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The
Ventures, Rocky Velvet
Alive
at Five, Thursday
Surf’s up! Riding the tide as 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
inductees, the Ventures will bring five decades of smash hits
into Alive at Five this evening (Thursday). The sultans of
surf-rock have quite a resume: They’re the best- selling instrumental
rock group of all time with nearly 100 million albums sold
worldwide, and their catalog counts 250(!) albums. The sextet,
founded by guitarists Don Wilson and Bob Bogle in 1958, are
widely recognized for their 1960s gold singles “Walk Don’t
Run” and “Hawaii Five-O.” Surf rock’s distinct genre regained
notoriety in the ’90s thanks to the golden soundtrack to Pulp
Fiction, eternally marrying surf music with badass motherfuckers.
Joining the Ventures at the Hudson Riverfront Park to complete
the sonic time-travel are local rockabilly quartet Rocky Velvet.
(June 12, 5 PM, free, Hudson Riverfront Park, Corning Preserve,
Albany, 434-2032)
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| Mercat |
Mercat
Amrose
Sable Gallery, Thursday
Mercat are a strange animal in deed. The New York City-based,
all-female quintet practice in an anything-goes offshoot of
Americana, with drums, bass, and strings (violin, viola, cello)
rubbing up against such nonrock instruments as accordion,
bird whistles and melodica. It’s a tough beast to describe,
even for the band—on their MySpace page they claim that “Mercat
sound like a tired sailor looking through the snow at the
shore, where he sees a broken-down amusement park that was
built in the ’30s and lost popularity in the ’50s.” (We know
exactly what that sounds like.) Those up on their Kamikaze
Hearts lore should recognize cellist Karen Codd; tonight’s
show serves as a homecoming of sorts for Codd, and as the
first date of a mini-tour that will take the group through
western New York, to Akron, Ohio, and then to Philadelphia.
Scientific Maps share tonight’s bill. (June 12, 8 PM, free,
306 Hudson Ave., Albany, 607-437-6977)
The
Wait, Strange Faces
Revolution
Hall, Friday
Speaking of homecomings, the last time we heard from the Wait
was around the end of the second Bush’s first term. Despite
some talk of a new album around that time, life led members
in different directions, and the band basically (though never
officially) called it quits. Four years later, the lads are
reuniting for this show at Revolution Hall; fans should expect
to hear all the songs that made the band one of the Capital
Region’s most beloved acts for a good long run there, plus
some of their unreleased hits-to-be. To bring things full
circle, the new band from three-fifths of the Wait will open.
Raleigh, N.C.-based Strange Faces comprise Ryan Barnum on
vocals and guitar, bassist Mark Connor, and drummer Art Pierce.
The band’s forthcoming debut disc should please fans of the
Wait’s anthemic-guitar-rock sound. (June 13, 8 PM, $10,
425 River St., Troy, 274-0553)
Sean
A. Lane
First
Unitarian Society of Schenectady, Friday
We may as well keep the theme going. . . . Schenectady-born
jazz pianist Sean A. Lane will return home tomorrow (Friday)
to perform a benefit concert for his childhood school district.
Lane hopes to spread his passion for music and learning, which
began at age 7 when he discovered his father’s record collection.
He then started piano lessons, and went on to earn a music
degree at SUNY Fredonia and a master’s degree at the University
of Maryland. Highly regarded as one of Washington D.C.’s most
accomplished musicians, Lane has performed at three presidential
inaugural celebrations and in Bay Jazz Project, which has
been nominated for the “Best Jazz Duo/Group” by the Washington
Area Music Association. Combining smooth jazz, R&B, Dixieland,
and other genres, Lane’s unorthodox style will be complemented
by woodwind player Seth Kibel, bassist George Rush, and drummer
Pete Sweeney. (June 13, 7:30 PM, $20, $10 students, 1221
Wendell Ave., Schenectady, 374-4446)
Mary
Gauthier
Club
Helsinki, Saturday
Between
Daylight and Dark seems like an apt title for an album
from someone who’s spent as much of her life treading that
line as Mary Gauthier. The Louisiana-based folk-singer—who
didn’t even write her first song until age 35!—traveled a
rocky road to relative stardom, from being given up for adoption
at birth, to spending her 18th birthday in jail, to battling
the prejudices that come with lesbianism. She doesn’t get
into much of that on Between Daylight and Dark,
her fifth record and second for the Lost Highway label, though
darkness abounds in her lyrics. The daylight, presumably,
is in the album’s excellent, live-in-the-studio performances,
which are aided by the smart production touch of Joe Henry.
Gauthier is on a seemingly never-ending tour, which brings
her to Great Barrington this week. (June 14, 9 PM, $25,
284 Main St., Great Barrington, Mass., 413-528-3394)
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| Also
Noted |
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| José
Gonzalez |
If
you prefer your music festivals mud- and camping-free,
check out the mini music fest presented by the
New York State Ancient Order of Hibernians tonight
(Thursday) at the Schenectady AOH Hall; headlined
by Canada’s Greenwich Meantime, the event
also features music from Who’s Your Paddy,
Flynn 529, and Mike DeAngelis and Rick
Bedrosian of Hair of the Dog, and you can
get home in time to catch Conan (7 PM, $20, 374-9003).
. . . Jimkata, Jack’s Wasted Life, and
Disposable Rocket Band play Red Square tomorrow
(Friday) night (9 PM, $8, 465-0444). . . . Your
weekly dressing-down comes courtesy of Hamell
on Trial, who will bring his off-off-Broadway
act to the Linda on Friday (8 PM, $15, 465-5233
ext. 4). . . . Speaking of the Linda, Saturday’s
show featuring Guy Clark, Ramblin’ Jack
Elliott, and Slaid Cleaves has been
postponed due to Clark’s suffering a broken leg;
the date should be rescheduled for November, but
call the venue to look into refunds (465-5233
ext. 4). . . . A show that was postponed back
in April makes it to the stage this weekend: Greg
Brown plays the Egg Saturday evening (8 PM,
$24, 473-1845). . . . Berkshires-based singer-songwriter
Bobby Sweet shares his songs and stores
at the Taconic Hills Performing Arts Center in
Craryville on Saturday (7:30 PM, $12, $8 seniors
and students, 325-0447). . . . And here’s this
week’s one to drive for: Swedish-born Argentine
José González brings his soft and subtle
songcraft to the Iron Horse Music Hall in Northampton,
Mass., on Tuesday, with guests Twi the Humble
Feather (7 PM, $28, 413-584-0610).
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