list.in.to.chicago this week: 04.12.2010

Cubs fans celebrate their home opener today, along with being mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. Good times!

Pick of the week
The two shows I flagged well in advance of this week were The Church (Thursday, Park West) and OK Go (Saturday, Metro).

list.in.to.COZ
Just the regular office hours at Vaughan's and The Globe on Tuesday and Wednesday. Andrew Fraker & Sons will be at Enclave on April 23, and Diver is back at Fado on May 1. Apologies if you actually went to Fado this past Saturday, as we got bumped. I updated Facebook and Twitter, but didn't hit the l.i.t.c. list on the assumption that most of you are connected to me in one of those other places.

Recap
I've seen some people call Atoms For Peace one of the best shows they've seen ever, but I wouldn't go quite that far. Definitely running neck-and-neck with St. Vincent for the best I've seen this year, though. As a drummer, I loved that they approached a lot of the electronic textures of Thom Yorke's solo album with a live percussionist, which makes a huge difference in my book. I would not have expected a berimbau or talking drum on any of these tunes. The band definitely took a collection of songs that may not have been written with live performance in mind, and breathed life into them. Plus, Sunday's show had a solo acoustic version of "Airbag" in the encore. Good stuff.

Opener Flying Lotus is just a DJ, which made me wonder why people were clapping after songs. I don't mind a good dance groove, but my problem with the DJ culture is that it strips out the rhythmic tension you get by manipulating the space between the notes.

4.12   monday
The Morning Benders with Miniature Tigers (Lincoln Hall)   SOLD OUT?
All I know about this one is that it's been moved from Schubas. Not sure if Schubas sold out, so they moved it, and then Lincoln Hall sold out, too, so if these bands mean anything to you and you thought you had missed out, you may want to double check.

4.13   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
Yes, the Cubbies get rolling at home this week, and I like suggesting topical songs for Vaughan's, but if any of you play that "Hey, Hey, Whaddya Say" Cubs song, you may get kicked in your low-hanging fastballs.

4.14   wednesday
Sing Along With Coz (The Globe Pub)   COZ SINGS!
I think I've now promised three different people that I would play acoustic Iron Maiden at The Globe. So if any of them actually show up this time, I may have to follow through on it.

4.15   thursday
The Church (Park West)
This was one of the first bands I ever saw in Chicago, as they played on campus right when I started volunteering for the Major Activities Board at the U of C. Unfortunately, that meant not really "seeing" the band as much as listening to them from the loading dock behind the stage. I do also remember a pretty good record from them just a few years ago, so this show should be a bit more than just waiting around for them to play "Under The Milky Way."

Joey DeFrancesco Trio (Jazz Showcase)
I was going to say that calling himself "the finest jazz organist on the planet" on his website was maybe a bit much, but he's won the Down Beat critic's choice for the instrument every year since 2003. So maybe he's got a claim, although Sam Yahel may start nipping at his heels soon.

Blues Traveler (House of Blues)
There's a joke in here somewhere about this being a smaller venue than the band used to enjoy, but that John Popper is a smaller frontman than he used to be after he had that gastric bypass surgery. Also, I am totally unable to tell the difference between one of his harmonica solos and the next one.

4.16   friday
Dr. Dog with Sean Bones (Metro)
Is it wrong for me to be somewhat relieved that this show isn't sold out? I seem to notice a lot of people going on and on about this band, and I don't see it. When they played Lollapalooza a few years back, what I noticed most about them is that they had no idea how to get good sounds from their amps and that they incorporated enough hipster elements into what they were wearing that they almost seemed to be dressing as hipsters ironically, and that makes my head hurt. So the band not being popular enough to sell out Metro gives me a little hope that the indie kids haven't totally gone off the reservation.

30 Seconds To Mars with Mutemath, Neon Trees (Aragon Ballroom)
I'm not sure I've even seen Jared Leto act, let along sing.

Three 6 Mafia with Yung Joc, GS Boyz (Congress Theater)
This may or may not be the only Oscar-winning artist playing in Chicago this week. Jared Leto certainly doesn't have one.

Joey DeFrancesco Trio (Jazz Showcase)
See Thursday's listing.

4.17   saturday
OK Go with Earl Greyhound, The Booze (Metro)
I think I'd be afraid to touch anything at this show for fear that it might trigger some massive Rube Goldberg device that they had set up for a later song. If you don't know what I'm talking about, go find their latest video on the Internets. I feel like I constantly have two or three articles about this band that I want to write about from a business perspective -- fighting with their label about embedding video, quitting their label to start their own, etc. -- but I just never get around to summing them up.

Rogue Wave with Man/Miracle, JBM (Lincoln Hall)   SOLD OUT!
Jon Hodgman of Daily Show and Apple commercial fame had a great line about Zach Rogue in relation to his band's name at this event that preceded the Bumbershoot Festival in Seattle I went to some four years ago, but I can't remember what it was for the life of me. Great story, right? Then I found twenty dollars. Anyway, the non-threatening indie rock band has a new record out, and they're playing Lollapalooza, too, so don't fret too much if you missed out on this one.

Keith Emerson and Greg Lake (Star Plaza Theatre, Merrillville, IN)
Carl Palmer either doesn't like these guys anymore, or is -- and I'm not making this up -- too busy with a new Asia album. Cozy Powell passed away over ten years ago, and Neil Peart has never been one to moonlight with other bands. Did they ask Simon Phillips?

Joey DeFrancesco Trio (Jazz Showcase)
See Thursday's listing.

4.18   sunday
Legendary Shack Shakers with The Hackensaw Boys, Tangleweed (Double Door)
The big news here is that they seem to no longer be calling themselves Th' Legendary Shack Shakers, which is one of those names that would likely trip up the folks doing the marquees and the ad copy.

Joey DeFrancesco Trio (Jazz Showcase)
See Thursday's listing.