list.in.to.chicago this week: 03.12.2007

Okay, so I leave out half a sentence in the Gomez recap last week and only ONE of you calls me on it? You guys are slipping. Also, Ben Kweller looked like LJ from Prison Break, not AJ. AJ is on The Sopranos.

Pick of the week
I'm positively curious about The Most Dangerous Race on Sunday night at Subterranean, and if I didn't have a gig, I'd be all over The Roots at the Chicago Theatre on Saturday.

list.in.to.COZ
After taking a much-needed week off, it's back to Vaughan's on Tuesday, and then Diver at the big St. Patrick's Day bash at Fado on Saturday. We may even give away some stuff at that show.

Recap
Where to start? How about Monday at the Pogues show? I'm not an expert on the band, but I was with one who was very happy, even if they didn't play "Fairy Tale of New York" -- which the couple standing in front of us inexplicably decided to have as the first dance at their wedding. And hearing Shane MacGowan introduce "Sunny Side of the Street" given his lack of, well, teeth was pretty funny.

Wednesday night was another superlative performance from Tributosaurus as Yes. Hearing those songs performed that well in that intimate of a setting was as mystical and magical as a Roger Dean album cover. Plus, it put the bug back in me about the Zappa tribute band.

And finally, I learned something at the Diver show at Cullen's on Saturday. I learned that you cannot pour a proper pint of Guinness in the amount of time it takes to get from the beginning of "Chasing Cars" from Snow Patrol to when the drums come in. Also, I've apparently been reduced to a drinking game where you take a swig every time I hit my splash cymbal. Not sure how I feel about that.

3.12   monday
Justin Timberlake with Pink (Allstate Arena)
I actually liked the wardrobe malfunction song from his last record, but "SexyBack" makes me want to hit somebody, which makes me think the problem is Timbaland and his harmonically-challenged production.

TV On The Radio with Subtle (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
Speaking of harmonically-challenged, I still don't get this band. I've listened to their critically-acclaimed record from last year, and I just haven't found a way into it yet. When you've got something this obtuse and/or unfamiliar, you need to find some sort of hook that can draw you in and help you understand where it's coming from. I feel like I don't have an appropriate context.

3.13   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
So, did you see the big Open Mic story in the Tribune on Friday? Tony got a lot of love, but I think Glen edited me out because I told him I never buy newspapers anymore. And you knew they were going to use the picture of someone doing a Jäger bomb while they're playing. That was inevitable. And not online, unfortunately. This week's theme? How about current events? So anything from Boston (Brad Delp, RIP), Sparta (300 tops the box office) or songs about lying (Scooter Libby, because there probably aren't songs explicitly about outing a CIA agent).

The Ataris with Asobi Seksu, Blackpool Lights, Wax on Radio (The Vic)
I forget if this band preceded Atari Teenage Riot in the retro-name derby. It looks like Atari Teenage Riot actually got a record out first, if allmusic.com is to be believed. And Asobi Seksu keeps turning up here in town. I vaguely remember liking what I've heard from them to date, and probably said that exact same thing last time.

Justin Timberlake with Pink (Allstate Arena)
See Monday's listing.

TV On The Radio with Subtle (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
See Monday's listing.

3.14   wednesday
Alison Breitman with James F. Curley, John Hasbrouck (Uncommon Ground)
I still don't really have anything on Breitman other than Dana Lawrence Gillis really likes her a lot. That'll be enough for me to go check her out, but I'll probably wait for a full band show, because I know she's got a really good drummer. That's important to me, for obvious reasons.

3.15   thursday
Harry Connick Jr. and his Big Band (Chicago Theatre)   SOLD OUT!
I guess it's been somewhat satisfying to see Connick get past the early criticisms that he was just ripping off Frank Sinatra. Having thought that myself, I guess you do have to start somewhere. Nowadays, Connick has been very involved in efforts to provide aid to his native New Orleans.

Of Montreal with Walter Meego, Grand Buffet (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
I really, really hope there's some punk or indie band playing clubs in Montreal that calls themselves "Of Athens, GA" or something like that. I don't know if the "second wave" of Elephant 6 bands subscribe to the same brand of ork pop as the first, but it's as good a starting point as any.

3.16   friday
30 Seconds to Mars with The Used, Senses Fail, Saosin, Aiden, Chiodos and Evaline (Aragon Ballroom)   SOLD OUT!
I didn't see the set, but I heard reports that Jared Leto's band's set was either one of the highest or one of the lowest points of this summer's Lollapalooza. I don't know what to make of that, but apparently there were enough people holding the former opinion to move 5,000 tickets, because I don't see anyone else on this bill driving an Aragon sellout.

The Atari Star with The Fake Fictions, The Blissters, Arctic Sleep (Beat Kitchen)
At this point, isn't the Atari thing (see Tuesday) played out? Or is it meta-retro, in that it's harkening back to those halcyon days of 1997? Incidentally, I think The Blissters is Jeff Tweedy's kid's band. That or the band that had the same name but added an 's' or something. I don't totally remember the story.

Great Big Sea (Riviera Theatre)
Technically, they're from Newfoundland, but they're from the Irish part of the Canadian province, so the music is keeping in the spirit of the holiday weekend. Plus, they played "Run Run Away" from Slade when I saw them at Bumbershoot, which was pretty cool.

The Assembly (Mix)
I note this only because I thought The Assembly was 100% originals, which makes the choice of venue, which I thought was primarily cover bands, somewhat interesting.

Freddy Jones Band with Backyard Tire Fire (The Vic)
Wow, these guys are still around? Somebody requested a song from this band on Saturday. If any of you were thinking of doing the same, I'll save you some time. We don't know any Freddy Jones Band songs. Or any Kenny Rogers. Seriously, Kenny Rogers?

Harry Connick Jr. and his Big Band (Chicago Theatre)
See Thursday's listing, only not sold out.

3.17   saturday
Diver (Fado)   SEE COZ LIVE!
On the one hand, I'm looking forward to what will undoubtedly be an absolutely packed house for this gig. On the other, I'm dreading getting my drums from the street to the stage. We go on earlier than usual, at 8pm, and it's $10 to get in, but you get $10 in drink credits with your admission. So it's a sort of unofficial two-drink minimum.

Muck Bros. with Delafields (Martyrs')
Since the demise of the Drovers, I think these guys have been one of the longest-running Irish rock bands in the city. My defining moment for them remains a version of "Bad" from U2 where they sang "they're fucking wankers" over the chords at the end. At a street festival, no less.

The Saw Doctors with Stonelakes (The Vic)
If local rock bands aren't traditional enough for you on St. Patrick's Day, there's always this bar-band done good from County Galway.

The Roots with Lupe Fiasco (Chicago Theatre)
One of these things is not like the other. I could try to work in a Black Donnellys reference, but I gave up on it after the pilot.

3.18   sunday
The Most Dangerous Race with 0+1=Everything, The Countdown (Subterranean)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
No, I don't think this new band is a tie-in for the new Fox TV series Drive. In fact, it's a local supergroup of sorts from drummer Matt Walker (Smashing Pumpkins, Filter, Garbage, Morrissey, etc.) featuring Steve Gerlach (Phantom Helmsman, Cane Corso), Larry Schroeder (Regal Standard, Matt Hoffer) and J.T. McCluskey.