list.in.to.chicago this week: 03.16.2015

In which I refer to the band 311 not once, but twice.

Pick of the week
Small-ish venues--even if it's House of Blues--with legendary names are always worth considering, and it looks like there are tickets still available for the two-night stand from Gregg Allman on Thursday and Friday. Laurie Anderson and the Kronos Quartet on Tuesday at the Harris Theater looks really interesting, too.

list.in.to.COZ
No Vaughan's this week because of the St. Paddy's Day madness, but there's still DIVER on Saturday at Fado if you need your weekly Coz fix.

Recap
Saturday's Parade Day show went pretty much without a hitch. I did have a hilarious conversation with the guys yelling for "Freebird" throughout the first set, where they were really, really excited that we played "Babylon." At which point it dawned on them that maybe they should yell out for songs they actually want to hear. So yes, I've taken to eradicating this behavior one person at a time.

3.17   tuesday
The Muck Brothers (Martyrs')
Not sure if Martyrs' is billing this as the "first show in several years" from the former Chicago Irish mainstays because nobody can quite remember the last one.

Enslaved with Yob, Ecstatic Vision (Thalia Hall)
At least one of these metal bands has a burger named after them at Kuma's Corner. Now I'm hungry.

Laurie Anderson & Kronos Quartet (Harris Theater for Music and Dance)
This is a really intriguing combination of artists and venue. Anderson is still one of the premier avant-garde artists of our generation when it comes to something at least bordering on pop music.

The Airborne Toxic Event (Metro)
Why did I think they were English? Maybe I saw them open for an English band once. Quite possibly the Fratellis at House of Blues back before they broke up and then reunited. Anyway, they're from L.A.

3.18   wednesday
Cursive with Dylan Ryan Sand, See Through Dresses (Lincoln Hall)   SOLD OUT!
I remember seeing them for a bit at Lollapalooza many years ago, and really liking what little I heard from the third-biggest band I know of from Omaha, Nebraska (after 311 and The Faint). But then not being able to find any of their stuff on streaming services and sorta forgot about them. Now that I can find them, I'm hearing a sort of orchestral emo/post-emo that is similar to what I like about And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead.

3.19   thursday
Gregg Allman (House of Blues)
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame singer and founding member of the Allman Brothers seems to be in the reflective portion of his career, with his most recent output including an autobiography and an album "celebrating the life and voice of Gregg Allman." There was also supposed to be a biopic based on the book, but that's had some production issues that don't seem to have been resolved.

Maroon 5 with Magic!, Rozzi Crane (United Center)
It's easy to hate on Adam Levine and his relentless fame-whoring. Seriously. It's really easy. But even so, I'll defend the band's debut album at least until I'm distracted by something shiny. SQUIRREL!

moe. (Bottom Lounge)   SOLD OUT!
The jam band mainstays have been quietly releasing new records every couple of years, and while that's escaped my notice for the most part, it clearly hasn't escaped the notice of a dedicated fan base that can sell out a good-sized venue with no problem, in advance of two more shows.

Dan Bern with Kory Quinn (SPACE, Evanston)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
With the sheer number of gigs he's been playing lately, I may actually have to have a listen to the two albums that singer/songwriter Quinn gave to me a year or two back.

Craft Spells with The Bilinda Butchers, Tiny Fireflies (Schubas)   SOLD OUT!
There's a subgenre of modern indie pop that's sort of sunny and blissed out, but I don't know if it has a name yet. Think Best Coast, Real Estate, and this band here.

3.20   friday
Mike + The Mechanics with Daryl Stuermer (Park West)
Unless Phil Collins has rehabilitated his hands to where he can grip drumsticks again, this is probably the closest you're ever going to get to seeing Genesis live again. Particularly with touring guitarist and famous Milwaukee native Stuermer opening.

moe. (Concord Music Hall)
See Thursday's listing, but at a different venue, and (presumably) not sold out.

Rebecca Rego & the Trainmen with The Pass, Brolly (Schubas)
I had heard a lot about Rebecca from a friend, and then we played that Get Off The Couch show with her, and she's a quality singer/songwriter who seems to come back to town often enough that it's almost like she never left. Unless of course, she has actually moved back and I wasn't aware of it.

Dastardly with Gold Web, Sophagus (Abbey Pub)
File Dastardly under "random local bands I had heard some good things about from somebody once and so they still set off memory cues when I see a show listed."

Melvin Taylor & the Slack Band (Rosa's Lounge)
You know how there are some artists I'll list here time and time again as having seen or heard of briefly, and never actually getting out to see them again? None have been in that category longer than Taylor, who pretty much blew me away as a blues guitar player BACK WHEN I WAS STILL IN COLLEGE, and yet I've never gone to see him again. It's almost like I don't want to spoil that memory. Or that I'm really, really lazy.

Gregg Allman (House of Blues)
See Thursday's listing.

3.21   saturday
DIVER (Fado Irish Pub)   SEE COZ LIVE!
After a stretch with what I guess we would call Actual!Diver, I think we will have a combination we haven't seen yet this year, with Mike G from The Ripleys joining us on bass. Unless that's the following week.

Mat Kearney with Parachute & Judah and the Lion (Riviera Theatre)   SOLD OUT!
This guy clearly knows how to be an artist in the post-CD era, as he's gotten songs into more TV shows than I think he has actual songs, along with a ton of exclusive EPs for online music channels, including iTunes and Daytrotter.

Walsher Clemons with Noot, Dropper (Beat Kitchen)   FRIENDS OF COZ!
One of these days, I need to go check out this band, which features former URT bassist Craig Urban holding down the low frequencies.

Melvin Taylor & the Slack Band (Rosa's Lounge)
See Friday's listing.

Mike + The Mechanics with Daryl Stuermer (Park West)
See Friday's listing.

moe. (Concord Music Hall)
See Friday's listing. Or Thursday's, with Friday's additional caveats. Whatever. They're playing a bunch this week.

3.22   sunday
New Found Glory with Turnstile, This Wild Life, Turnover (Durty Nellie's, Palatine)
Best opening to a preview that I've seen in a while from the Reader on this one. "Can you imagine a world in which 311 is considered a highly influential classic-rock band? Because Baltimore’s Turnstile apparently can."