list.in.to.chicago this week: 05.11.2009

AT&T swears I'll have my DSL up and running after 11 days in the new apartment by 8pm tonight, so in the meantime, l.i.t.c. comes to you live from the WiFi-enabled Globe Pub, with two rather large mugs of Spaten Maibock helping out the proceedings.

Pick of the week
The two I'd be most likely to point out -- Ben Harper on Saturday and Bruce Springsteen tomorrow -- are sold out, so the next level would probably be Lady Sovereign (Thursday at Metro), Regal Standard (Saturday at Schubas) and maybe King Khan & The Shrines (Friday at Bottom Lounge). And the Manifest Festival down at Columbia College all day Friday sounds intriguing. The real sleeper is probably Dag Juhlin and Jason Narducy at some bar called Simon's up in Andersonville on Sunday night, mostly because they're both really good and I have no idea what they're on about with this show.

list.in.to.COZ
I'll be sitting in with Gareth Woods and Sugar Beat this Saturday at Fado, and should make it to Vaughan's a bit later on Tuesday, unless Bruce goes long.

Recap
Sound checks are important. We didn't have one for the Andrew Fraker & Sons show on Friday at Cubby Bear, and so I had to deal with an inhuman amount of kick drum in my monitor for the first three songs, to the point where I blew the ending of one of them. Once we got a handle on the stage volume, things went pretty well, and I doubt anyone noticed the technical issues of the early going anyway. Fun time had by all, although I need to build up that muscle between my thumb and forefinger so I'm not playing with a fist by the end of the night.

5.11   monday
Pontiak with Thrones, Helen Money (Empty Bottle)
I've seen two different mentions of this shoegazer/psychedelic duo as being something worth checking out, so take that for what it's worth.

5.12   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
Should be along later after the Bruce show, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't go.

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (United Center)   SOLD OUT!
I've said for a while now that Bruce is someone I'd like to see live, but given how quickly tickets tend to sell out, it would almost have to be someone I know offering me a ticket. Which is exactly what happened for this show, and I'm getting a bit psyched up for it.

Madina Lake with Chips 'N Salsa (Subterranean)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
On the one hand, I'm not entirely sure if the emo/active rock/screamo sound that the former Blank Theory brothers were plying the last time I saw them is still all that popular. On the other hand, that they're having their free, all-ages CD release party at Subterranean on a Tuesday night answers a big chunk of that question.

Iron & Wine with Katie Stelmanis (Lakeshore Theatre)   SOLD OUT!
Part of me wants to confuse the sorta indie-folk singer/songwriter with 70s and 80s Canadian rockers April Wine. I think it's the beard.

Katie Melua with David Berkeley (Schubas)   SOLD OUT!
A friend of mine is/was into Melua -- who strikes me as having a bit of a cabaret streak in her, if I remember it right -- but she also really likes Snow Patrol, so draw your own conclusions.

5.13   wednesday
Ben Lee with Low vs. Diamond, Dawes (Bottom Lounge)
I remember hearing some buzz on Low vs. Diamond last year, but was never able to track down their record on Rhapsody or EMusic, so I don't know if it was justified. And Ben Lee is one of those people I've heard about forever, but I don't think I've ever heard. Mostly because, as I've said before, I get him confused with Ben Kweller.

Napalm Death with Kataklysm, Toxic Holocaust, Abigail Williams, Trap Them (House of Blues)
Chalk this one up to "bands I didn't know still existed," but it's not like I follow extreme/black metal, so I think I've got a credible excuse. Sorry, Dario. And I was wondering what someone named "Abigail Williams" might be doing on a bill like this, but apparently it's a metal band from Arizona named after one of the "foremost accusers in the Salem witch trials."

Iron & Wine with Disappears (Schubas)   SOLD OUT!
I'm guessing this was added after the Lakeshore Theatre show sold out, and not the other way around, or one of those "consecutive nights in slightly smaller venues" deals.

5.14   thursday
Lady Sovereign with Chester French, Hollywood Holt (Metro)
I have to admit, I sort of like the idea of Lady Sovereign more than I like her enough to actually listen to her. Although I did rip the CD I gave my sister for Christmas a couple of years ago, and she really likes it. She -- Lady Sov, not my sister -- should also have looked into copyrighting "pint-sized British rapper" when she started to make it big, because that's inevitably how she gets described.

Owl City with Lydia, Swimming with Dolphins (Subterranean)   SOLD OUT!
This is one of those indie/electronica bands that's popular with enough hipsters to sell out without anyone else knowing who the heck they are. They sold out Schubas last time they were here, and they still don't even have a Wikipedia entry.

