list.in.to.chicago this week: 04.23.2007

In which our intrepid not-so-young-anymore writer starts to get really burned out, but you probably have no idea how often I think that before I set out writing this thing, only to wonder what the heck I was getting so down about once I'm finished. Could be a Monday thing.

Pick of the week
I was bummed that I had to miss Ted Leo and Pharmacists at Pitchfork last summer, so if I see anything this weekend, it'll likely be that on Saturday at Metro.

list.in.to.COZ
Back in business with Diver this week, as we come off a quiet stretch since St. Patrick's Day with three shows in four weeks. Blue Bayou this Friday, Fado next Friday, then back at the Bayou on May 18th.

Recap
While I like the band's electro-pop sound, I still think Helicopters, who I caught Thursday night at Wise Fools, would sound better with me playing drums. But I was mostly paying attention to the bigger spectacle of many co-workers who seemed to have been drinking since the end of the workday some five hours prior.

4.23   monday
Bright Eyes with Oakley Hall, McCarthy Trenching (Riviera Theatre)
One of these days I'm going to compile a list of singer/songwriters who don't use their own names, with Conor Oberst being way up on that particular list. And by "one of these days," I mean "never." Or right after I actually clean up both the notabbott and diver websites, which is roughly the same thing.

Ghostland Observatory with Popstatic (Schubas)
I may or may not have seen this band right out of the gate at Lollapalooza last year, and I might have enjoyed them quite a bit, but I never did go back and recap exactly what I did that weekend.

4.24   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
I don't think I've ever suffered a sore throat via a neck injury before, but the long and short of it is that it doesn't seem to be going away, so I'll likely take this week off. Tentative theme for next week is "Blame Canada," which is just a convenient excuse for me to learn Rush tunes.

Bright Eyes with Oakley Hall, McCarthy Trenching (Riviera Theatre)
See Monday's listing. Not coincidentally, Oberst has a new record that just came out last week.

4.25   wednesday
Million Yen with Tenniscourts, Eric and The Implants, Mark Watson Band, Kevin Lee, Nine-Fifty (Abbey Pub)
First off, I now believe that the International Pop Overthrow festival lasts until August or so. Second, Million Yen is still around?

Paul Wertico Trio (FitzGerald's, Berwyn)
These guys seem to be popping up more and more lately. Don't know if that means an album is on the way, or if they're prepping with the new bass player to go into the studio, or what.

4.26   thursday
Metromix Rock 'n' Vote Concert (Double Door)
If the bands they picked for their contest -- in this case, Animate Objects, The Saps, White Hot Knife and The Wiitala Brothers -- are anything like the website and its print sibling Red Eye, they'll be shallow, vapid and trying way too hard to be hip. For the bands' sake, I hope they're not.

Say Anything with Saves the Day, The Dear Hunter (Metro)
I think they should just play the whole show holding boomboxes over their heads.

4.27   friday
Diver (Blue Bayou)   SEE COZ LIVE!
I'm going to stop teasing this idea that we may have new songs. After probably the tenth cancellation of our fourth- or fifth-ever rehearsal, it's just not going to happen. The old songs are going to have to be good enough.

Naked Raygun (House of Blues)
Two shows for the Chicago punk legends, with the Bollweevils, The Effigies, Shot Baker on the early bill and Dillinger Four and The Bollweevils on the nightcap.

Shellac with Dianogah, Sound On Sound (Subterranean)   SOLD OUT!
Speaking of Chicago punk legends, it's everyone's favorite local cranky recording engineer! I think this is the first show the band has played since the Touch and Go anniversary at the Hideout Block Party, although now I'm not sure if it was Shellac, Big Black, or both at that particular festival.

The Ladies and Gentlemen with Suffrajett, The States, Waste (Double Door)
I think I may have to designate this band as my favorite local band until someone else knocks them off, but then what would I write about when all those other candidates play? You don't expect me to give you a substantive preview of what they sound like, do you?

A Birdsong Valentine with On The Front, Lucious Warbaby, Disonic (Elbo Room)
I haven't been quite as bombarded with promotional materials by these guys this time, but there's still nearly a week before the show. And I feel like I know who Disonic is, but it's escaping me right now.

Ghost Pilot (Quenchers)
I remember that Phantom Helmsman staged a sort of mini-reunion show under the name Mystery Driver, so I have to wonder if this could have anything to do with that band.

Lordi (Metro)
I kind of wish there was a home Cubs game just to witness any sort of interaction between Cub fans and whatever kind of crowd an operatic heavy metal band from Sweden might attract.

4.28   saturday
Ted Leo and Pharmacists with Love of Diagrams (Metro)
The new record from Leo is definitely one of the few that has piqued my interest so far this year. He's just a really solid songwriter -- harmonically, melodically and lyrically -- without getting too self-absorbed in the notion that he's a really solid songwriter, if that makes any sense. The shorter version is that he doesn't try to be too clever, at least to my ears.

Trans Am with Zombi, Psychic Paramount (Empty Bottle)
Seeing as how the band trafficks -- pun not intended initially, but once I thought about it, absolutely -- in Tortoise-esque post-rock, it would be awesome to see them tour with Maserati.

Air This Side Of Caution with Dave Tamkin and Co., Hotel 45, Chris Buehrle (Double Door)
If I had more free time and inclination, I would track these bands that I see as being mostly good but with some flaws more closely to see if they iron out the rough parts. In Air's case, I think they got away from being a little too heavily influenced by Jeff Buckley, but last time I saw them, still suffered a little bit from overplaying by their drummer. And every time I bring that up, I feel like I need to point out that, yes, I'm hypersensitive to this because I used to play a lot of notes myself.

4.29   sunday
Nicholas Barron's Hyperactive (Long Room)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
Not that any of his previous albums weren't self-released, but I'm curious to see if, in this era of MySpace and with the New York Times thing, Nicholas' new record is gaining any sort of traction anywhere.