers of today, then let me say just that. If I have mentioned it, then you probably just re-read that sentence. Yes, you can get tickets for this through Ticketmaster. They tried.

6.19   thursday
Lisa Germano with Joe Cassidy (Schuba's)
I keep seeing Germano's name all over the place, which means there's either a buzz about her, or a well-backed marketing campaign. And given the almost active suppression of hooks in his current band, Assassins, I'd be curious to hear if Cassidy does any of their material in this more austere context.

6.20   friday
Miles of Music (Michigan Avenue from Oak to Jackson
From 11am to 6pm, there are more than fifty different acts playing at twenty different locations along Michigan, including Anna Fermin's Trigger Gospel, Devil in a Woodpile, Anne Harris and the Jeff Parker Duo. I can think of worse ways to spend a Friday afternoon.

North Mississippi All-Stars, Evan Dando, Caviar (Taste of Randolph St.)
This street fair, located on Randolph between Peoria and Racine, typically has quality entertainment, and this year appears to be no exception. The North Mississippi Allstars are XRT favorites, and Caviar enjoyed a brief tenure as the "next big thing" out of Chicago, including one major-label release back in 2000.

Ivory Wire with Lovehammers, American Motherload, Waste (Double Door)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
Friday seems a little less crowded on the MOBfest schedule, so this show stands out a bit more. In Ivory Wire and American Motherload, we've got renowned, although we won't say by whom or for what, guitarist Kevin Holland's favorite and seventh favorite local band, unless he's changed his list again. If you keep reading that sentence, the syntax will eventually make sense.

6.21   saturday
Nitrous Foxide with Navid (Goose Island Wrigleyville)   SEE COZ LIVE!
Not only do you not need a $90 MOBfest badge for this, it's FREE. Plus, you can ask a bartender for two blondes without getting slapped. Summertime Blonde Ale, of course.

MOBfest (various venues)  
On any given weekend, I'd recommend seeing Regal Standard (Beat Kitchen), Light FM (The Note), EXO (Bottom Lounge) or Drive (Elbo Room). I'm not sure that putting them all on the same night across the city does anyone much good. While it's certainly possible to catch three out of four of these acts, it's geographically challenging, so you have to wonder if there really are enough A&R people coming in from out of town to spread out among the venues. If not, why is this different than any other Saturday in Chicago?

Rollins Band with Dummy (Vic Theatre)
To be honest, I sorta lost touch with Henry Rollins' musical output when he sacked his old band after the Come In And Burn album. However, this time around, the band will be playing Black Flag material, and the tour is in support of the West Memphis 3, which Rollins talked about during his spoken word tour earlier this year.

6.22   sunday
Steve Earle with Jackson Browne and Keb Mo' (Rosemont Theatre)
What little I've heard of Earle, I've liked. The easiest parallel is Bruce Springsteen at his grittier moments, sort of a "tweener" of the rock and country worlds. There was a bit of a backlash after his 2002 release Jerusalem included a song that had to do with American Taliban John Walker Lindh, but Earle seems to be the type who's always fighting back from something.

Matt Sharp with Josh Hager, Greg Brown (Gunther Murphy's)
This is the Matt Sharp who used to be in Weezer, not the Matt Sharp currently in Nitrous Foxide. Just in case you were wondering.