list.in.to.chicago this week: 12.19.2011

Not sure if there will be a Boxing Day edition next week, which means you're on your own for New Year's Eve. We'll see.

Pick of the week
Come to Vaughan's or the Globe. It'll be fun.

list.in.to.COZ
See the pick of the week.

Recap
Haven't done a three-show week in quite a while. The Joy Formidable brought a ton of energy and enthusiasm to Metro on Wednesday. They also brought a gong. They did a pretty admirable job of blending big fuzzed-out guitar and actual songs -- hooky riffs and vocal melodies definitely help.

I had no idea that Wilco had never played Metro before last Friday, although pretty much everyone on stage had played there in a different project. That seemed to amuse Jeff Tweedy to the point of being infectious, or maybe he was just looking forward to embarrassing his son by having the whole crowd sing "Happy Birthday" before giving him the gift of the first chord from "A Hard Day's Night." In any event, he seemed to be in a good mood. And Nels Cline continued to seem like he's from a different planet. And "The Art of Almost" continues to be one of my favorite songs of the year. Plus, I pretty much got a free lap dance from a woman in front of me with no sense of personal space! Openers The Paulina Hollers could easily have scored any episode of Firefly, and I mean that in a good way.

A friend then invited me to the Morrissey show on Saturday, where the Congress Theater had signs posted for fans to drop off "gifts" they had brought for the singer at the box office. Drummer and Chicago native Matt Walker had a gong that put the Joy Formidable's to shame. I don't know if it's just this band behind the former Smiths frontman, but the songs seemed to rock harder than I would expect. I may have noticed that last time, too. Opener Kristeen Young only seemed to have one dynamic level to her voice, which made it come across like a conversation where the other person is shouting the whole time.

12.19   monday
Darren Johnston (Skylark)
A trumpeter from San Francisco, apparently, but I mention it because it's jazz in a venue I've never heard of, which is notable because I like the idea of new jazz venues. In this case, it's down at 22nd and Halsted.

Robbie Fulks with Kelly Hogan (Hideout)
As far as local alt-country goes, you can't do that much better than these two, to be honest.

12.20   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
It's the next-to-last performance of "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch!" Maybe even the last, depending on how Wednesday goes.

Brian McDermott with Brandon Harvey, The Valley Downs (Double Door)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
So, you may recognized Mike G from those Ripleys gigs I sub on from time to time. This is his long-running original band.

12.21   wednesday
Sing Along With Coz (The Globe Pub)   COZ SINGS!
This, of course, will be the final night of Grinchitude, assuming I have an audience.

12.22   thursday
Maurice Brown Effect (Jazz Showcase)
You can always count on Joe Segal to give you an entertainment option around (and on) Christmas. In this case, it's a "brash young trumpeter" who has played with Aretha Franklin and Fred Anderson. You can tell he's brash because he doesn't just call his band a band, or a quartet, or a quintet, or anything like that.

12.23   friday
Patricia Barber Quartet (Green Mill)
More Christmas jazz! Not, you know, Christmas music, but jazz shows around Christmas. This time, Patricia Barber breaks out of her normal Monday night slot to play on the other side of the weekend for a change.

Maurice Brown Effect (Jazz Showcase)
See Thursday's listing.

12.24   saturday
Maurice Brown Effect (Jazz Showcase)
See Thursday's listing.

12.25   sunday
Merry Christmas from list.in.to.chicago!

Maurice Brown Effect (Jazz Showcase)
See Thursday's listing.