list.in.to.chicago this week: 10.05.2009

Okay, I forgot to mention last week that Andrew Fraker was singing the national anthem at Wrigley Field on Wednesday afternoon. He did such a good job of it that Ted Lilly seemed to forget how to pitch in the top of the first inning. Pictures, and maybe video, should make it up to the Andrew Fraker & Sons Facebook page sooner or later. If you become a fan over there, you'll know as soon as it happens!

Pick of the week
Thursday's show with Maxwell and Common at the United Center looks like it might be special. Which will be of no interest to you whatsoever if you're excited about all these Riot Fest shows.

list.in.to.COZ
I need to update the calendar on notabbott.com, because according to that, I don't have any upcoming gigs. Thankfully, that isn't the case, with Andrew Fraker & Sons at Martyrs' on October 21 and Diver at Fado on October 31.

Recap
I was sufficiently blown away by Living Colour last night. They blasted out of the gate with a bunch of songs from the first three records before Will Calhoun's drum solo transitioned them into a block of the new stuff, which seemed like a reasonable way to do it. And with the exception of one spot in that block where Vernon Reid's equipment wasn't cooperating, the band seemed to be enjoying themselves. Keep an eye out for pictures and maybe even a full review for once.

Openers Sekond Skyn didn't do anything that Korn or Disturbed hadn't done already, including the unlikely metal version of an 80s tune. In this case, "Down Under" from Men At Work, which didn't hold up well to that sort of treatment. For that style, though, they weren't all that bad. I felt bad that the drummer had to actually set up on the floor in front of the stage to accomodate Living Colour's gear.

Monday was Booty Movement Coalition, and with Sumo vet Clyde Davis sitting in on drums, the vibe felt even a bit more like that band, even with Lamar absent on bass. Jayh Johnson guested on vocals for one tune, which means I got to start my week vocally with Jayh and end it with Corey Glover. Not too shabby.

10.05   monday
Typhanie Monique Quartet (Jazz Showcase)
Well, it's too late for you to actually check her out this week, but the local singer - who fronts the aforementioned and unfortunately-named Booty Movement Coalition - has quite a few more traditional jazz gigs around town on a regular basis.

10.06   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
After last night, I wish I had more time to see if an acoustic version of "Nothingness" is at all possible. Not going to happen.

Yo La Tengo with Cheap Time (The Vic)
Both Pitchfork and Jim DeRogatis seem to agree that this Hoboken band is very important to the legacy of indie rock. One of those two makes that claim without dropping their name into reviews of bands that have nothing to do with them.

Typhanie Monique Trio (Andy's Jazz Club)
If I'm going to list her quartet on Monday when the list goes out too late for you to do much about it, it's only fair that I included the trio version on Tuesday night in River North. If she keeps this up, she'll be singing solo by Thursday.

10.07   wednesday
Tributosaurus (Martyrs')   FRIENDS OF COZ!
I'm not sure if they ended up playing downtown on Friday as originally scheduled after the non-event of the Olympics announcement, but here they're back to their usual first Wednesday night gig as The Doobie Brothers.

Holding Mercury (Angels & Kings)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
Matt Hoffer and his band are playing a free showcase being promoted by Ryan Manno, who may or may not still be a DJ on Q101.

Crawl with Matt Ulery's Loom, Lexicon (Reggie's Music Joint)
A bunch of really good musicians in this "groove-fusion" band, including the new rhythm section that's been backing up Nicholas Barron.

Ian Anderson (The Vic)
You have to figure that the Jethro Tull frontman leads a rough life, because he travels the world, and yet can never, ever sit on a park bench, lest he be mistaken for the guy on the cover of Aqualung, eying little girls.

Butthole Surfers with The House Gloria Vanderbilt, The Bomb, Blackbox (Metro)
It's been a while since I busted out one of my favorite stories about South By Southwest, where head Surfer Gibby Hayes was the announcer for the softball tournament. That was pretty surreal.

Kylie Minogue (UIC Pavilion)
This show was originally scheduled for the Congress Theater, but I'm guessing promoters realized that Kylie Minogue at the Congress Theater was just too frickin' weird. Or that Riot Fest took precedence.

