list.in.to.chicago this week: 08.29.2011

After all the coverage of Hurricane/Tropical Storm Irene, I'm trying to remember if we've had 50+ MPH winds and heavy rain in Chicago. This month. Or was the last one of that string of big storms in July?

Pick of the week
If you see one jazz show all year, you could do a whole lot worse than Roy Hargrove at the Petrillo Music Shell on Sunday night, and you certainly couldn't pay any less.

list.in.to.COZ
Open mic at The Globe on Wednesday. That's it for this week.

Recap
So, the manager at Fado told us that they had a whole lot of folks in the bar on Saturday who were stranded in Chicago because of the hurricane, which explains the "screw it, let's party" energy we were feeling from the stage area. Also, I couldn't help noticing that a group of really attractive women at one table left very shortly after a couple of American soccer fans tried to get them to dance.

I'm not sayin', I'm just sayin'.

8.29   monday
Booty Movement Coalition (Martyrs')   FRIENDS OF COZ!
Part of the reason I got so into the acid jazz scene of the late 90s was that I was too crazy about my job at the time, so staying out late on a Sunday night to see Sumo at Elbo Room didn't faze me. Suffice it to say, I might very well make it out to Martyrs' tonight.

Peter Bjorn and John with The Rhunes (Schubas)   SOLD OUT!
It's the final show of the Swedes' brief takeover of the city, which you may recall from three different venues last week.

8.30   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
So I got roped into showing up last week for an Andrew Fraker & Sons acoustic set with the full band, only to pretty much pass out in the corner. So this week, I think I'm really taking the night off.

The Weepies (Park West)
From Wikipedia: "The Weepies garnered more than 100 media placements during their 4+ years at The Nettwerk label." Wow, welcome to the music business in the 21st century.

Yawn with Magic City (Schubas)
This is a CD release party for the local indie-dance quartet before they go out on the road first with Mates of State and then with The Kooks. They toured earlier this year with Yuck. From what I can glean about their sound, this may have had more to do with their names than anything else, seeing as how Yuck is a bit heavier on the guitar side.

8.31   wednesday
Sing Along With Coz (The Globe Pub)   COZ SINGS!
Between this gig and winning the EPL "punditry league" last week, I think I've actually taken more money from the bar than I've given them this month. That doesn't happen often.

9.01   thursday
Rusted Root (Bottom Lounge)
This is not a part of the North Coast Festival, but it probably makes for an appropriate pre-party.

9.02   friday
Chicago Jazz Festival (Grant Park)
There was a lot of music festival consolidation this past year due to budget constraints, but the jazz festival fortunately survived. Tonight's headliner is a saxophone summit featuring Joe Lovano, David Liebman and Ravi Coltrane, the latter of whom I think I saw with Elvin Jones the last time I went to the festival. That was way too long ago.

North Coast Music Festival (Union Park)
Sorry, but I'm still not convinced "Wiz Khalifa" isn't a medical condition. Also not sure if calling it the "Named after Groupon Stage" is as clever as festival organizers probably think it is.

Wes John Cichosz and Chris Siebold with Dexter, The Jesters (Martyrs')   FRIENDS OF COZ!
Last time I saw these two together, I immediately made a point of going back and making sure I had both E-mics CDs ripped and on my iPod. Great, great stuff, and they're opening up the bill here.

Peter Terry with Safe Haven, The Micah Walk Band, Xoe Wise (Lincoln Hall)
I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that this is a Shoeshine Boy show, as we've played with three out of four of these bands.

9.03   saturday
Pearl Jam (Alpine Valley Music Theatre, Troy, WI
I normally don't list shed shows, but Pearl Jam is celebrating their 20th anniversary with a bunch of their musical friends, including The Strokes, Queens of the Stone Age, Mudhoney, John Doe, Joseph Arthur, Glen Hansard and Liam Finn. Which is a pretty badass lineup.

Chicago Jazz Festival (Grant Park)
Cassandra Wilson is the nominal headliner, but I like Trio 3 + Geri Allen earlier in the evening, mostly for Oliver Lake on drums.

Save the Clocktower with Brontosaurus, When Clouds Attack, City States (Beat Kitchen)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
You may have heard this band on this week's XRT Local Anaesthetic. Last I saw them, it still seemed like they were struggling to recreate the sonics of the record, which is always tricky with electronic-based music, but they've had a bunch more shows to hone the live sound since then.

North Coast Music Festival (Union Park)
The only act that jumps out at me on Saturday is Common. Seriously, I am not the target audience for this shindig by a wide margin.

9.04   sunday
Chicago Jazz Festival (Grant Park)
While the M.O. of the jazz festival would make me think Roy Hargrove would go traditional jazz over his funkier, hip-hop leanings, keep in mind that Sunday's headliner has collaborated quite a bit with Common, who is playing Saturday night in Union Park.

Blind Melon (Metro)
These guys have been touring enough with their new singer that they have a pretty credible claim to this being a new chapter in the band's history, similar to what Alice in Chains has been able to do in the last couple of years.

Pearl Jam (Alpine Valley Music Theatre, Troy, WI
See Saturday's listing.

North Coast Music Festival (Union Park)
The high-water mark for bands I've heard of at this festival is a whopping three on day three -- Van Ghost, Of Montreal and headliners Googol Bordello.