list.in.to.chicago this week: 09.30.2013

[UPDATED. Yes, I did forget my own show.]

No, the government shutdown has not affected list.in.to.chicago, but Dropbox not syncing when I left the office yesterday did delay it just a bit. Incidentally, the subject of the list is always the first day of the week in question, not the first day of listings. In case you were wondering.

check out list.in.to.chicago (and leave comments!) on the web at notabbott.com/litc

Pick of the week
I was pretty pleasantly surprised the last time I saw Atoms for Peace (Wednesday, UIC Pavilion), and then those two Billy Cobham sets at SPACE in Evanston on Thursday look pretty great. And if you can somehow come up with a ticket to the sold out show from Nick Lowe at the same venue on Wednesday, go for it.

list.in.to.COZ
Not sure if I'll have any new surprises for Vaughan's tonight, but I'll be there. And then there's Diver ushering in "Rocktober" this Saturday night at Fado.

Recap
So I think the only way to describe Travis live is "adorable." They all just seem very happy to be doing what they're doing, to the point where the band's infectious enthusiasm is way ahead of the intensity of the songs themselves. As for the inevitable end of the bridge where the drums drop out, I'm pretty sure it happened in every song except for maybe four.

Seriously, Fran Healy was a lot of fun to watch. The singer for the generally nondescript opening act, on the other hand, could best be described as sounding like a bag of cats.

9.30   monday
Ms Mr with Wildcat! Wildcat! (Lincoln Hall)   SOLD OUT!
Good, but not great, electro-pop. Also yesterday and sold out, so never mind.

10.01   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
Okay, so somebody has to play "Chelsea Dagger" tonight to usher in the new NHL season and the raising of the Stanley Cup banner down on Madison Street. Other topical selections might include "Breakdown" from Tom Petty. And/or anything from U2's October album.

Atlas Genius with Family of the Year, Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. (House of Blues)
These Aussies packed in quite a crowd at Lollapalooza, setting the stage for what I think is their first headlining tour of the U.S. "Trojans" is a really good rock/pop song, although the remixes on the deluxe edition of their debut full-length are abysmal.

Prism (SPACE, Evanston)
This is a new lineup from bassist Dave Holland that includes former Tonight Show bandleader Kevin Eubanks on guitar.

Electric Six with My Jerusalem, Magicks (Double Door)
I've never really been on board with this flavor of glammy garage-rock, but they have a pretty consistent and passionate following.

10.02   wednesday
Atoms for Peace with James Holden (UIC Pavilion)
After coming into existence to perform Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke's The Eraser album live, Atoms For Peace became an actual band in its own right, releasing an album earlier this year. There's lots to absorb from these guys live other than just Yorke's overcaffeinated live persona, including the hyper-kinetic Flea on bass and the interplay between drums and percussion to mimic the electronic sounds they put down on record.

Tributosaurus (Martyrs')   FRIENDS OF COZ!
Not sure if this one's an encore performance, or if they were sitting around one night and realized "oh shit, we forgot Electric Light Orchestra!" Ample opportunity for the band to stretch out in terms of instrumentation and vocal arrangements.

Nick Lowe with Paul Cebar (SPACE, Evanston)   SOLD OUT!
The singer/songwriter everyone wishes was their English uncle in an incredibly intimate setting. After seeing him at Park West, we decided we'd be happy just listening to him tell stories. Or read the phone book. But then his songs are pretty great as well.

Kings of Leon with Weeks (House of Blues)   SOLD OUT!
I feel like bands used to tour small venues right when their record came out more often in the past than they do now. Also, in trying to figure out if this was sold out, I found that Ticketmaster now makes you actually watch a video ad before revealing the captcha code to prove you're not a robot.

Korn with Asking Alexandria, Love & Death (Riviera Theatre)
Well, if Limp Bizkit is going to continue to be a thing, it's only fair that Korn still exists as well. Those seven-string guitars aren't going to sell themselves.

10.03   thursday
Billy Cobham (SPACE, Evanston)
So it's the 40th anniversary of one of the greatest jazz fusion records ever, that being Spectrum from Billy Cobham. That record loomed large in my musical development, to the point where I borrowed liberally from "Searching for the Right Door" when I took my solo turn in high school jazz band. And if you ever want to know where Alex Van Halen got the double bass drum shuffle for "Hot For Teacher," just take a listen to "Quadrant 4."

KT Tunstall with Brian Lopez (Park West)
Her two big hits, her engaging stage presence, and a new album that doesn't rock the boat from what she's known for is enough to figure this will be a good show. At least to the degree that the crowed doesn't get too antsy waiting for "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree."

Avenged Sevenfold with Deftones (Allstate Arena)
I'm actually getting the headliner confused with Sevendust, but I don't think it's that much of a stretch. Whatever. I'd only stay for Deftones anyway.

10.04   friday
Gov't Mule with London Souls (The Vic)
One of the reasons I don't paint these guys with the same brush as most other jam bands is that the actual songs I've heard from them are all pretty good. So they're not just perfunctory vehicles to kick off interminable noodling. That's important.

New Gary Burton Quartet (SPACE, Evanston)
Between Burton, Billy Cobham and Dave Holland, it's turning out to be a really strong jazz week up in E-town.

10.05   saturday
DIVER (Fado Irish Pub)   SEE COZ LIVE!
Only three more Diver shows left in 2013! And this is one of them!

Gov't Mule with London Souls (The Vic)
See Friday's listing. And wow, there's not much else going on.

Charlie Wilson with Chaka Khan, Robin Thicke, Bell Biv Devoe (Allstate Arena, Rosemont)
From what I can tell, this era-spanning bill has managed to resist putting flavor-of-the-month Thicke above a bunch of R&B legends. So good for them.

10.06   sunday
Jack Johnson (Chicago Theatre)
Loved Stephen Colbert's line of questioning of Johnson last week. "How many love songs have you written about your wife?" "Maybe 30 or 40?" "When is she going to forgive you for whatever you did?" Pretty sure they'll deny you entry to this one if you're not wearing flip-flops.

Biffy Clyro with Morning Parade (Bottom Lounge)
I have a friend who swears by these bratty Brits, but what little I've heard hasn't pushed them into the same category as other post-punk exports that I do like.

Liquid Soul (Abbey Pub)
First Sunday of the month means old-school acid jazz.