Mike Watt and the Missingmen (Schubas)
I'm going to guess that noted punk bassist Mike Watt wanted to reunite the Minutemen, but it didn't happen for some reason.

5.15   friday
Manifest Festival (South Loop)
Hat top to Jim DeRogatis for pointing to this Columbia College music festival, with two outdoor stages going all day and 17 acts that are all tied to the school, which is a bit of a departure from previous festivals.

King Khan and the Shrines with Mark Sultan, Maximum Wage (Bottom Lounge)
I saw this band over the summer in New York, and it struck me as a hipsterrific take on James Brown, which actually kind of worked, but your tolerance for hipsters may vary.

Pegboy with The Bollweevils, Anxiety High (Metro)
It's almost getting past the point of saying "hey, look, Pegboy is back." They may just be back in this for the long haul. Still, they're pretty much as seminal as you get with the Chicago punk scene.

Roger McGuinn with Amilia K. Spicer (Old Town School of Folk Music)
Another good "get" for the Old Town School, with one of the main guys from The Byrds. Metromix is not good at telling you if a show at this venue is sold out, so call ahead.

The Bon Mots with The Midnight Shows, Jeff Mangum Appreciation Society (Subterranean)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
Despite the fact that I was in a band with Chris Frantisak, this band strikes me as the epitome of why I'm not really a "part" of the Chicago music scene, because I feel like they're sort of an institution among many people intrinsically connected to local music, and yet I've never seen them.

Testament with Unearth, Lazarus A.D. (House of Blues)
Apparently it's a big metal week at House of Blues. Even odds that Dario just sets up a cot or something and never leaves.

Chevelle with Blue October (The Venue, Hammond, IN)
I keep waiting for a show I want to see at the new Live Nation venue down at the Horseshoe Casino -- or some casino, anyway -- and this one is starting to at least get closer.

Chin Up Chin Up with Tight Phantomz, Sleep Out, Rain Delay Theatre (Empty Bottle)
I'm pretty sure I read that these guys are breaking up, so if this isn't your last chance to see them live, it's pretty close.

5.16   saturday
Gareth Woods/Sugar Beat (Fado Irish Pub)   SEE COZ LIVE!
Sitting in with Gareth and company again. Last time was fun, other than me blowing the first tune. There will be Diver shows at Fado in the future, but I haven't gotten them up on the site yet.

Regal Standard with Coupleskate, Heypenny (Schubas)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
I've been told this is the last local show for the band for a while, so check 'em out while you can. Hopefully, not-so-secret weapon Jason Narducy will have gotten over his cold by this point.

Ben Harper and Relentless7 with The Henry Clay People (The Vic)   SOLD OUT!
This is supposed to be rocking a lot harder than the Innocent Criminals -- Harper's usual backing band -- but I haven't had a chance to check it out and see if that's borne out or not. Still, this is one of the few acts playing this year's Lollapalooza that I'd like to see, which, in turn, isn't quite enough for me to get tickets.

The Vaselines with The 1900s (Metro)
It is physically impossible to say anything about this band without mentioning Kurt Cobain and the Nirvana unplugged record. That's still the biggest reason anyone knows who they are.

Keane with Mat Kearney, The Helio Sequence (Aragon Ballroom)
I must once again point out that the new Keane record is total shite. Yeah Yeah Yeahs can pull off a switch to electronica. Keane cannot.

Disturbed with Killswitch Engage, Lacuna Coil, Chimaira (Charter One Pavilion)
Looks like outdoor concert season is upon us already, whether the weather is ready or not. I figure the mosh pit will generate enough heat that it'll compensate if spring continues to not cooperate.

The Effigies with Life Sentence, M.O.T.O., Iron Reminders (Reggie's Rock Club)
It's sort of a good week for seminal punk acts.

V.A.S.T. with Endless Hallway (Beat Kitchen)
Two shows in a small club from the guy who was pegged at one point to be the next Trent Reznor, but I think that's just because he had a somewhat industrial sound and said "fuck" in one of his songs.

5.17   sunday
Dag Juhlin and Jason Narducy (Simon's Tavern)
The former Slug and current Regal Standard sideman should make for an interesting show at this bar up on Clark Street in Andersonville.

India.Arie with Laura Izibor (House of Blues)
Okay, so maybe Dario won't camp out at HOB all week. And no, I don't know why I'm picking on him.