list.in.to.chicago this week: 11.28.2011

I sorta wanted to use "Clap You Hands Say Meh" this week, but for everyone's sake, I resisted.

Oh, wait a minute...

Pick of the week
There's a slow-burning wave of acclaim for Lydia Loveless (Schubas on Wednesday), so I wouldn't be surprised if that's sold out already. Same goes for Florence + The Machine on Sunday. As for me, I might have to see Savvy on Saturday night at Subterranean. Other than that, lots of "if you're into that sort of thing" shows this week.

list.in.to.COZ
Have I mentioned Andrew Fraker & Sons is releasing a CD next Thursday at Metro? Well, I'm going to mention it again. And yes, that was us on WXRT last night and tonight during Local Anesthetic and the Local Anesthetic Capsule.

Recap
It shouldn't be remarkable that a band is made of up good musicians, but after openers The Postelles, who were merely adequate musicians, The Kooks stood out on that front, with a lot of it coming from the drum chair. And either I'm tuned into modern British rock bands, or they have a way with a hook that American indie bands just don't, but I guess that tendency lives in pop-punk in the U.S. -- Motion City Soundtrack, that sort of thing -- and those bands don't tend to share tours with the Brits.

11.28   monday
Booty Movement Coalition (Martyrs')
Yeah, too late now. But I've been telling you it's the last Monday of the month for about three or four years now, so you knew about it already, right?

11.29   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
Okay, so I made a rare weekend appearance at Vaughan's after the Kooks show, and the DJ went on a bit of an 80s binge, complete with videos. So I requested "Owner of a Lonely Heart." Totally forgot how friggin' weird that video was.

Chevelle (Subterranean)
Big band, small venue. Looks like you have to visit their Facebook page for a chance to win free tickets.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Waters (Lincoln Hall)
All the indie kids seemed upset when they sorta maybe broke up or went on hiatus after their second record, but then they were generally nonplussed when rumors of their demise proved to have been exaggerated. The new record didn't do much for me, either.

11.30   wednesday
Sing Along With Coz (The Globe Pub)   COZ SINGS!
I'm making a rare guest appearance at my own open mic. Done with travel for a bit.

Lydia Loveless with Tim Larson & the Owner/Operators (Schubas)
Expect to see her on Greg Kot's year-end top ten list, among others. I haven't heard it yet, but given the high marks and the fact that it's on Bloodshot, I have a good idea.

Kelly Steward with Jeff Massey, Righteous Hillbillies, Justin & the Salty Dogs (Beat Kitchen)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
A former Chicagoan and Vaughan's open jam regular, I almost think Kelly might skip over to Schubas after she's done with her opening set here. Seems up her alley, although she's a bit more country and less punk that Loveless.

Jay-Z and Kanye West (United Center)
I'm not even going to pretend like I have anything to say about this. If you dig modern hip-hop, it's a no-brainer. If not, you might want to start smaller.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Waters (Lincoln Hall)
See Tuesday's listing.

12.01   thursday
Two Door Cinema Club with Scattered Trees (The Vic)
Saw them at Lollapalooza last year, enjoyed them, don't remember why. I think it may be sold out.

Brandi Carlile with Secret Sisters (Park West)   SOLD OUT!
I know that TV shows provide another way for artists to get exposure, but an entire subplot on No Ordinary Family last year where the daughter sneaks out of the house to see a Brandi Carlile promotional appearance seemed a bridge too far. Did that get canceled, too?

Jay-Z and Kanye West (United Center)
See Wednesday's listing.

12.02   friday
Kyuss Lives! with The Sword, Black Cobra (The Vic)
Yes, Kyuss lives, but without Josh Homme on this tour. Still, between the stoner rock progenitors and the highly-touted Austin metal band The Sword opening, this should be a good, if somewhat loud, show.

Brian Setzer's Rockabilly Riot (House of Blues)
Sounds fun. And admit it, when you first heard the Stray Cats, you didn't figure any of them would last quite this long.

The Fray with Kelly Clarkson, Christina Perri (Chicago Theatre)
This has to be the 101.9FM holiday show, doesn't it? I'm actually surprised The Fray gets top billing here, but they could be dominating the pop charts for all I know.

Poi Dog Pondering (Metro)
Frank Orrall and company are celebrating "The Austin Years" for the first of two shows this weekend.

12.03   saturday
Savvy with Genome, New World Ancients (Subterranean)
Still my current favorite local band until someone knocks them off that perch. Also quite possibly the only band I've ever seen cover King Crimson that didn't have members of Crim in the band.

Eleventh Dream Day with Coffin Pricks, The Cairo Gang (Empty Bottle)
At this point, they're as much a Chicago musical institution as almost any rock band you could name. They've been at this longer than the Pumpkins by a couple of years, I think.

Webb Wilder (SPACE, Evanston)
I used to be able to recite the Webb Wilder credo from memory. Now I just remember the "wear glasses if you need 'em" part.

Jaill with Heavy Times, Broncho (Schubas)
The capsule review for this Sub Pop-by-way-of-Milwaukee band ("fast and frothy power pop) makes me think it might be worth checking out.

Mannequin Men with Vee Dee (Hideout)
Still need to go see this band just to remind me which band member I met a while back.

S. Casey with The Hudson Branch (Schubas)
This is a member of Bon Iver, if you're into that sort of thing.

Poi Dog Pondering (Metro)
Naturally, the second night is subtitled "The Chicago Years."

12.04   sunday
Florence + The Machine with Laura Marling (Chicago Theatre)
This is the WXRT holiday concert. Most of the reviews of the sophmore album from Florence Welch and her band have been pretty good.

M. Ward with Carlos Forster, Mike Coykendall (Schubas)
Gotta figure some portion of the crowd will be here just to ask M. Ward if he can introduce them to his She & Him cohort, the newly single Zooey Deschanel. He probably can't, or at least won't.