list.in.to.chicago this week: 05.22.2006

I seem to make a lot of references to TV this week. Must be sweeps.

Pick of the week
I'm going to keep it short and sweet, and go with local buzz band The M's on Sunday night at Double Door.

list.in.to.COZ
Come to Redmond's (Sheffield and Roscoe) tonight at around 8pm for three full hours of eighties tunes and other little ditties you probably wouldn't expect to hear on an acoustic guitar.

Recap
I enjoyed the Pearl Jam show, apparently much more than Jim DeRogatis did. We also diverged significantly on Matt Cameron's performance on drums. I thought he was dead-on, and Jim thought he was just kinda dead. Then I caught a solid effort from Marigold Engine on Friday night, including Patrick breaking a string about five seconds into the performance.

Diver gigs over the weekend involved a very inebriated bachelorette party -- is there any other kind? -- on Saturday at Cullen's and a surprisingly resonant tent at Mayfest on a sunny but chilly Sunday afternoon.

l.i.t.c. operatives report that Thomas Dolby was "interesting." No word on Alice In Chains last night, but those operatives' ears may still be ringing.

5.22   monday
Coz Sings! (Redmond's)   SEE COZ LIVE!
It seems like only a week or so ago since my last Redmond's show. Mostly because it was a week or so ago. If you're worried about missing the season finale of 24, don't, because I'm recording it.

5.23   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
I'll be there this week, mostly because I owe the Diver guys money from yesterday's gig.

T-Bone Burnett with Jakob Dylan (The Vic)
I still, to this day, get Burnett confused with T-Bone Wolk, who used to be the bass player for Hall & Oates. You know, the guy with the beard and the hat who left with guitarist G.E. Smith for the Saturday Night Live house band?

INXS with Scott Stapp (Rosemont Theatre)
I wish the rumors of the second season of Rock Star were true, and that the band would be Van Halen. Think about it -- they could make Gary Cherone a contestant! Also, as much as I ragged on the Lovehammers on the first leg of this tour, they're still a better option than Stapp. A sharp stick in the eye is a better option than Scott Stapp.

Staind with Three Days Grace, Hurt, Mindsight (Congress Theatre)
You know how I feel about bands -- particularly hard rock/heavy metal bands -- who can't spell. The thing that always gets me about these guys is how there's nothing but piercings and tattoos that separate songs like "It's Been A While" and "Outside" from the power ballads of the late 80s.

5.24   wednesday
Buddha's Belly with ALO (Martyrs')   FRIENDS OF COZ!
This band -- opening for a band from California that has, in turn, opened up for Jack Johnson and will do the same for Dave Matthews this summer -- allegedly called it quits last year. I think it's just a clever hack to make each subsequent "reunion show" seem like that much bigger of a deal. I wish I had thought of it.

Orange Goblin with Scissorfight, Bible of the Devil, Metalhead (Double Door)
Two things here: First, you pretty much know what you're getting with a band called "Orange Goblin." If it's not metal, or at least stoner rock, something is very, very wrong in the world. Second, it's funny that these guys are up against Buddha's Belly, as my friend in that band happens to wear orange more often than most.

The Charlatans UK with The Blood Arm (The Vic)
Your mission, should you accept it, is to come up with as many different band names that added the "UK" at the end so as not to confuse Americans. Use that crazy comment link on the website.

5.25   thursday
Moth with Angels and Airwaves (The Vic)
I keep seeing these guys in support roles, which I guess is one way to make a living when you've only had one minor hit ("I See Sound") so far.

Matt Geraghty Trio (Green Dolphin)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
I run into Matt every once in a while around town, but I don't think I've heard him play since I actually played with him in The Neighborhood.

Saturday Morning (Double Door)
Two things here, too: First, there's an Abbott and Costello routine waiting to happen here. "Who are you going to see?" "Saturday Morning." "When are you going to see them?" "Thursday night." "I thought you were going to see them Saturday morning?" Second, I need to see them on a bill with Sunday Morning Chameleon.

5.26   friday
Gooey with Milk At Midnight, The Fame, The Young Republic (Subterranean)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
I know I made a snarky comment about getting show alerts from three different members of this band. Either that worked its way up the food chain, or all the people whose lists I'm on haven't sent out their announcements just yet, as I've only gotten one e-mail so far.

Paper Airplane Pilots with Lowry, The Bowmans (Beat Kitchen)
I've been meaning to check in on these guys to see if they've pushed a bit harder past their immediately apparent Jeff Buckley influence. That works up to a point, but only up to a point.

Madina Lake with 10 Years, Flyleaf, Far Less (Metro)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
The new band from the Blank Theory Twins -- and yes, they're pretty much always going to be known as such in this town -- is likely to have more shades of hair color than band members, and yes, I'm going to keep making fun of them for it. Somebody's got to.

Southern Culture On The Skids with Hard Scrabble (Schubas)
Haven't seen these guys playing around in quite a while now. My former roommate is a big fan.

5.27   saturday
A Birdsong Valentine with Fluid Minds, Kent With Peoples (Elbo Room)
I've got to give these guys credit for marketing and promotion. At the Ivory Wire show at Elbo Room a few weeks ago, they already had the place plastered with signs. And they're aggressively adding friends on MySpace, which made me take a little more notice of those signs. What that means for their music remains to be seen.

Rock Star Club (Pontiac Cafe)
I think these guys probably get the most mileage out of the Johnny Cash "outlaw" vibe without actually having anything in common with Cash whatsoever, musically.

5.28   sunday
The M's with Miss Alex White and the Red Orchestra, The Like Young (Double Door)
I was momentarily surprised by the existence of some higher profile shows on a Sunday night, until I remembered that it's Memorial Day weekend.

The Redwalls with The Lonesome Organist, Baby Teeth (Metro)
There's still nearly a week to go, but these kids may have responded to all the hype about them by oversaturating the local market, and now they're, at the very least, not able to move 1,000 tickets until the last week before the show, if at all.