list.in.to.chicago this week: 06.23.2008

I managed to catch an earlier flight, so I didn't have as much downtime in the airport as I thought. So I'll make this quick.

Pick of the week
I think the Belmont Arts Festival on Sunday, when American Music Club and Smoking Popes headline, sounds like the best of the bunch this week.

list.in.to.COZ
If you're really hurting for some Coz tunes, I have an original song on my myspace page.

Recap
Well, now I know some Diver songs on guitar. Just in case. I rocked the Open Jam hosting duties, if I do say so myself.

6.23   monday
Mavis Staples (Hideout)
You still might have time to make it out to this intimate live recording of the soul legend.

Sloan with The Golden Dogs (Double Door)
One of Canada's better-kept power-pop secrets, or so I've been told.

6.24   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
I'm out this week, but that doesn't mean you should stay home.

Liz Phair (The Vic)   SOLD OUT!
She's revisiting her breakthrough album, Exile on Guyville. I saw her back then, so I hope she's not recreating her crappy live performances from that era.

6.25   wednesday
Liquid Tension Experiment (Park West)
It's the return of a bunch of guys from Dream Theater and Tony Levin, playing a lot of notes in a small amount of time. Reading Tony Levin's online diary -- he was blogging back before it was called blogging -- is instructive in how he sort of vaguely remembers what he's recorded in in projects like these.

Love and Squalor with Off With Their Heads, The Brokedowns, Das Kapital (Beat Kitchen)
I have nothing to say except that I want this band to tour with We Are Scientists, because their first record was called With Love and Squalor and then the tour would be "We Are Scientists with Love and Squalor." Yes, I'm easily amused. Yes, we already knew that.

6.26   thursday
Tom McCarthy with The Renegades, Blink (Martyrs')
I still really would like to see the Blue Man Group accompanist doing his own thing one of these weeks. There was something about his poise playing the Robert Fripp parts with Tributosaurus when they were David Bowie that screamed out quality and proficiency.

New Duncan Imperials with Gin Palace Jesters, Hillbilly Idle (Bottom Lounge)
I'm not sure you can call them a novelty act any more, seeing as how they've been on the scene for at least fifteen years, if not longer.

6.27   friday
Blondie (Lincoln Park Zoo)
That last comeback was kind of painful, so I'm hoping they've recognized that and tried to fix it as the band celebrates some anniversary of the release of Parallel Lines.

Singing Sirens (The Grill, Highwood)
It's not often that I plug shows in the 'burbs, but it's not often that I get e-mails from Dana Lawrence Gillis -- half of the Singing Sirens along with Lisa Zarov from Soma Star -- asking me to really nicely.

Marshall Crenshaw (Schubas)
He was one of those eighties singer-songwriters that didn't quite make the MTV level of fame, along with Nick Lowe and Dave Edmunds.

Rock Star Club with The Rosedales, Shot Gun Elvis (Cubby Bear)
Haven't seen a show from these guys in quite a while. I'd say they're Friends of Coz, going back to the URT days, but they never seemed particularly friendly in a badass outlaw rock and roll way.

Cursive with Lacona (Subterranean)   SOLD OUT!
And indoor show from the Omaha band in advance of the festival gig on Saturday. I liked what I heard from them at Lollapalooza two years ago, but haven't found my way into their recorded output.

6.28   saturday
Belmont Arts and Music Fest (Belmont between Damen and Leavitt)
This is one of the better-curated street festivals out there, with a Saturday lineup including Sybris, Cursive and The Redwalls. Contrast that with the festival this past weekend at Clark and Armitage that featured Elevation, 16 Candles and Maggie Speaks. I hope the pendulum is swinging back towards what BAM! is doing.

Orchestra Baobab (Pritzker Pavilion)
The legendary Senegalese ensemble is touring the U.S., having played Bonnaroo this month and playing in New York City while I'm in town, I think.

The Dials with Johnny and the Limelights (Double Door)
The ebullient female-fronted pop-punk band has been making strides over the last three or four years. Not to keep harping on it, but isn't this the kind of band that should have played MOBfest last week? Since they seem to have their own thing going on, do they need to buy into the "showcase with us to get discovered" sales pitch? Do bands like this even try to throw their hats into the ring? I know it sounds like I'm just picking on the festival, but I just don't get it. Maybe I've been totally spoiled by SXSW and set the bar for anything like this way too high.

6.29   sunday
Belmont Arts and Music Fest (Belmont between Damen and Leavitt)
Sunday's lineup is capped by American Music Club, The Smoking Popes -- both with new records that are getting good buzz, along with Anne Harris, Air This Side of Caution and others.

dd/mm/yyyy with Cacaw, Bret Gand is Dead (Empty Bottle)
Cool name, but lots of potential for it to mess with automated data entry systems.