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Mountain
Revolution
Hall, Tonight
Pardon
us for being lazy, but if you wouldn’t mind helping us out
by singing a line or two, our voices are still a bit hoarse
from some belated New Year’s revelry. Now, on the count of
three goes: “Mississippi Quee-een! You know what I mean!”
Yeah, that was all right. Anyway, Leslie West, leader of classic-rock
touchstones Mountain, is celebrating his band’s 30th anniversary
with a big ol’ rock & roll tour, and the current incarnation
(featuring West, Corky Laing, and Richie Scarlet) will perform
at Revolution Hall this evening. Odds of hearing a 10-minute-plus
version of “Mississippi Queen”? About 95 percent. (Jan.
13, 7 PM, $25, 425 River St., Troy, 273-2337)
Dead
Cat Bounce
Van
Dyck, Friday
A
Boston Phoenix readers’ poll found Dead Cat Bounce the Best
Local Jazz Act in 2001, 2002, and 2004. The group, composed
of four saxophones, a standup bass and drums, are described
by their profile as implementing an eclectic array of styles.
They’ve composed music with sounds from the Caribbean, deep
South, Brazil, West Africa, Eastern Europe and Detroit, with
their own individual solos and improvisation. Their worldliness
and originality has earned them airtime at scattered stations,
and they’ve bounced to venues around the Northeast. They’re
landing at the Van Dyck tomorrow night. (Jan. 14, 237 Union
St., Schenectady, 381-1111)
The
Dears,
Apollo Sunshine
Northern
Lights, Friday
You
may have seen an article about WEQX in the Times Union
a few weeks back, but as you might recall, we got to ‘em
first (check the Dec. 16 issue), and that’s got to be worth
something, right? We certainly hope so, as our favorite little
independent radio station will continue its 20th anniversary
celebration with a show this weekend, featuring two of the
under-the-radar-type acts who make their playlist so darn
interesting. Murray Blackburn and the Dears have been getting
a bunch of airplay as of late with the Morrissey-meets-Blur
paean “Lost in the Plot,” while Boston’s Apollo Sunshine have
been enjoying oodles of positive listener response for their
Ben Folds via Elephant 6 pop sound. If the variety weren’t
enough, the tickets are cheap, too—a mere eight bucks will
get you through the door. Also on the bill: By Divine Right
and Horse in a Box. (Jan. 14, 7:30 PM, $8, 1208 Route 146,
Clifton Park, 371-0012)
Joan
as Police Woman
MASS
MoCA, North Adams,
Mass., Saturday
Joan
Wasser, the frontwoman and titular Joan of Joan as Police
Woman, is someone you’ve likely heard before—whether you were
aware of it or not. It’s possible you heard her old outfit,
buzz band the Dambuilders, in the middle ’90s; but even if
that doesn’t ring any bells, it’s a decent bet her studio
work with the likes of Lou Reed, Sheryl Crow, Rufus Wainwright,
Juliana Hatfield, Shudder to Think, Sparklehorse, Varnaline,
and so on, may very well have taken up space in your carousel.
Critics, however, are quick to praise Wasser on her own merits.
The Village Voice says she sounds like “Deborah Harry
singing Nina Simone,” and the New York Press calls
her “powerful and commanding.” Oh, and at her Web site, Wasser
helpfully points out that she’s a superfoxxx. So, she’s got
that going for her, which is nice. (Jan. 15, 8 PM, $16,
1040 MASS MoCA Way, North Adams, Mass., 413-662-2111)
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francesca
tanksley
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Billy
Harper, Francesca Tanksley
North
Pointe Cultural Arts Center,
Saturday
Jazz
lovers all over the Capital Region will be delighted to know
that the North Pointe Cultural Arts Center will host a couple
of great longtime jazz performers Saturday night. Billy Harper,
who got an early start on the stage when he first began performing
in choral groups and solo singing events at age 5, will perform
on saxophone; Francesca Tanksley, an Italian-born internationally
acclaimed jazz pianist, will accompany him on piano. Peter
Keepnews of The Village Voice says of Harper, “He is
one of the most original and inventive composers I’ve encountered.”
The two musicians have performed all over together, and they
stop in Kinderhook on Saturday night to treat a Capital Region
audience. (Jan. 15, 8 PM, $10-20, Route 9, Kinderhook,
758-9234)
XYZ,
Every Mother’s Nightmare
Northern
Lights, Sunday
Every
hair-metal band’s nightmare: You work, and you slave, and
you hone your chops, your licks, your riffs and whatnot; you
bust your ass in the Hollywood clubs of the mid- to late-’80s
until you finally score an audition with Clive-freaking-Davis,
of the Arista Davises. On the night he comes to see you, a
jealous headliner denies you use of their lights and sound
system—but does that stop you? Hell, no. You relocate to a
nearby warehouse, and you rock Davis’ ass off, bro. And you
land the major-label contract. Wicked. Then grunge comes along
and blows you off the map. Sad, but true. This is Every Mother’s
Nightmare’s story, and with a few variations the basic plot
for XYZ (and every other long-haired glam/sleaze rock band
of that era), as well. But, you do wake from nightmares, and
now that grunge is gone it looks as if there may be some room
on local stages for resurrected bands of the pre-Cobain years.
(Jan. 16, 7:30 PM, $10, 1208 Route 146, Clifton Park, 371-0012)
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Noted |
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david
crowder band
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Ultra-hooky
singer-songwriter Mike Uva, who just released
his album Where Have You Been, will play
King’s Tavern tonight (Thursday); Amazing Plaid
and K Sonin Knife will open (9 PM,
$2, 581-7090). . . . Also tonight, catch local
artists like Sirsy, Sean Rowe,
the Velmas, the Shameless Saints
and Transfer at a benefit concert for the
Leukemia & Lymphoma Society at Northern Lights
(7:30 PM, $8, 371-0012). . . . If you can appreciate
the grand irony of throwing up the devil horns
at a Christian-rock show, then make your way over
to the Grace Fellowship in Latham tomorrow (Friday),
where the David Crowder Band will hold
a CD-release (7 PM, $15, 785-4959) . . . . Frog
Holler and Jackinany will provide the
roots-rock at the Ale House on Saturday (9 PM,
$8, 272-9740). . . . Watch two highly regarded
acoustic string musicians, Darol Anger
and Mike Marshall, when they perform as
a duo at the Egg on Saturday; the Winnipeg-based
Duhks will open (8 PM, $22, 473-1061).
. . . Saturday’s show at the Lark Tavern features
the barroom rock of Arc, plus D.C.-based
singer-songwriter Andy Zipf; Zipf’s I
Stole the Morning Sun is one of our favorite
accidental finds in recent memory (10 PM, $3,
463-9779). . . . Also on Saturday, African-American
folk duo Kim and Reggie Harris will hold
a CD-release party at the WAMC Performing Arts
Studio (8 PM, $18, 465-5233, ext. 4). . . . Monday
night’s Fuze Box show will feature local fave
Jason Martin “performing new material involving
shamanistic, lycanthropic historical accounts
of S&M and alchemy channeled through guitar
and reel2reel.” What this means, no one really
knows. Albany boys Brevator and Seth
Faergolzia of DUFUS open (8 PM, $3, 432-4472).
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Columns
& Opinions
