list.in.to.chicago this week: 10.19.2009

I'm tempted to talk smack about the band playing this week that includes the asshole who admitted it was his fault when he rear-ended my car back in early August, then denied it when I filed the insurance claim because I did a poor job of collecting proof and information and all that, but I'm going to take the high road. For now. Or I might hang outside Schubas on Tuesday and slash his tires.

Pick of the week
If you can manage to find a ticket for Fran Healy and Andy Dunlop on Saturday night at Martyrs', that should be a really good show. And Sunday night is unusually stacked, with Ted Leo at Lincoln Hall, The Raveonettes at Metro and Booty Movement Coalition at Martyrs'.

list.in.to.COZ
Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday! That's when you can come out to Martyrs' up on Lincoln Avenue and see Andrew Fraker & Sons. They've got good food and a nice beer selection as well, so feel free to make an evening out of it.

Recap
I was fortunate enough to go see the sold out show from Mike Doughty at Schubas on Thursday night, and having only seen him the one time with the full band, was struck at just how percussive he is playing just an acoustic guitar, along with cello/electric guitar accompaniment. I'm inspired to figure out exactly what tuning he uses on "Looking At The World From the Bottom Of A Well," and thought the "Question Jar" motif was carried out very well and very decisively, for lack of a better word. Also, need to modulate? Just stop the song and move the capo, which is what Doughty did on his set-closing cover of "The Gambler," to great effect.

10.19   monday
Wilco with Tortoise (UIC Pavilion)
As of this writing, tickets still remain for the second of the two shows from the local favorites.

The Dodos with Ruby Suns (Bottom Lounge)
Acoustic indie rock with non-traditional percussion and vibraphone? Sounds intruiging.

Sunset Rubdown with New Villager (Logan Square Auditorium)
I remember a lot of people getting all hot and bothered about this band a couple of years ago, but when I listened then, it seemed to be lo-fi noise rock that really, really tried my patience. I'm going to assume they're still not my kind of thing until proven otherwise.

10.20   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
I'm going to be a game-time decision again this week, but you should still go and say hi to Tony. Unless it's between Vaughan's on Tuesday night and Martyrs' on Wednesday, in which case, go with Martyrs'.

Jet with Kill Hannah (House of Blues)
I haven't gotten the sense that Jet has managed to get beyond the two good songs on their first record, but I haven't heard their new one yet. As a band that's so strongly identified with one certain single and frequent commercial soundtrack, the most interesting thing for me is going to be exactly when they play "Are You Gonna Be My Girl?" in the set list.

Shonen Knife with White Mystery, The Dials, The Alright Alreadies (Bottom Lounge)
You would think that Japanese all-girl pop-punk might not age well, but this band has been around in some form since 1981. Only one member of the trio has been with the band the whole time, though.

10.21   wednesday
Andrew Fraker & Sons with No Exit, Bite Size Chunks (Martyrs')   SEE COZ LIVE!
This could conceivably be your last chance to see the band in this calendar year, because we haven't booked the next show yet. And you can't ask for a better venue. I think we're actually on reasonably early -- like around 9pm or 9:30 -- for a school night.

Dead Man's Bones (Schubas)   SOLD OUT!
This edition's band I've never heard of selling out two shows in one night expands the list of possible explanations to include "band that feature celebrities." In this case, it's Canadian actor and Oscar nominee Ryan Gosling.

10.22   thursday
Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers (Cadillac Palace Theatre)
The legendary comedian is also a damn good banjo player, and will be putting those talents on display here. And you have to figure that the between-song banter will be pretty funny.

10.23   friday
The Airborne Toxic Event with The Henry Clay People, Red Cortez (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
This buzz band seems to be growing at a nice clip, having sold out a show at Schubas was back in February. Coincidentally, The Henry Clay People were on that bill as well, so I'm wondering if that's a side project of one of the band members or something.

Holding Mercury (Hard Rock Cafe)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
I don't know much about this one, other than it's free and it's a Q101 show that involves Dr. Drew Pinsky. That's as much as I could glean from Matt Hoffer's Facebook status.

Los Lonely Boys with Hacienda (Old Town School of Folk Music)
Again, I don't trust Metromix to tell me whether or not an Old Town show is sold out, and this band was too big just a few short years ago for that not to be the case at the very intimate Lincoln Square location.

Will Hoge with Andrew Ripp, Jerome Holloway (Double Door)
I haven't really given the singer/songwriter a good listen since back when I was helping research war-related songs for a friend, but at the time, he seemed like a pretty solid acoustic troubadour type. That may be because I was listening to him cover Bob Dylan, but if the shoe fits...

Bernard Fowler (Martyrs')
Perhaps best-known for singing backing vocals on all manner of Rolling Stones-related projects for the last twenty years, Fowler also put in some time as the lead singer of Tackhead, the same band that featured current Living Colour bassist Doug Wimbish.

Drummer with Royal Bangs (Schubas)
For what it's worth, this band features members of the Black Keys, Houseguest and The Party of Helicopters. I just like the name for it's Abbott & Costello "Who's On First?" potential, as in "I'm going to see a drummer tonight." "Oh, with what band?"

10.24   saturday
Fran Healy and Andy Dunlop (Martyrs')   SOLD OUT!
If the names aren't entirely familiar, these are the two primary songwriters for the Scottish band Travis. I think some of us in the Fraker band might try to hide under the bar until Saturday to get into this one.

Gov't Mule with Jackie Greene (Riviera Theatre)
I've probably said this a million times by now, but as far as jam bands go, you can't do much better than these guys these days. As someone who categorically hates jam bands, I actually think they're pretty good, based on what I've heard. I haven't seen them live, though, so if they spend 20 minutes playing unadventurous improvisation at a stretch, all bets are off.

Karl Denson's Tiny Universe (Double Door)
There was a stretch where Denson seemed to be playing slightly bigger rooms, but his Tiny Universe band has been gracing Double Door with jazz and funk pretty consistently for years and years now.

10.25   sunday
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists with The Jai-Alai Servant (Lincoln Hall)
I'm going to guess that Leo has a new album out, which is news to me. He's a relentlessly energetic performer, and might be a good introduction to the new Lincoln Park room.

The Raveonettes with The Black Angels, Violent Soho (Metro)
I seem to remember at least one Facebook friend gushing over how the new Raveonettes album is the best he's heard all year. I haven't gotten around to it yet, so I can't corroborate, but this particular friend seems to have a well-tuned ear for the indie rock world.

Booty Movement Coalition (Martyrs')   FRIENDS OF COZ!
It's a special Sunday night edition of the monthly improvised funk/R&B, ostensibly because it's vocalist Typhanie Monique's birthday.