list.in.to.chicago this week: 11.10.2008

Sorry for the lateness, but notabbott.com was down for a bit this afternoon. Anyway, today was another "new music" day for me, and I have to say, I'm really digging the new records from The Cure and Travis. School of Seven Bells and Kaiser Chiefs a little less so, and Snow Patrol is pretty much exactly what you would expect from them, for better or worse.

Pick of the week
I'd be more interested in Kaiser Chiefs on Thursday at Park West if it were at, say, Metro. Park West just doesn't feel quite right. And there's a chance I'll end up at one of the Robyn Hitchcock shows at the Old Town School of Folk Music on Saturday. He's got great between-song banter, on top of, you know, the songs and stuff.

list.in.to.COZ
I should be making my triumphant return to Vaughan's this week, where I'm sure they've missed me terribly, but that may be it until Diver plays at Fado on December 6th, probably as an acoustic trio.

Recap
I didn't do a goddamn thing this weekend. It was awesome. From Friday night until Monday morning, I think I left the house a total of three times. As for the big event Tuesday night, I will say that, based on my experience, both Radiohead and Daft Punk had better lights at that particular venue, but Barack Obama had better songs. So to speak.

11.10   monday
Eagles of Death Metal with The Duke Spirit (Bottom Lounge)
I think the full quote that gave Josh Homme's "other" band their name was "well, if we're death metal, we're the Eagles of death metal."

11.11   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
I was thinking of continuing my hiatus this week, but then I looked at the date, and realized that, in the immortal words of Nigel Tufnel, "this one goes to eleven." So, in honor of 11/11, bring your best Spinal Tap renditions. I call "All The Way Home."

Joan Baez (Symphony Center)
Do you get the feeling that all the folkies and hippies are going to release entirely pleasant albums that aren't protesting anything in the next year?

11.12   wednesday
Gov't Mule (The Venue, Hammond, IN)
So, it turns out that the guy who runs this new room is a friend of mine, so I may need to stop making snarky comments about a place in Indiana calling itself a Chicago venue.

Wes John Cichosz (Uncommon Ground on Clark)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
First time I've seen Wes -- either with his full name or with the "Wes John Trio" -- listed anywhere in a while, so hopefully this will become a trend, since his old band the e-mics were one of the smartest pop bands in the city back in their day.

Kick the McGee with Bumpus (Martyrs')
Yep, it's a combination of Kick the Cat and Umphrey's McGee.

Soloing Over Alanis Morissette with Health, Oakeater (AV-aerie)
Okay, I'm intrigued.

11.13   thursday
Kaiser Chiefs with Oxford Collapse (Park West)
I just got done with my first listen to the new record from the Leeds quintet. My gut reaction is that I like it better than Yours Truly, The Angry Mob.

Ravi Coltrane Quartet (Jazz Showcase)
The last time I saw John Coltrane's son, I think it was with Elvin Jones at the Jazz Festival. It had to be almost ten years ago.

Tall Dark Stranger with The Names That Spell, Cartright, Dorsey (Reggie's Rock Club)
Still garnering the most second-degree connections of any band I can think of, as I know lots of people who know these guys.

11.14   friday
The Hold Steady with Drive-by Truckers (Riviera Theatre)
For all the critical acclaim that Stay Positive has gotten, I would have figured this one would have sold out. I sorta get it, but still think the band borrows so much from Bruce Springsteen as to be derivative of rather than influenced by The Boss, and I can't get past that.

Regal Standard with Baby Teeth, The Astronomer (Hideout)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
So, Larry's back, and the big news for me is that Jason Narducy is now on board in whatever iteration this is of the Regal Standard.

Three6 Mafia with Kardinal Official, Baby Bash, Ray J (Congress Theater)
Probably the only artist this week to have won an Oscar.

Ravi Coltrane Quartet (Jazz Showcase)
See Thursday's listing.

11.15   saturday
Robyn Hitchcock (Old Town School of Folk Music)
The former Soft Boy and leader of the Egyptians still boasts the best song I've ever heard that is nominally about cheese. Two shows in Lincoln Square.

Deerhunter with Times New Viking, Disappears (Metro)
Only just getting to their new record today, and out of the gate, it sounds an awful lot like The Flaming Lips, but more subdued and organically atmospheric -- as opposed to electronically atmostpheric -- once it gets going. I can tell you that I'm not a fan of Times New Viking. A bit too indistinctly noisy, although I'm not sure what "distinctly noisy" would sound like.

Dear and the Headlights with Steel Train, Forgive Durden, Empires (Bottom Lounge)
An early show on the west side, and I would have much preferred that they toured with Deerhunter, since that would have been funny. I either saw them last year at Lolla, or wanted to and missed them. Check the reviews page, I'm sure it's there.

The Sea and Cake with Death Vessel (Empty Bottle)
Being on Thrill Jockey and having some members in common, I expected this band to sound more like Tortoise, and once I realized that they didn't, I haven't really been able to reset my expectations properly.

The Artist Formerly Known As Vince with The Ladies and Gentlemen (Quencher's)
Metromix has this listed simply as "TAFKAV," which either means this show is only for his most die-hard fans, or somebody took a shortcut somewhere. Or, the homage has gotten to the point where they've replaced their name with something unpronounceable. And this may not be the first time I've made that same observation.

Pegboy with Report Suspicious Activity, Iron Reminders, Four Star Alarm (Beat Kitchen)
The Chicago punk stalwarts are good for a couple of shows a year, it would seem.

Video Games Live (Chicago Theatre)
I think I read about this in Wired, but the premise is that, somehow, the music from various video games will be performed. Maybe the Section 8 kids from Fire games can get tickets and brush up on their Tetris theme. And I would hope that, if that one does get played, it speeds up over time.

All Time Low with Mayday Parade, The Maine, Every Avenue, The Morning Light (House of Blues)   SOLD OUT!
Two sold out shows from a band I've never heard at, at this particular venue, usually means suburb-friendly emo or punk-pop, and this one is no exception. No songs featured on shows on the CW, as near as I can tell.

Ravi Coltrane Quartet (Jazz Showcase)
See Thursday's listing.

11.16   sunday
Brian Wilson (Chicago Theatre)
The former Beach Boy has become damn near prolific in the last couple of years, finally releasing the long-awaited Smile and the followup, That Lucky Old Sun.

Ravi Coltrane Quartet (Jazz Showcase)
See Thursday's listing, plus matinee.

All Time Low with Mayday Parade, The Maine, Every Avenue, The Morning Light (House of Blues)   SOLD OUT!
See Saturday's listing.