10.08   thursday
Maxwell with Common, Chrisette Michele (United Center)
I get a sense that Maxwell sort of willed himself into being big enough to play arenas when came back from an 8-year recording hiatus, but given the buzz about him out of the gate, I'm not entirely surprised by it. And pairing up with Common makes this pretty much the best modern R&B show you're going to see in a while.

The Decemberists with Laura Veirs and the Hall of Fame (Riviera Theatre)
I'm pretty sure this is just a regular Decemberists show. No alternating nights with different motifs, no albums played in their entirety, just a normal concert from the band NPR would sound like if it were a band.

7 Seconds with Das Kapital, Vortis (Beat Kitchen)
More Riot Fest in Roscoe Village, although I still only really know 7 Seconds for their cover of "99 Luftballons," which means that a real fan of the band would probably punch me in the face.

10.09   friday
Taylor Swift (Allstate Arena)
I have heard from a reputable soure -- and by "reputable" I mean "totally made up" -- that after Kanye West canceled his tour with Lady Gaga, he will be occupying his time interrupting Taylor Swift on hers and saying how Beyonce had one of the best stage shows ever.

This Must Be The Band (Joe's)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
The Talking Heads tribute band seems to be everywhere lately, which means I can just sit tight and they'll end up playing in my living room or something.

Gyrating Bhtch with the Maybenauts (Morseland)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
All I really know about this band is that Soulfix drummer Dario Civinelli is involved, but given the name and some of the bands I know Dario likes, I'm going to make an educated guess that he's flexing his metal muscles something fierce.

Naked Raygun with Rights Of The Accused, No Empathy, Wax (Metro)
There are a couple of Riot Fest shows with strong local ties, but this one is probably the strongest for me? This might even be a CD release party, because I know they've been working on a new record over at Transient.

Waco Brothers and Friends with Dirty Rocks (Martyrs')
Calling a show "Waco Brothers and Friends" could mean just about anybody in Chicago, couldn't it? Jon Langford is sort of the Kevin Bacon of the Chicago music scene in some respects.

10.10   saturday
Jonathan Coulton with Paul and Storm (Park West)
Coulton is sort of what a computer programmer would think a rock star would be, because he approaches music in a way that seems entirely consistent with someone who orders stuff from ThinkGeek. And this show reminds me that Jon Hodgman is coming to town this fall.

Telefon Tel Aviv with The Race (Hideout)
I know this band was at the top of the eMusic charts a while ago, but they weren't up on Rhapsody at the time, so I didn't get the chance to listen to them and wasn't going to take the Internet's word for it.

Left Setter with Ladies and Gentlemen, Mag 7 (Double Door)
I can't remember now if this is the band whose guitarist helped us out the one time URT played at Metro. The name sounds familiar. And I haven't seen The Ladies and Gentlemen in some time, so this may be a good chance to check them out again. And get back down to Double Door, for reasons known to exactly one person reading this.

They Might Be Giants (The Vic)
Seeing as how they've been writing a lot more children's music lately, it comes as no surprise that the band is playing an all-ages family show in the afternoon and then a proper show in the evening, with Guggenheim Grotto opening.

Asobi Sesku with Loney Dear, Anna Ternheim (Bottom Lounge)
One of those bands I've heard about a lot, but haven't had the chance to go see.

The Dead Milkmen with Teenate Bottlerocket, Teen Idols, Anxiety High (Metro)
The Milkmen are double-dipping on Riot Fest, also playing part of a bigger bill on Friday with Murder City Devils at the Congress Theater.

Taylor Swift (Allstate Arena)
See Friday's listing, and make your own Kanye West joke.

10.10   sunday
Screeching Weasel with Alkaline Trio, Pegboy, The Arrivals, She Likes Todd (Congress Theater)
For someone who's totally not into punk rock, this lineup still seems to give Naked Raygun a run for their money as the best of the bunch from Riot Fest.

Hanson with Hellogoodbye, Steel Train, Sherwood (House of Blues)
I am officially declaring my own moratorium on saying these guys are better than you remember from when they were kids, because Australians say that about how Silverchair outgrew their precociousness, and they totally sucked.