list.in.to.chicago this week: 03.22.2010

So, funny story. I actually had this thing done and dusted almost on time this week. Then I decided to make dinner before going to my soccer game. And forgot that last step of proofreading and actually, you know, publishing. Oops. Apologies to Kira Small and Westfield, NJ native Bryan Beller, who may still be on stage as of this writing.

The whole "publishing on my normal schedule" thing may get interesting in the next couple of weeks, for reasons that should become more clear in a minute or so.

Pick of the week
I may have to finally visit the new Jazz Showcase for the Mike Stern Trio (Thursday through Sunday). And if I didn't have gigs this weekend, any chance to see Maynard James Keenan -- in this case, Puscifer on Friday and Saturday at the Vic -- would be a sure thing.

list.in.to.COZ
We've another new entry on the dance card with the Urban Outlaw Roadshow, which is basically a bunch of singer/songwriters playing original and cover songs individually and in various combinations, Friday night in the front bar at the Abbey Pub. Still a percussion gig for now. And then there's Diver, back at Fado on Saturday night.

Recap
Didn't see any shows last week, but I did get a new full-time job, just under a year since the last one went away. And my sense of humor is such that I thoroughly enjoyed playing "I Don't Like Mondays" when they handed me the guitar on the Friday night gig with The Good Mondays. The Diver show on Saturday was a good time as well.

3.22   monday
Kira Small with Bryan Beller (Red Line Tap)
You may recognize Bryan Beller as the bass player with Mike Keneally, Steve Vai and Dethklok, but here he's playing a more intimate acoustic gig with Kira Small, who just happens to be his wife.

Kathy Kelly and Jim Cooper's Mallet Madness (Green Mill)
I'm getting a good vibe from this one, mostly because it features a pair of vibraphonists, and I'm not above bad puns. Also, John McLean on guitar.

3.23   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
I'm assuming there may be at least NIT games to watch while we serenade you with various cover tunes, which may take your mind off of the fact that you probably picked Kansas to win that other tournament.

Manchester Orchestra with The Features, Biffy Clyro, O'Brother (Metro)
Part of my disconnect with this band is that I remember a band from England -- possibly Manchester -- called Cinematic Orchestra, who would never fit in on a Warped Tour like these guys would.

3.24   wednesday
Sing Along With Coz (The Globe Pub)   COZ SINGS!
Apologies for pulling the plug last week -- it was logistically impossible to start on time due to St. Patrick's Day revelry, and once the stage area was clear, we would have had to cut things way short. I'll make it up to you this week somehow.

Pere Ubu (Lincoln Hall)
My first exposure to the Cleveland "experimental rock" band was when I heard Living Colour cover their song "Final Solution" back in 1989 or so. I think my next exposure was when I heard Nine Inch Nails cover the same song last summer. To be fair, it's a really good song.

AIR with AM (Riviera Theatre)
Just goes to show that French electro-pop existed before Phoenix.

Five For Fighting with Matt Wertz (The Vic)
Wikipedia equates the "band" with it's principal singer/songwriter John Ondrasik, sort of like Bright Eyes is really just Conor Oberst, but I think they used to be more of a band back when they were one of the first acts on Chicago-based label Aware Records.

3.25   thursday
Mike Stern Trio (Jazz Showcase)
With Tom Kennedy and Lionel Cordrew. I'm sure Cordrew is a fine player, but Stern has shows coming up starting right after he plays this four-night stand with Dave Weckl and then Dennis Chambers on drums.

Rickie Lee Jones (Lincoln Hall)
Something about "Chuck E's In Love" cemented the idea that Rickie Lee Jones was sort of a big deal back in the late seventies when I first heard it. It could be that I thought "Rikki Don't Lose That Number" from Steely Dan, released about five years earlier, was about her. Or that I conflated her with Joni Mitchell and Carly Simon. That said, she's no slouch, and a Chicago native to boot.

