list.in.to.chicago this week: 05.02.2005

Okay, the number of big-name and otherwise worthwhile shows week is just flat-out ridiculous. And with Lollapalooza and the Pitchfork Intonation Festival still on the horizon, it's just the beginning of what looks to me like one of the biggest summers for music in Chicago ever.

In other words, it's a great week to be a music fan, although it's also a very, very bad week for music fans who wait until the last minute to buy tickets.

Pick of the week
I'll leave it to you to sort out which of the sold out shows you want to try with the ticket brokers. That leaves us with Mastodon on Tuesday at Bottom Lounge, George Clinton and P-Funk at House of Blues on Wednesay, and Bill Frisell and the Bad Plus on Friday at Symphony Centre.

list.in.to.COZ
Just Vaughan's this week, and maybe not even that, depending on when I get out of the Ben Folds show. And I wouldn't blame you if you had other plans that night, given the options. Next Diver show is Saturday the 14th at Fado.

Recap
By far, the coolest part of the Jimmy Chamberlin Complex show on Thursday at the Field Museum was when they segued into "Fred" from the Tony Williams Lifetime. I was grinning ear-to-ear at that point. Mary accurately parsed the group's sound as "Blue Man Group meets Radiohead" right out of the gate, and I was reminded of how my drumming style used to be very similar to Chamberlin's, and that I need to start practicing again to get that back.

On Friday, Ivory Wire seemed just a tiny bit rusty, although that got singer Chuck Gladfelter laughing a bit when he'd struggle with some lyrics here and there, which went a long way to allay my fear that he's getting too serious again. Still, a rusty Wire is better than a lot of other bands, so we'll take it.

And my apologies to anyone who went to check out the Long Count Quartet on Wednesday. I was notified after press time that the band's run there has ended for the time being, hopefully just for baseball season. Although that could actually get Steve rooting for the Cubs to not make the playoffs. Not that it would take much rooting, given the way things are starting to look for anyone on that team not named Derrek Lee.

5.02   monday
Alison Ruble and Jo Ann Daugherty (Pop's for Champagne)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
I've been neglectful of this Lakeview club, which not only consistently has jazz artists on it's stage, it consistently has jazz artists I know, including former Neighborhood keyboardist Daughetry.

5.03   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
We'll see if I make it out this week, seeing as how I'll be at the next show on the list, but if I do, I've got some new old stuff I might try out.

Ben Folds with Corn Mo (Riviera Theatre)   SOLD OUT!
I'm a fan of anyone who can maintain a consistent wit the way Folds has. So far, at least one track from his new Songs For Silverman CD has caught my attention, and I expect a few more will as I have it on heavy rotation leading up to the show.

Mastodon with Death By Stereo, Cult of Luna (Bottom Lounge)
These guys have been one of the most talked-about metal bands of 2004, with their Leviathan CD making a number of top ten lists. I've only heard one tune, but reading between the lines of many of the reviews, I suspect I would dig them.

New Order with Assassins (Aragon Ballroom)   SOLD OUT!
Lots and lots of hype around the new New Order, and I have to say, Assissins make an awfully appropriate opening act.

System of a Down (Metro)
Short club tours in advance of new albums coming out are all the rage, and Metro is the beneficiary of the trend three times this week, first with aggro rockers System of a Down, which is one of those bands I just don't quite get.

5.04   wednesday
Garbage (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
I can't figure out why Garbage's new Bleed Like Me keeps being available, then not available, on Rhapsody. It's annoying. The new record, however, is not. I'll be flashing back to 1995 or so, when I saw the band at Metro in support of their first album. My favorite moment of that show was some young woman body-surfing and subsequently crashing hard to the floor during, appropriately enough, "Stupid Girl."

George Clinton and Parliament/Funkadelic (House of Blues)
The real mothership lands this week, not the fake one on the lakefront where the Bears and the Fire play.

Diane Izzo with Lea Tshilds (Hideout)
Lots and lots of critics fell in love with Izzo after her debut in 1999 on Chicago's own Minty Fresh label. I haven't heard much buzz about her since, but I'm assuming a new record is on the way.

Tributosaurus (Martyrs')   FRIENDS OF COZ!
This month, following fresh on the heels of a CLTV/Metromix special that I saw excerpted while at the gym, they take on Velvet Underground. This is one of those bands that I somehow missed during my development, and subsequently have found no real connection to as a music enthusiast, but I recognize that they're important. So this will be a good one if you like that sort of thing.

Weezer with Ringside (Aragon Ballroom)   SOLD OUT!
If you ask real nice, I'll send you my Shatner-esque spoken word version of "Hash Pipe" that I did as part of my entry to be a DJ on the Zone a few years ago. Or not.

Wilco (The Vic)   SOLD OUT!
First of a whole string of shows where Jeff Tweedy and company will be shooting footage for a live DVD.

5.05   thursday
Melt-Banana with Yakuza, Breather Resist (Abbey Pub)
Celebrate Cinco de Mayo with Japanese noise-metal at an Irish bar. Why not?

Wilco (The Vic)   SOLD OUT!
How do you say "alternative country" in Spanish, anyway?

5.06   friday
Coldplay (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
I was tempted to buy tickets for this one on Saturday solely to turn them around on Lincoln Parkers with considerably more disposable income than me, but I wasn't sure how the delivery mechanism would work with the short on-sale to concert window. What Chris Martin does that Keane misses sometimes is mix up the attack, tempo-wise.

Nine Inch Nails with The Dresden Dolls (Congress Theater)   SOLD OUT!
I'd be more broken up over missing this one if the first single from the new album didn't suck so bad.

The Cells with The Blissters, The Juliet Dagger, Boozefighter (Silvie's Lounge)
This is notable not only because URT played a gig or two with The Cells back in the day, but also because it's one of the first sightings of a band I've actually heard of at the Irving Park club.

Wilco (The Vic)   SOLD OUT!
Still at the Vic. Still sold out.

Bill Frisell and the Unspeakable Orchestra with The Bad Plus (Symphony Center)
Frisell is one of those guys particularly revered by younger jazz guitarists, and not really well-known beyond that core. Although the fact that he's playing Orchestra Hall may mean I'm totally wrong on that count. The Bad Plus is quickly making waves as semi-accessible jazz for non-jazz fans, in part by covering songs like Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit."

5.07   saturday
Built to Spill with Mike Johnson (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
With all the big name bands selling out, these indie favorites still were able to move some tickets as well.

Nine Inch Nails with The Dresden Dolls (Congress Theater)   SOLD OUT!
Have I mentioned how much I don't like that new single? It's mildly upsetting, as I though the last record was fantastic.

U2 with Kings of Leon (United Center)   SOLD OUT!
I didn't look too closely, but I think that Jim DeRogatis trashed U2's latest album for the exact same reasons he praised the one before it. Which is what I love about rock critics over time. They'll complain if an artist changes when they want them to stay the same, and also if the artist stays the same when they want them to change.

Wilco (The Vic)   SOLD OUT!
Rhapsody has been a bit schizophrenic about whether or not it lists A Ghost Is Born, too. If I considered myself any kind of real journalist, I'd get to the bottom of it. Maybe even make a phone call.

Fall Out Boy with The Academy Is..., Spitalfield, October Fall (Riviera Theater)   SOLD OUT!
Good lord, even bands I've never heard of are selling out this week. Talk about your halo effects.

5.08   sunday
Built to Spill with Mike Johnson (Metro)>
Okay, so the concert-going goodwill doesn't extend to the second show from an indie band on a Sunday night. That would be a bit too much to ask.