list.in.to.chicago this week: 09.19.2011

There's a bunch of World Music Festival shows this week as well, but I just don't have as much bandwidth as other, legitimate media outlets to do the legwork on gathering information about the acts.

Also, a rare out-of-market listing.

Pick of the week
Tuesday night's Cut Copy show should be really good, and the Hideout Block Party on Saturday is worth it for Mavis Staples alone. Add Booker T., Andrew Bird and others, and you almost can't go wrong. Unless it rains.

list.in.to.COZ
From the regular office hours, the Globe is for sure on Wednesday, but Vaughan's is probably a maybe this week. Starting to run on fumes again.

Recap
I enjoyed Men Without Hats more than I had a right to. Trying to deconstruct that enjoyment makes me think that they played true to who they are -- 80s synth pop with a hint of politics, sort of like if you crossed Men At Work with Devo. It may be that today's technology makes it easier to recreate the sonics of "The Safety Dance" just the way we remember it, only bigger.

Later that night, the 80s Diver set was a lot of fun. We learned that we like Billy Squier more than our audience, that playing "Peace, Love and Understanding" on drums and singing it at the same time is hard, and that, if pressed, we can pull "Centerfold" from the J. Geils Band out of our ass and totally get away with it.

9.19   monday
Robbie Fulks (Hideout)
This week, Fulks and Friends cover The Flying Burrito Brothers. I'm increasingly hard-pressed to come up with anyone in Chicago who has as much fun with a residency as this man.

9.20   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
I'll probably be a game-time decision this week, but Tony and the rest of the usual suspects will be there.

Cut Copy with Washed Out, Midnight Magic, Only Children (Riviera Theatre)
Having seen the Australians twice at outdoor festivals now, I can't help but wonder what kind of dance party they can start in the dark with walls and lights and stuff.

The Watson Twins with Aunt Martha (Schubas)
You do have to wonder if they'll ever stop being referred to primarily by their association with Jenny Lewis a few years back. That's always got to be a tough, Faustian bargain for artists -- more visibility by association with a bigger act, but a long shadow.

Los Lonely Boys with The Steepwater Band (House of Blues)
After crashing onto the scene with considerable velocity back in 2004 via their double-platinum major-label debut, the Texas roots-rock trio seems to have settled into a more modest trajectory after said major label went away about three years ago.

9.21   wednesday
Sing Along With Coz (The Globe Pub)   COZ SINGS!
Or just sit in the front bar and drink like you always do. I'm not going to beg.

Kaki King (SPACE, Evanston)
The diminutive guitarist is still touring in support of her 2010 album Junior, which I'm finally giving a good listen to as I write this, and I'm enjoying it quite a bit. Two shows.

The Jennifer Gustafson Memorial Fund Show (Lincoln Hall)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
While I didn't actually know Gustafson, it would appear she was plugged into the local scene, considering the lineup. With Big Science, Scott Lucas & The Married Men, and my friend and former bandmate Jayh Johnson, who is making a rare solo appearance.

Ani DiFranco with Anais Mitchell. (The Vic)
She pretty much wrote the book on being an independent artist over the last two decades, to the point where I actually genuinely hope she does eventually write a book about her experiences. Could be a memoir, could be a how-to guide.

9.22   thursday
Guster (The Dock at Montrose Harbor)
Free XRT show in conjunction with the Shedd Aquarium to "keep the Great Lakes great." See 93XRT.com for details.

Okkervil River with The Felice Brothers (The Vic)
I wonder if getting compared to Fleet Foxes pisses these guys off, seeing as how they got to that pastoral indie-folk sound first? I caught one or two songs from them way back in the spring of 2005, and I'm pretty sure I haven't seen them since.

Swans with Sir Richard Bishop, DJ Scary Lady Sarah (Bottom Lounge)
Not to be confused with Doves, which I always do. Swans are post-punk bordering on experimental from New York, while Doves are those British chaps.

9.23   friday
Black Star (House of Blues)
Mos Def and Talib Kweli join forces again to perform their well-reviewed 1998 debut, which managed to launch both of them as solo hip-hop artists, while the band itself never released a second record. That is scheduled to change in 2012.

Ten out of Tenn (Park West)
If you guessed "ten artists from Tennessee," well that was pretty obvious, wasn't it? One of the Nashville denizens is a friend of a friend, and this collective is apparently drawn from the "organic pop music" side of that city, and not the "slick commerical country" side.

Marshall Crenshaw with The Bottle Rockets (Old Town School of Folk Music)
There's been a fair amount of press about Nick Lowe lately, but I sort of feel like Crenshaw is almost the American equivalent, in that he's an underrated singer/songwriter who's been around for a long time, never really had much in the way of big hits, and shows no signs of slowing down. Two shows.

Liam Finn with Marques Toliver (Lincoln Hall)
I continue to only have the fact that he's the son of Neil Finn from Split Enz and Crowded House, but that gets you pretty far.

They Might Be Giants with Jonathan Coulton (The Vic)
They also think they're clever, clearly, which is in a lot of ways, a bit part of the appeal for fans of this band. Obviously, that opens them up to accusations of trying to be too clever, but maybe they balance that out by hiring an opening act who sings even more cleverly about writing software code, being imprisoned on a faraway planet, and zombies.

Japandroids with Bass Drum of Death (Schubas)
I continue to be skeptical of guitar & drums duos, even ones from Canada. #ilikebassguitar

9.24   saturday
Hideout Block Party (Hideout)
This year's edition includes performances from Mavis Staples and Booker T. Jones, giving a distinctively soulful edge to the more "typical" Hideout fare of Andrew Bird and Jon Langford.

Jane's Addiction (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
I was in the Metro box office buying tickets for St. Vincent the other day, and didn't have the wherewithal to distract the guy behind the counter and scribble my name on the guest list for one of these shows, which was sitting right there on a legal pad in front of me.

Ian Hunter with Sally Timms (Old Town School of Folk Music)
The auteur of such classics as "All The Young Dudes," "All Of The Good Ones Are Taken" and, presumably, other songs that don't start with "all" is in town for two intimate nights in Lincoln Square, both with quality local opening acts.

The Psychedelic Furs with Tom Tom Club (House of Blues)
I've seen Richard Butler and the Psychedelic Furs within the last ten years, and didn't think they (or, more specifically, their music) had aged too badly at all. Tom Tom Club, I'm less sure about, but then "Genius of Love" never quite connected with me in the first place.

OMD with Washington (The Vic)
Quick, somebody check what year it is. You have to figure there's an Echo and the Bunnymen show following not far behind at this point.

Toro y Moi with Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Ava Luna (Lincoln Hall)
Meanwhile, back in this decade, you've got one of the more highly regarded indie electronica outfits, if you're into that sort of thing.

9.25   sunday
Elbow with Glasser (Terminal 5, New York)
I'm really annoyed that Elbow isn't playing Chicago, doubly so that with all of my business travel, I couldn't come up with a credible excuse for being in New York early next week, and flying in Sunday afternoon in time for this show.

Deerhoof with The Cloak Ox, Trin Tran (Bottom Lounge)
Not to be confused with Deerhunter. Or Deer Tick. Or Antlers. I think there's another one, too.

Asobi Seksu with White Birds (Schubas)
I've been listing the NYC "dream pop" band for years, but still haven't gotten around to seeing them.

Jane's Addiction (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
See Saturday's listing.

Ian Hunter with Nicholas Tremulis (Old Town School of Folk Music)
See Saturday's listing.