The Bronx with Violent Soho, Mariachi El Bronx, Dead Country (Subterranean)
This band, which is naturally from California, first got on my radar when a music blogger said some relatively nice things about their major-label debut. Another Warped Tour vet, if that helps triangulate what they're going to sound like.

Vampire Weekend with Abe Vigoda (Riviera Theatre)   SOLD OUT!
I know everyone was going on and on about the new record, but I'm just not hearing it.

3.26   friday
Urban Outlaw Roadshow (Abbey Pub)   SEE COZ LIVE!
A friend of Andrew Fraker's started this little singer/songwriter roundtable last month, and we all had a good enough time doing it that it may become a more regular occurrence. Not entirely sure if it's the same cast of characters this time around, but I know Oakley Stevens and Andrew will be involved. At least I think Andrew is in. I'll be on percussion for a lot of the evening, and Kevin Ryan (from Sugarbeat) should be along on bass.

Puscifer with Uncle Scratch's Gospel Revival (The Vic)
This is a typically subversive side project from Tool's Maynard James Keenan that's a bit more electronic, which makes it sorta his version of Mike Patton's Lovage. And the tour probably means they've got a new record out, which I should look into.

Holding Mercury with The Assembly, The Visitor (Lincoln Hall)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
Matt Hoffer and the band have been recording quite a bit lately, if the Facebook pictures are to be believed. I think this show might have some significance for headliners The Assembly, but I don't recall why.

Greg Osby Five (Green Mill)
The saxophonist came out of the same "M-Base Collective" that produced notable players like Steve Coleman, Me'Shell Ndegeocello and Gene Lake. Even Branford Marsalis has been associated with them.

Mike Stern Trio (Jazz Showcase)
See Thursday's listing.

Vampire Weekend with Abe Vigoda (Riviera Theatre)   SOLD OUT!
See Thursday's listing.

3.27   saturday
DIVER (Fado Irish Pub)   SEE COZ LIVE!
It's been a busy March for the band, although Tony and I will technically be the only two band members playing all three consecutive Saturdays. Anto had a conflict at Cullen's this past weekend, which knocked us down to a trio, and Sue Zindle will be subbing on bass for this one.

Stone Temple Pilots (Riviera Theatre)   SOLD OUT!
The full lineup is back, and I think they kicked off the tour last week at South By Southwest. The band is also all over Twitter promoting new songs. I'm a little surprised they went with the Riv instead of the Aragon, to be honest.

Senator Bogina with Ghyrating Bhtch (Bird's Nest)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
So, my friend Blake assembles a band on or near his birthday, and if I remember it right, they play the entire Tesla catalog. For the record, I may not be remembering it right. Dario pulls double duty on drums, also playing with some guys I think he's been writing songs with since either high school or earlier. I may not be remembering that right, either.

Save the Clocktower with Hudson Mohawke, Quadratic (Abbey Pub)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
I've been meaning to see what Jimmy has going on with this band, but the timing hasn't quite worked out yet.

Down The Line with Claire Stahlecker (Lincoln Hall)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
Part of me thinks that, the longer I go without seeing these relentlessly positive folk-rockers play, the more of a chance there is that they'll all get jaded and cynical and start recording really dark songs. A very close to zero chance, but still.

Saul Williams (Kinetic Playground)
This is billed as "The Sights and Sounds of Saul Williams," or something like that, so I expect it's going to be all over the place from the hip-hop/spoken word artist.

Puscifer with Uncle Scratch's Gospel Revival (The Vic)
See Friday's listing. Kinda bummed that I'm busy both nights.

Mike Stern Trio (Jazz Showcase)
See Thursday's listing.

Greg Osby Five (Green Mill)
See Friday's listing.

3.28   sunday
Hey Champ with Database, Gemini Club (Empty Bottle)
I'm not certain what's up with the local retro-new wave hotshots after hearing they had been signed. It seems to be that eerie quiet that usually means the person at the label who signed them has gotten canned and now no one at the label knows what to do with them, but that's pure speculation on my part. They could just be recording.

Mike Stern Trio (Jazz Showcase)
See Thursday's listing.