list.in.to.chicago this week: 10.27.2008

If someone can explain to me why Coheed and Cambria can support four shows at the Riviera, please let me know. It's making my head hurt.

Pick of the week
It would be Kings of Leon (Friday, Aragon) if there were tickets available. And I'll most likely be at Yeasayer tomorrow night at Bottom Lounge.

list.in.to.COZ
No Vaughan's this week, most likely, so I might drop in at The Globe on Wednesday for the annual Halloween-themed tunes.

Recap
I didn't really know what to expect from TV on the Radio on Wednesday. I like their songs, the texture in their music, and they've got good stage presence and a charismatic singer, but I felt like they lacked the punch of a really strong rhythm section that could take them over the edge. Then again, it might be because I was up in the balcony with a guy sitting in front and to the left of me that could only be described as King of the Douchebags. And openers The Dirtbombs were awful.

Friday's show from Secret Machines was good, but not great. The mix was weird -- the vocals somehow weren't centered well -- and my bartender friend was complaining that they brought their own sound engineer, which could explain it. Plus, they didn't play anything from Ten Silver Drops until the encore. Ben Curtis' absence was noticeable, but David Garza is a Bonham-esque monster on drums that made me not care so much. I liked The Dears enough to further investigate their somewhat psychedelic rock, and felt bad for them as they struggled with a balky amp. One tune was almost a dead ringer for something off of Radiohead's OK Computer, but not in a bad way.

As an aside, I'm starting to get tired of these sixty-minutes-plus-encore headlining sets from any band with more than two albums of material. Would 75 minutes kill you? It makes that marathon Mars Volta show from earlier this year stand out even more.

10.27   monday
Of Montreal with Sinkane (Riviera Theatre)
Time for the obligatory cranky rant about how I don't like bands that use geographic locations having nothing to do with where they're from.

Office with The Living Blue, Hardy Mums, Take The Panda (Schubas)
I think this is the next to last week for the residency, seeing as how they've Obama-fied the "O" in their name on posters, which leads me to believe they'll be doing this on the eve of the election.

10.28   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
Actually, this one will be "Friends of Coz" unless Yeasayer sells out. So it's going to be up to someone else to play "Scary Monsters" and "Werewolves of London" for Halloween.

Yeasayer with Chairlift (Bottom Lounge)
Out of all the bands that are infusing world music influences into nominally indie pop and rock, I think Yeasayer is probably one of the best, because it somehow sounds more natural. They weave a lot of sounds together particularly well. I only caught half of their Lollapalooza set, and I hope to rectify that if the show hasn't sold out.

Nikka Costa with Pictures and Sound (Park West)
The pint-sized neo-soul singer has a voice about ten times her height, and isn't afraid to use it. While it's always refreshing to hear traditional R&B/Funk from younger artists, when I saw her at Double Door a couple of years ago, I felt like she was too enamored with the overwhelming force of that powerful set of vocal cords.

Coheed and Cambria (Riviera Theatre)
Four nights at the Riv with no opening band? Seriously? For a poor man's Queensryche?

10.29   wednesday
Mest with Quietdrive, Rookie of the Year, The Ability (House of Blues)
The Blue Island-based pop-punk band is back in action on what they're calling the "One Night Stand" Tour, which seems to have originated from what was supposed to be a one-off reunion. It would be ironic if it wasn't so irritatingly overt.

Coheed and Cambria (Riviera Theatre)
See Tuesday's listing, and I still don't get it. I guess they're playing each of their four albums on successive nights, but shouldn't you wait until you've got an iconic catalog to try that stunt?

10.30   thursday
Halloweekend 2008 (Abbey Pub)
The annual tradition continues, with B1g T1me as Tom Waits, Jinx Titanic as Meat Loaf, Canasta as The Decemberists, All City Affairs as George Michael, The Webstirs as The Flaming Lips, The Delafields as Velvet Underground and The Getouts as Neil Young.

Donavon Frankenreiter with Sara Watkins (Double Door)
This guy wasn't on my radar until I had to learn one of his songs for a gig a couple of weeks back. Somebody's been listening to his Stevie Wonder records.

AC/DC with The Answer (Allstate Arena)   SOLD OUT!
I just need to state for the record that I'm not a fan of these deals where some band's new album is available exclusively at one store. And see the main notabbott.com music section for a dissection of Jim DeRogatis' arbitrariness in reviewing bands, as compared to Greg Kot.

GWAR with Kingdom of Sorrow, Toxic Holocaust (House of Blues)
If I have to explain who GWAR is to you, you're probably not going to want to go, but it's almost certainly the most appropriate show for Halloween, featuring over-the-top heavy metal with costumes and whatnot.

Coheed and Cambria (Riviera Theatre)
Four nights. I still can't wrap my head around this. That's 14,000 tickets.

10.31   friday
Kings of Leon with We Are Scientists, The Stills (Aragon Ballroom)   SOLD OUT!
I knew this was going to be a good show, but waited too long to buy tickets. Kings of Leon put on a standout set at Bonnaroo last year, and their new record warrants more than the cursory listen I've given it so far. Plus, openers We Are Scientists have probably released the best retro 80s album so far this year, blowing that godawful new Keane record out of the water.

Lupe Fiasco (Congress Theater)
Chicago's other favorite hip-hop son.

Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band with All Smiles, Matt Focht Band (The Vic)
I thought Bright Eyes was pretty much just Conor Oberst anyway, so I'm not sure if I understand what's different when he's operating under his real name. I'm sure his fans could explain it to me in excruciating detail, because that's what fans do.

Halloween Bash (Double Door)
I had thought the Double Door had stopped doing this, although it might be that Scott Lucas has stopped running the show, which was a big deal to the hipsterati. With The Sleepers as Aerosmith, Blackbox as Michael Jackson, The Midnight Shows as Eddie Money, My Cold Dead Hand as The Cramps, The Slingerhead Ride as Tom Waits.

Halloweekend 2008 (Abbey Pub)
With Dead Electric as AC/DC, Bon Mots as Tom Petty, Fringe Benefits as The Cars, Phil Angotti as The Who, Nicholas Tremulis as The New York Dolls, John Aselin as Tommy James and the Shondells and Avalanche Rescue Team as The Smiths.

Coheed and Cambria (Riviera Theatre)
I mean, I noticed a bit of a rabid niche following for these guys a while ago, but not enough to move 14,000 tickets. The alternative -- asking fans to shell out money for all four shows -- is going to be a tough sell in this economy.

11.01   saturday
Mavis Staples with Booker T. and the MGs (Harris Theater)
You can go see Nikka Costa or Donavon Frankenreiter this week for some neo-soul, or you can see the real thing.

OneRepublic with Augustana, The Spill Canvas, The Hush Sound (House of Blues)
Our downsized show of the week, originally scheduled for the Riviera. This one features one band I actually like quite a lot in The Hush Sound. Two other shows for Saturday appear to have been canceled outright, at Metro and Martyrs'.

Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band with All Smiles, Matt Focht Band (The Vic)
See Friday's listing.

AC/DC with The Answer (Allstate Arena)   SOLD OUT!
See Thursday's listing.

11.02   sunday
Dungen with Headdress (Bottom Lounge)
Pyschedelic rock from Sweden, because, why not? I think I may have a track buried somewhere on my iPod.

Zu with Yakuza, Rempis Percussion Quartet (Empty Bottle)
I don't know a thing about the headliner, but I'm curious about any bill that has both an avant-metal band and a percussion quartet on it.