list.in.to.chicago this week: 08.01.2005

In an ideal world, I would tell you exactly which venues have really good air conditioning. Unfortunately, you're on your own on that one.

Pick of the week
Can't go wrong with Chris Whitley on Saturday at Martyrs'. And they're not booing Tributosaurus (Wednesday, also at Martyrs'), they're chanting "Bruuuuuce."

list.in.to.COZ
Just Vaughan's this week, and Diver is off until the last week of August.

Recap
The lesson for the week, as learned by the guitarist from Elevation, is it's nice when audience members offer you drinks, but it's not so nice when they spill said drinks on your effects pedals. The Cubby Bear was a fun time for Diver, even if we started "Roxanne" way too fast and didn't quite recover throughout the course of the song.

8.01   monday
Biirdie with Smallwire, Matthew Kerstein of Scotland Yard Gospel Choir (Schubas)
Played with this band a month or two back at Martyrs', and my comment at the time was that they burst out of the gate with all sorts of harmonies.

8.02   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
If you've ever wanted to see if you have the gumption -- and yes, I just used the word "gumption" -- to get up in front of a room full (okay half-full, if we're lucky) of midweek drunks and sing, now's your chance.

Radioactive Underpants (Elbo Room)
I think this band has won the "best band name of the week" award before, which probably makes them the first two-time winner. If not, it's still a great name.

Whitesnake with Supagroup (House of Blues)
Weren't these guys just here? Here we go again, on our own.

8.03   wednesday
Tributosaurus (Martyrs')   FRIENDS OF COZ!
A little home-cooking for your humble correspondent, as the musical chameleon becomes Bruce Springsteen this time around.

8.04   thursday
Air This Side of Caution with Buddy Nuisance, The Bandages (Schubas)
Part of me still thinks this local band unintentionally mangled the saying, which is to say they didn't "err" on the side of caution. Or maybe they want me to think that, 'cause it would then be ironic. Or something.

Loggins and Messina (Charter One Pavilion)
Every once in a while, an act returns from the junk heap that's so incredibly cheesy, I can't even come up with a joke.

Tony Furtado with Punsapaya (Abbey Pub)
A friend of a friend sent an e-mail with the following glowing endorsement of Furtado: "He is kinda folksy and blugrass, but not like crap ass." Because we've all been there, with those crap ass folksy bluegrass bands, haven't we?

8.05   friday
Manishevitz with The Occasion, Telenovela (Empty Bottle)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
You may recall from sometime this spring how I saw this band opening for The Changes, and was pleasantly surprised to find Jim DiNou on keyboards and a sound that I described as "new wave before MTV got a hold of it."

Rockit Girl with Milk at Midnight, Evil Queens, Corsaire (Subterranean)
There was a little bit of buzz around this band's MOBfest show in June about how they might be poised for bigger things, but they've been poised for bigger things for, what, five or six years now? Not that it couldn't happen, but at some point, you have to face up to the overwhelming likelihood that you're not going to get called up to the show. Which isn't saying anything about the quality of the band, either, just in case I fall victim to Googlebaiting again.

Fareed Haque Group (Green Mill)
I keep saying I never know just what guitarist Haque has up his sleeve, but I'm sorta skating by on having seen him in two or four different contexts many years ago. For all I know the "Fareed Haque Group," itself, has been remarkably consistent.

8.06   saturday
Chris Whitley (Martyrs')
Early show from the Houston singer/songwriter, who has made Martyrs' a bit of a home away from home over the years. It's always hard to tell what kind of sound Whitley will bring, as he's bounced between gritty acoustic tours, straight up rock and even electronica over the years to great effect.

MC Chris with Tha 446 (Double Door)
The ad says this guy is from Adult Swim on Cartoon Network. If that means he's at all responsible for the bumpers, this could be fun. Although I'm not exactly sure how, 'cause I don't know what he'll be actually doing. Speaking of Adult Swim, I watched Robot Chicken for the first time last night. That's some weird stuff right there.

Brendan Benson with Robbers on High Street (Metro)
I want to say I've heard somebody talking up Benson, maybe in my office. I'm not sure. The allmusic rundown puts him in the power pop camp, with some emphasis on "power."

Superstring with Lab Partners, Moonlight Graham, What Four (Gunther Murphy's)
Assuming that I'm getting the reference right, this isn't one, but TWO science geek-related band names. As someone who threatened to quit URT if we insisted on the longer-form Unified Rock Theory, I have to say I'm not a fan of this particular school of band naming.

Fareed Haque Group (Green Mill)
See Friday's listing.

8.07   sunday
Chris Isaak with Aslyn (House of Blues)   SOLD OUT!
I only vaguely remember something about Isaak talking to some imaginary naked chick on his Showtime series, where he played a singer named Chris Isaak. On some level, maybe his entire singing career was just method acting for that part. Did I just blow your mind? Are you even still reading? Does anyone actually make it past Wednesday of this thing?

The Pages with Falconhawk, The Remains Of Brian Borcherdt, Nathan (Schubas)
This is either the band that made The Redwalls change their name, or there's something fishy going on, possibly involving said Redwalls. Probably the former, though. Don't get your hopes up.