list.in.to.chicago this week: 09.22.2014

So, yeah, I didn't get this out in time for the free lunchtime show. Oops.

Pick of the week
Me from twenty years ago insists that you go see Allan Holdsworth (Wednesday and Thursday at Reggie's Rock club) and King Crimson (Thursday through Saturday at The Vic). Me from today mostly concurs, but would also consider Justin Townes Earle at Park West on Tuesday.

list.in.to.COZ
Regular office hours for the possibly Bowie-rich Open Jam at Vaughan's on Tuesday. Diver is back next Saturday at Fado.

Recap
Time hasn't changed two core aspects of Me'shell Ndegeocello. Her bass tone is still phenomenal, and she knows how to build a song to the breaking point of intensity. It was more of a slow-burn intensity than twenty years ago, but still very much there. And I'm really enjoying Thalia Hall as a venue.

9.22   monday
Sam Smith with Broods (Riviera Theatre)   SOLD OUT!
So I guess Smith had one big single last year that I heard a bunch of times on XRT, but never put his name to. Not to be confused with the former NBA beat writer who now writes for the Bulls and still just makes shit up and reports on it as rumors.

9.23   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
Well, it is officially "David Bowie Day" in Chicago. So we may have to respond in kind.

Sons of the Silent Age (Daley Plaza)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
The Bowie tribute band fronted by Chris Connelly helps kick off the David Bowie Is exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art with a free lunchtime show downtown.

Justin Townes Earle with American Aquarium (Park West)
Like his father Steve, Justin Townes Earle clearly comes from a classic country heritage, but then puts his stamp on it. Not quite as gritty as his dad, but really good stuff.

Ty Segall with La Luz, Axis:Sova (Thalia Hall)   SOLD OUT!
Being really loud and really intense has its fans, but I think that's a visceral response to EDM. The details end up not mattering as long as there's guitar and momentum.

9.24   wednesday
Allan Holdsworth with Marbin (Reggie's Rock Club)
The South State Street venue has been giving Martyrs' a bit of a run for its money when it comes to progressive rock and fusion, and it must be catching on if master guitarist Holdsworth is in the big room for two nights, along with Jimmy Haslip on bass and Gary Husband on drums.

Stromae (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
Huge in Europe, and that's seeping across the pond to the point where the Belgian pop star could probably have played a slightly bigger venue.

9.25   thursday
King Crimson (The Vic)
The latest incarnation of the progressive rock warhorse features three drummers and a guitarist from a Crimson tribute band. The hook is that they're "not playing any new material," but with Robert Fripp, it can be really tough to suss out what that really means. Given the band's history, it probably doesn't mean "21st Century Schizoid Man," although if I'm wrong, this stint could be worth the high ticket price.

Torche with Tight Phantomz, Planetexploder (Promontory)
The new Hyde Park restaurant and music venue is mostly booking jazz, but with occasional rock act mixed in. I thought stoner metal might be a bit outside of the aesthetic they're going for, but apparently not.

Allan Holdsworth with Marbin (Reggie's Rock Club)
See Wednesday's listing.

9.26   friday
Chvrches (Cubby Bear)
This a Q101 "No Dough Show" from the Scottish electropop band, most recently seen at Lollapalooza. They've got a solid following, so get there early if you want to get in.

Sebadoh with Wedding Dress (Lincoln Hall)
It seems like a very 90s thing that not only do certain bands from that era persevere, but so do the offshoots of those bands. In this case, both Sebadoh and Dinosaur Jr. are still going, some twenty (or even thirty) years later.

Raveonettes with Coves (Double Door)
Double Door said there are still a handful of tickets available for these perennial Danish indie rock favorites.

King Crimson (The Vic)   SOLD OUT!
See Thursday's listing.

9.27   saturday
Black Keys with Cage The Elephant (United Center)
I'm still bent about the first single from the new Black Keys record, because having seen the band play it on a few TV shows, I don't understand why they're relying on backing tracks for a slight augmentation of the drum part that most drummers should be able to play live in the first place. Pivoting off of that, I've decided that I really like Dan Auerbach, but I'm not quite so fond of Patrick Carney.

Kacey Musgraves with John & Jacob (Riviera Theatre)
The young country singer turned a lot of heads at the Grammys last year, with a much more traditional vibe without the overbearing pop sheen that comes out of Nashville more often than not these days.

YACHT with White Fang, Ggoolldd (Concord Music Hall)
More electropop, this time from Portland by way of Los Angeles.

Benjamin Booker with Blank Range (Schubas)
I've seen some ink spilled recently over the New Orleans blues-rock artist, so it seems he's on the up-and-up.

King Crimson (The Vic)
See Thursday's listing.

9.28   sunday
Robert Randolph & the Family Band (SPACE, Evanston)
Until persuaded otherwise, I'm standing by my assessment that Robert Randolph is bringing traditional gospel blues to the mainstream, in that he's not really doing anything that different than a dozen different local blues artists in Chicago on a given night. Except maybe the pedal steel guitar. That's probably different.

Limp Bizkit with Machine Gun Kelly, Blvck Ceiling (Aragon Ballroom)
Wait, what?

Black Keys with Cage The Elephant (United Center)
See Saturday's listing.