list.in.to.chicago this week: 05.25.2009

Sad news about Jay Bennett's passing. Hope you're having a happy Memorial Day in spite of that.

Pick of the week
I have to give a shout to Booty Movement Coalition tonight at Martyrs', which is where you'll find me finishing off my, um, 52-day-and-counting weekend. Tomorrow's Yeah Yeah Yeahs show at the Aragon is a no-brainer. As is Nine Inch Nails on Friday at Northerly Island if you can find tickets, and on a scale of 1 to 10, the Michael McKeon, Christopher Guest and Harry Shearer show on Saturday at Chicago Theatre undoubtedly goes to 11.

list.in.to.COZ
Just Vaughan's this week. I think the next proper show with a band will be with Sugar Beat again at Fado on June 6th.

Recap
I've been focusing on getting my daytime routine down, post-day job, so I sorta didn't get out to see anything last week. These things happen.

5.25   monday
Booty Movement Coalition (Martyrs')   FRIENDS OF COZ!
It's the last Monday of May, which can only mean one thing. Okay, two things. It's Memorial Day, and it's time for the monthly mess of improvised funk/acid-jazz/hip-hop/rock that is the unfortunately named Booty Movement Coalition. This will be my third time seeing them, which should give me a better idea of who's actually in the band and who's guesting.

5.26   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
I'm going to make Andrew feel guilty by saying this, but hopefully this week we have a P.A. system. Still, lack of proper amplification didn't stop us last week, even when the power went out briefly while Noy was singing.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs with Grand Ole Party (Aragon Ballroom)
There are lot more synths on the new record from Karen O and Yeah Yeah Yeahs, but they do a good job of switching gears from their more guitar-based records. I like It's Blitz! a lot, but at the same time, the record doesn't seem to stick with me. The hooks aren't quite there for some reason. Still, the band is supposed to be fantastic live, and the switch of venue from The Riviera means there are still tickets available as of this writing.

The Tragically Hip (The Vic)
I wonder if the entire nation of Canada still holds a grudge against Reader music writer Peter Margasak for slagging these guys some ten years ago. Can Canadians even hold grudges?

5.27   wednesday
The Tragically Hip (The Vic)
See Tuesday's listing. At the risk of similarly incurring the wrath of our neighbors to the north, does The Tragically Hip really warrant two nights at this big of a venue in 2009?

5.28   thursday
Bret Michaels (Joe's Bar)
Does the success of Rock of Love mean more touring from Bret Michaels in smaller venues, and less nostalgia tours from Poison? If so, I'm willing to make that trade-off. If not, please, please make it stop! Not that I ever go see shows at the outdoor sheds, but it's the principle of the thing.

5.29   friday
Nine Inch Nails with Street Sweeper (Charter One Pavilion)   SOLD OUT!
This is one of the few markets where we didn't get the combination NIN/JA tour with Jane's Addiction, but that's fine. Trent Reznor has a slightly different band than he did last year at Lollapalooza, but the actual personnel are somewhat secondary to the full audio/visual experience, which was as good or better in that Lolla set than any band I've seen.

Doves with Wild Light (The Vic)
I've been meaning to give this band a listen for a while, but they're just far enough down the list that I haven't gotten to them yet. I liked one album I had heard a couple of years ago, as they've got a slightly heavier English take on indie rock. I think.

Kill Hannah with Powerspace, Comasoft (Double Door)
I don't want to start any rumors, but I'm pretty sure a Kill Hannah guitarist did some time on the road with Nine Inch Nails, so I wouldn't rule out the idea that Trent might stop by Bucktown once he gets done on the lakefront.

Camera Obscura with Agent Ribbons (Metro)
Critics seem to really like this band, but I can't remember if I've ever checked them out.

Third Eye Blind with Low vs. Diamond (Riviera Theatre)
I've actually heard good things about up-and-comers Low vs. Diamond, so why the heck are they touring with a bunch of 90s middle-of-the-road rockers? Did they lose a bet or something?

5.30   saturday
Unwigged and Unplugged: An Evening with Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer (Chicago Theatre)
The trio will be playing songs from This Is Spinal Tap and A Mighty Wind. I don't know if they'll be going in and out of character depending on the song, but that doesn't matter, does it?

Holding Mercury with Shirock, Calvary, Vitallight (Reggie's Rock Club)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
Potent, catchy rock tunes from Mr. Hoffer and his merry band. His bass player keeps popping up in the "People You May Know" box on Facebook, but I don't feel like I know him well enough to add him to my friends list. That sentence couldn't have even existed five years ago.

The Ladies and Gentlemen with Lovers, Rick Lane (Quenchers Saloon)
I think this is the second time I've seen this band at this venue, which makes me think they know somebody over there, because it's a bit off the beaten path of the "regular" original band circuit. Unless that circuit is expanding.

Meat Puppets with The Retribution Gospel Choir (Schubas)
This is part of the ongoing 20th Anniversary celebration for the intimate Lakeview music venue. I actually saw one of the guys from this band at this venue with Nirvana's Krist Novoselic in a band that it's probably better I don't remember the name of, because they were awful.

Holy Fuck with Crocodiles (Empty Bottle)
I thought this was the band that opened Lollapalooza last year, but the description on Wikipedia makes them sound a lot more experimental and electronic than the band I'm thinking of.

5.31   sunday
Frisbie (Simon's Tavern)
I'm guessing this will be Steve and Liam in a cozy bar up in Andersonville that's close to where one of them live, since I don't ever notice anyone else playing there.

Th' Legendary Shack Shakers with Catfish Haven, Tangleweed, Wabash Cannonballs (Double Door)
I've been promising Dave I'd see these guys for years now. I suck.

Gogol Bordello with Man Man (Congress Theater)
Oddly enough, this isn't your only crazy gypsy-circus music option this week, if the description of Caravan of Thieves at Schubas on Wednesday is accurate.

Meat Puppets with The Retribution Gospel Choir (Schubas)
See Saturday's listing.