list.in.to.chicago this week: 11.10.2014

My biggest regret in not getting the list out last week was not being able to talk about Day of the Dowd, in which drummer (and now songwriter) Gerald Dowd played for 13 hours straight with nearly all the bands he's been in since moving to Chicago--including l.i.t.c favorites Frisbie and EXO--culminating with his new solo material. Even more unfortunately, I wasn't able to make it out to FitzGerald's to witness this epic event.

Pick of the week
Holy crap, Friday is stacked. Stevie Wonder at United Center, New Pornographers at the Riv, Daniel Lanois at Lincoln Hall, War at Thalia Hall and Split Single at Schubas. I've seen New Pornographers and Lanois before, so I would only need two clones to get everything in. As it stands, I'll be at the UC for Stevie.

list.in.to.COZ
This Saturday is our last Diver show of the year at Fado, but next year's schedule looks to be pretty ridiculous if it goes through as planned. Plus regular office hours at Vaughan's on Tuesday night.

Recap
Managed to win another pair of tickets on Twitter a few weeks ago, so we got to see the sold-out Dry The River show after all. They were great, but it turns out that Nathaniel Rateliff may have been the real reason the show sold out, as there seemed to be more people in the room for his very Martin Sexton-sounding set than for the headliners.

And I would be remiss if I didn't mention how incredible the David Bowie Is exhibit was at the Museum of Contemporary Art. Go see it. Seriously.

11.11   tuesday
Open Jam (Vaughan's)   COZ SINGS!
It's going to get cold, so you should be inside. Specifically, inside a bar, drinking and either playing or listening to live acoustic music from a wide variety of local artists.

Deerhoof with Priests (Bottom Lounge)
The descriptions of both Deerhoof and Deerhunter include "garage" and "noise" markers, so I think it's totally fair for me to consider them to be exactly the same band from here on out. Deer Tick, on the other hand, is something entirely different.

St. Lucia with Vacationer (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
Second of two sold-out shows. So do you think that when Jean-Philip Grobiet (St. Lucia) passes Annie Clark (St. Vincent) on the streets of Brooklyn, they just sorta catch either other's eye and smile a bit? The native South African synthpop artist is typically augmented onstage with a four-piece backup band.

11.12   wednesday
Interpol with Hundred Waters (Riviera Theatre)   SOLD OUT!
It's funny what time away will do for you, as these guys seemed to be trending downward a few years ago. Not sure if it's the strength of the material, or some sort of short-term nostalgia.

Chrissie Hynde with The Rails (Chicago Theatre)
Hard to believe that the Pretenders frontwoman hadn't tried putting out a solo album before this year's Stockholm. So there's no real precedent for what she might do on a solo tour, at least if you're too lazy to look for review of earlier dates on this trek. And I am.

Legendary Shack Shakers with Aaron Lee Tasjan, Robert Rolfe Feddersen (Double Door)
I've been hearing about the raucous live show from this "rockabilly/blues" band from Kentucky for years now.

Paa Kow Band with Nu Bambu (Martyrs')
"Afro-fusion" from Ghana, and the people who would boycott this show because of misguided Ebola fears probably aren't the kinds of people who would be listening to this kind of music in the first place.

Dave Davies with Brad Cole (City Winery)
So, Chrissie Hynde was in a relationship with Ray Davies of the Kinks a long time ago, and now his brother shows up the same week she's in town? That's...well, probably a total coincidence, honestly.

11.13   thursday
Todd Rundgren (Park West)   SOLD OUT!
This tour is being billed as "An Unpredictable Evening with Todd Rundgren." There's a picture on his Facebook page of just a piano in an empty theater, so I don't know if it's just him or if he's touring with a band. The idea of Rundgren just winging it on a piano is pretty cool, though.

Peelander-Z with Sueves, Nonnie Parry (Reggie's Music Joint)
That freaktastic Japanese punk band from Riot Fest a year or two ago that sorta felt like watching Japanese Anime while under the influence of some heavy hallucinogens. And I mean that in a good way.

FKA Twigs with Boots (Metro)   SOLD OUT!
A new English quasi-R&B, quasi-art rock artist that everyone's been raving about, but based entirely on one song from "Later...with Jools Holland," I'm not sure I'm on board yet.

Ryan Hemsworth (Double Door)
Some Canadian DJ, and not the guy who plays Thor, apparently. My bad.

Josh Caterer with Ben Calhoun (Schubas)
The former Smoking Popes frontman has been out on his own for a while, but hasn't had the kind of solo success that can transcend being known primarily as the "former Smoking Popes frontman."

Dave Davies with Brad Cole (City Winery)
See Wednesday's listing.

11.14   friday
Stevie Wonder (United Center)
When Stevie plays an album in its entirety, it apparently runs about twice as long as it does on the deluxe version of the record. What may have been originally planned as a one-off concert in L.A. to celebrate Songs in the Key of Life has turned into a tour.

The New Pornographers with The Pains of Being Pure at Heart (Riviera Theatre)   SOLD OUT!
The first couple of records from the indie rock supergroup were a breath of fresh air, but once you had that context, it got tougher to differentiate the newer material. So it's one of those things where if you haven't seen them, then you totally should, but if you're not a superfan, they may not be able to sustain your attention.

Split Single with Bailiff (Schubas)
Yet another show from Dave Grohl's cousin's former bandmate Jason Narducy's new band that I can't go see. The record is really good.

Daniel Lanois with Lonnie Holley (Lincoln Hall)
The super-producer is back with his band, which once again includes Brian Blade on drums. When I saw him the last time, it was watching the musical version of an old noir film.

War (Thalia Hall)
On the one hand, the current tour from one of the pre-eminent funk bands of the 60s and 70s only features one original band member. On the other, you've got another four guys with over a decade of tenure in the band, along with a couple of newbies that joined in 2011.

Peter Hook & The Light (Metro)
Performing New Order's Low-Life and Brotherhood plus an opening set of Joy Division material, if that's your thing.

11.15   saturday
DIVER (Fado Irish Pub)   SEE COZ LIVE!
Henry Cavill dropped by Fado to watch rugby last Saturday while in town to film Superman vs. Batman. Maybe we can get Affleck out for our last show of the year?

Melissa Etheridge with Alexander Cardinale (Cadillac Palace Theatre)
One of those hard-working artists who has largely stayed true to their sound and their audience for a long time. She's never gone out and tried doing a grunge record or an electronic record to ride a trend.

Fab Faux (Chicago Theatre)
I have to wonder if we'll see this band on the road more often when Letterman retires and bassist Will Lee suddenly has a bunch of time to kill.

Amanda Palmer (Thalia Hall)
The former Dresden Doll made a bunch of waves with crowdfunding a few years ago, but I still take issue with artists who already have a large, passionate following picking up a new business model midstream and declaring that it scales for artists at the beginning of their careers. I wonder if this means her husband, writer Neil Gaiman, is in town, too?

Bleachers with Wild Cub (The Vic)   SOLD OUT!
If my car radio didn't display artist names, I wouldn't have the slightest idea who this is. They get played on Q101 a bit, and seem energetic at least. That seems like half the battle these days in indie/alternative circles.

11.16   sunday
Antemasque with Le Butcherettes (Metro)
The headliner is a new band from Omar Rodríguez-López and Cedric Bixler-Zavala of both At The Drive-In and The Mars Volta. Rodríguez-López also has produced both records from Le Butcherettes, who I've seen described as slightly more restrained on their new record. Having seen a previous drummer in the band projectile vomiting in the Lollapalooza heat, it would be hard for them to be less restrained.