list.in.to.chicago this week: 02.14.2011

In which I almost get mushy, but then recover.

Pick of the week
Saturday's got some pretty good options, with Motorhead (Congress Theater), Biffy Clyro (Double Door) and Old 97's (The Vic). What about Friday, you ask? Read on.

list.in.to.COZ
The big draw this week is Andrew Fraker & Sons at Cubby Bear on Friday. Click on this link to download a flyer that you should print out and hand to the nice people at the door of the venue, at which point they will let you in to the Wrigleyville institution FREE OF CHARGE. That's right, people, FREE ROCK AND ROLL. Oh, and Diver on Saturday at Fado, along with regular office hours Tuesday (Vaughan's) and Wednesday (Globe).

Recap
I didn't catch the first opener, but made it over to Metro on Thursday in time to see Jessica Lea Mayfield followed by Justin Townes Earle. Mayfield's set was plaintive country that seemed to hearken back to a certain era of female singer, but there was very little change in dynamics or tempo from one song to the next. Still, it was effective for what it was. Earle was charismatic and sometimes intense, talking openly about the current state of his demons and how they influenced certain songs. I don't have good reference points for country music, but the authenticity of the material still shone through quite strongly, and this makes two shows in a row with interesting cover choices for an encore -- Springsteen and The Replacements in this case. I had some issues with the mix early on, but eventually they got the upright bass worked in, and I almost forget there was no drummer. Almost.

2.14   monday
Nicholas Barron with Wes John Cichosz and Chris Siebold (Martyrs')   FRIENDS OF COZ!
I'm not usually one to get all sentimental on Valentine's Day, but man, I love this lineup from Nicholas' reconstituted band, and then a rare duo show from Wes and Chris from the E-Mics. I just hope I get back from New York in time to see it.

2.15   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
Lest you think that brief outpouring of holiday emotion is some sort of "new me," I'll be trotting out all my Valentine's Day favorites this week, including "Love Stinks," "The Breakup Song," and "Is She Really Going Out With Him?"

Deerhoof with Ben Butler and Mousepad, D. Rider (Bottom Lounge)
I was all set to get this band confused with Deerhunter before I read the preview in Time Out Chicago. If I have it right, it's a former noise-rock band that has recently starting focusing on music you can dance to, sung in different languages.

Tremolux with Jon Langford (Martyrs')
From that same issue of TOC, I learned that this band has a fair bit of crossover with Tributosaurus, but I don't know who, exactly.

2.16   wednesday
Sing Along With Coz (The Globe Pub)   COZ SINGS!
To be honest, I'm not even in the anti-Valentine's Day camp -- I just don't care anymore. It just so happens I have a lot more anti- songs in the book. Along with, not coincidentally, "I Don't Care Anymore." And Cee-Lo, as of last week, but I still need a better key for it.

Merlin Wall with La Strange, Brown Bag Special (Elbo Room)
Band name of the week.

2.17   thursday
Hellogoodbye with Jukebox The Ghost, Gold Motel, Now Now Every Children (Bottom Lounge)
I think I saw these guys at Metro years ago on a bill with Madina Lake, and came away with the impression of poorly-formed suburban teen angst wrapped up in distortion, dropped tunings and screamed vocals. But I'm not a suburban teenager, so it's not like I'm their target market. You're not, either, so I'd recommend taking the night off and conserving your strength for Friday.

2.18   friday
Andrew Fraker & Sons with Peter Terry and the Chicago City Profits, Kickbush (Cubby Bear Wrigleyville)   SEE COZ LIVE!
The album is done, but it hasn't manifested itself into any sort of purchasable form just yet. In the meantime, we've got some of those songs, along with some brand new material, to lay on you. See the link up top for the flyer that gets you in for free.

Galactic with Corey Henry, The Bridge (Park West)
Drummer Stanton Moore seems to come through town so often that I almost feel like he's moved here from Louisiana. This is sort of the "flagship" band of his many New Orleans jazz-fueled projects.

Emilie Autumn (Metro)
Had I known how her career was going to take off, I would have paid more attention when I met Emilie Autumn backstage before we shared a bill many years ago, before she had gotten fully into her musical persona, replete with wings and a heavy neo-Victorian goth vibe. Since that time, she's gone on to play electric violin with the likes of Billy Corgan and Courtney Love, and is about as high-profile a rock violinist as you'll find today.

John Moulder Quintet (Green Mill)
The listing says this features Arild Anderson and Bendik Hofseth, which makes me wonder if that's the same Bendik who played tenor sax with Steps Ahead circa 1989. Although I suppose there might be more than one jazz musician named Bendik.

2.19   saturday
Diver (Fado Irish Pub)   SEE COZ LIVE!
Of all the Diver shows we'll be doing this year, this is one of them. If you find yourself in River North, come on by.

Motorhead with Clutch, Valient Thorr (Congress Theater)
You know, I could see Lemmy deciding to play this venue because they don't do that hoity-toity bullshit where they spell it "theatre." And I still need to find an MP3 of that acoustic version of "Ace of Spades" that accompanied a beer commercial in Europe.

Biffy Clyro with Moving Mountains, Carbon Tigers (Double Door)
A good friend of mine says this bratty British band is his favorite new band right now. I have a Pandora station set up with a bunch of other bands I'd consider to be bratty Brits, but they haven't come up on it yet.

Old 97's with Those Darlins (The Vic)
I guess insurgent alt-country goes well with insurgent online journalism, as frontman Rhett Miller has tweeted about Christine O'Donnell after sharing a Tonight Show appearance with the Congressional also-ran, and attended some Washington press party a few months back with GQ columnist and all-around 21st-century zeitgeist-catcher Ana Marie Cox. And yes, I'm jealous about that second bit.

Ladysmith Black Mambazo (Old Town School of Folk Music)
As it happens, I was just listening to the South African vocal group accompanying Senegalese saxophonist Manu Dibango -- of "Soul Makossa" fame -- on a version of Peter Gabriel's "Biko."

The Dismemberment Plan with JC Brooks and the Uptown Sound, Kid, You'll Move Mountains (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
For some reason, I want to imagine this band as being more hardcore punk than indie rock, but I think it's that whole "dismemberment" thing in their name, which is easier to remember than, say, a tour in support of Death Cab For Cutie. Local soul act JC Brooks should have been another indicator.

John Moulder Quintet (Green Mill)
See Friday's listing.

2.20   sunday
Nicholas Barron Band (Temple Bar)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
If you'd like, you can start and end your week with Nicholas, but only one of those two gigs comes with half-price food and drink.

Wes John Cichosz (Globe Pub)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
You can start and end your week with Wes, too, although this one's a covers gig, assuming everything went without a hitch last night.

John Pizzarelli (Mayne Stage)
If the jazz guitarist's name rings a bell, that may be due to his father and fellow jazz guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli.

The Dismemberment Plan with Maritime, The Forms (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
See Saturday's listing.