Here's where I'd be
From dirty garage rock to a musical benefit for Darfur, we've rounded up the best live shows of the week so you don't even have to think
These are bands we especially dig, not
full listings. For those, please see
Concerts and Clubs.
For more top shows featuring local acts, please see Nightgeist.
Wednesday, May 21
PLAN A: CPC Gangbangs @ Bar Pink Elephant. You might expect CPC to be from New York instead of Montreal considering their punk/garage rock is not particularly artsy or French. You’d be wrong. PLAN B: Radar Brothers, Le Switch @ The Casbah. The brothers Radar describe their latest album, Auditorium, as “musical lava.” But the sedated indie rock found within is probably closer to “musical smoldering campfire.” PLAN C: Robot Devil, The Heartbreaks, Monday’s Alibi @ Beauty Bar. Beauty Bar was dangerously close to having an indie-rock bill without any synthesizer debauchery. Las Vegas electronic rockers Robot Devil to the rescue. BACKUP PLAN: Rosie Ledet & The Zydeco Playboys @ Anthology.
Thursday, May 22
PLAN A: Dresden Dolls, Smoosh, MayStar @ House of Blues. I can think of two words to explain why punk cabaret is a fantastic idea: Dresden Dolls. I can also think of two words for why it’s otherwise a terrible idea: punk cabaret. PLAN B: Von Bondies, Die! Die! Die!, Transfer @ The Casbah. I like the Von Bondies’ garage rock enough to recommend their show. But I still secretly enjoyed the 2003 chance encounter between Jack White’s fist and Von Bondies singer Jason Stollsteimer’s face. PLAN C: Hal Ketchum, Bastard Sons of Johnny Cash @ Belly Up. I’m from a small town, and I can assure you that our Saturday-night escapades weren’t nearly as entertaining as country-fried Ketchum’s “Small Town Saturday Night” would suggest. BACKUP PLAN: Stephen Marley @ Viejas.
Friday, May 23
PLAN A: French Kicks, The Weather Underground @ The Casbah. You might expect the Kicks to be from Montreal instead of New York considering their mod/garage rock is both artsy and French. But, again, you’d be wrong. PLAN B: The Apple Miner Colony, The Modlins @ Chasers. It’s never really a good idea to have 20-plus members in a band, let alone a band that plays self-described “friend rock.” But, at least in the case of AMC, it sure is entertaining. PLAN C: Rock for Darfur Benefit @ Che Café. Hey, Darfur, we’re really sorry about the whole genocide thing. It’s a total bummer. But, on the bright side, here’s some college-rock bands with good intentions! BACKUP PLAN: Buck-O-Nine, Sprung Monkey @ ’Canes. Add Story | OasisCMS site admin
Saturday, May 24
PLAN A: Donita Sparks, Roses on Her Grave, Revenge Club @ The Casbah. Sparks is a respected solo musician. She’s also the L7 singer/guitarist who threw a bloody tampon into the audience at the 1992 Reading Festival while dressed like a deranged, kilted, feminist punk zebra. PLAN B: Ari Hest, Jake Newton, Ryanhood @ Lestat’s. Unlike most of the other 4.2 million singer/songwriters hailing from Brooklyn, Hest has enough heft to sell out New York’s Bowery Ballroom. PLAN C: Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, Foot Foot @ Che Cafe. CFTPA’s Owen Ashworth does indeed perform aching, lo-fi indie confessionals. Two points. Although his Answering Machine Music isn’t quite as entertaining as Steve Poltz’s Answering Machine. One demerit. BACKUP PLAN: Karla Bonoff @ Anthology.
Sunday, May 25
PLAN A: Foals, Crocodiles @ Brick by Brick. Read all about our conflicted relationship with baby horses on this page. PLAN B: Rickie Lee Jones @ Anthology. Anybody who dated Tom Waits, performs Grammy-winning rock and jazz with equal aplomb and had a grandpa (an old Vaudevillian, no less) nicknamed “Peg Leg” is all right in my book. PLAN C: The Mother’s Anger, Savalas, Reason2Rebel @ Zombie Lounge. My mother’s anger occasionally resulted in her throwing cantaloupe at the ceiling. The fierce psychedelic rock conjured by Dallas-via-Tel Aviv duo Mother’s Anger is just as messy, but probably easier to clean up. BACKUP PLAN: Set Your Goals, Hit the Lights @ SOMA.
Monday, May 26
PLAN A: The Police, Elvis Costello @ Cricket Wireless Amphitheater. Do you really need me to give you a reason to go to this show? I thought not. PLAN B: Margot & The Nuclear So and So’s, Mike Bloom, Emery Byrd @ The Casbah. Margot makes the kind of indie pop you’d probably expect from a band that finds musical inspiration in Wes Anderson movies. PLAN C: Miles Davis Birthday Tribute @ Dizzy’s (San Diego Wine & Culinary Center). If peeing the pants is cool, call me Miles Davis. If it’s not, then six hours of local jazz ensembles paying homage to Miles is close enough. BACKUP PLANS: Foxboro Hot Tubs @ Belly Up and The Black Hollies @ Beauty Bar.
Tuesday, May 27
PLAN A: Ariel Pink, Fantastic Magic, The Paddle Boat @ The Casbah. I don’t pretend to “get” Ariel Pink. But that doesn’t mean his semi-abstract, completely lo-fi music isn’t intriguing. PLAN B: Breathe Carolina, Millionaires @ SOMA. Girls who like boys who look like girls and sound like the bastard children of Eiffel 65 and Thursday will like electronic/screamo duo Breathe Carolina. PLAN C: Parenthetical Girls, PWRFL Power @ Che Café. Parenthetical Girls have found a wider audience for their (experimental pop) music since changing monikers (from Swastika Girls) to avoid people mistaking the reference (Brian Eno’s “Swastika Girls”) for something else (music inspired by Mein Kampf).
Published: 05/20/2008
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