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The
New Pornographers
Calvin
Theatre, Thursday
It should come as no surprise that the New Pornographers are
playing on the same stage as Radiohead at this weekend’s All
Points West Music and Arts Festival in New Jersey. The Vancouver,
B.C.-based group have won fans over with their hook-laden
indie-pop, releasing four albums via Matador Records in the
past decade. But before storming the main stage in Jersey
City, the band will roll into the Calvin Theatre tonight in
support of their latest effort, Challengers, hailed
by Blender as “the band’s best album yet.” The album’s
instrumental diversity is complemented by chief songwriter
Carl Newman’s quirky lyrics. And as for the band name? “There
isn’t really any significance to the name. Some people think
it’s offensive,” Newman told Suite101.com. “It’s no more offensive
than Barenaked Ladies or Cowboy Junkies. It’s just a Canadian
tradition of having blandly offensive names.” (Aug. 7,
8 PM, $25, 19 King St., Northampton Mass., 413-584-1444)
The
Neville Brothers
Vapor
Nightclub, Thursday
It’s been a little while since the folks at Vapor have had
a big show on their schedule, but tonight they’re making up
for it, big time. Known as “New Orleans’ First Family of Funk,”
the Neville Brothers have been the preeminent name in Bayou-based
soul for more than 30 years, mixing R&B, pop, jazz—a little
of everything, really—into their funky, funky music. Their
last studio release, Walkin’ in the Shadow of Life,
was released in 2004, which means the band are likely to choose
songs from their entire, extensive catalog. Which is good
news for you, if you’re looking to party. And if you’re going
to see the Nevilles, that’s what you should expect to do.
(Aug. 7, 8 PM, $40, Saratoga Gaming and Raceway, 342 Jefferson
St., Saratoga Springs, 584-2110)
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| Bitter:Sweet |
Bitter:Sweet
Revolution
Hall, Friday
All you music-making folk could take a cue from Los Angeles-based
electronica/trip-hop (or whatever decade-old term you want
to use) duo Bitter:Sweet. These days it’s all about the licensing,
and these Angelenos have had their music used in everything
from television shows (Grey’s Anatomy, Lipstick
Jungle, Smallville) to films (Because I Said
So, Shoot ’Em Up) to, naturally, advertisements
(anybody remember the Zune?). Of course they wouldn’t be getting
the business if their product sucked, and that it does not:
The duo’s latest disc of new material, Drama, has drawn
favorable comparisons to such acts as Morcheeba, Portishead,
and Everything But the Girl. Joining them at Revolution Hall
on Friday will be the Capital Region’s own purveyors
of delicate, orchestral pop, the Red Lions. (Aug. 8, 8
PM, $12, 425 River St., Troy, 274-0553)
Amy
Burton and John Musto
Tannery
Pond Concerts, Saturday
It’s usually fun when classical performers slide across the
line to perform classic American pop songs. This Friday in
New Lebanon, New York City Opera soprano Amy Burton will do
just that—and, with her pianist-accompanist husband John Musto,
a few French songs as well. “I Love Paris/J’aime New York”
is the official title of the program, which will feature,
well, exactly what you might think it would feature: city-themed
songs by Cole Porter (“I Love Paris”) and Vernon Duke (“April
in Paris,” “Autumn in New York”), and favorites by George
Gershwin and Francis Poulenc. Let’s face it. Are there really
any cities in the world more worthy of a tribute in song?
And if you start singing “we’ve got it all in All-bany,”
we’re going to punch you. (Aug. 9, 8 PM, $25-$30, Mount
Lebanon Shaker Village, Route 20, New Lebanon, 888-820-1696)
Mountain
Music Meltdown
North
Country Community College, Saturday-Sunday
Brandish your tie-dye T-shirts and prepare for the deadhead
invasion. This two-day, all-ages show will mix it up with
bluegrass, jam, folk, country, rock, and blues. Folk rocker
and Rock and Roll Hall-of-Famer Chris Hillman, formerly of
the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers, headlines Saturday
evening’s program. The hippies will flock Sunday night, when
Dark Star Orchestra are scheduled to perform. DSO play with
fanatical detail, accurately re-creating entire set lists
from the Grateful Dead’s 30 years of live shows. The Zen Tricksters
also will perform on Sunday; the four-piece jam/rock band
have been performing for three decades. Donna the Buffalo,
Enter the Haggis, King Wilkie, Raisinhead and the Juggling
Suns also are on the weekend schedule. Don’t forget the grilled
cheese! (August 9-10, 12-9 PM, $28-$55 in advance, NCCC
Soccer Field, Saranac Lake, 637-4989)
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| Also
Noted |
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| Andrew
Bird |
Veteran
guitar-slinger Del Rey brings her bag of
licks to Caffe Lena tomorrow (Friday) night (8
PM, $18, 583-0022). . . . The Blue Ribbon Boys
with Julia Gottlieb return to one of their
favorite stomping grounds, Club Helsinki in Great
Barrington, Mass., on Friday (9 PM, $12, 413-528-3394).
. . . Onetime Allman Brothers Band guitarist Dickey
Betts and his band Great Southern will
beat his former band to the area by a week, with
shows Friday at Proctors Theatre (8 PM, $32, 346-6204)
and Saturday at the cozy Bearsville Theater in
Woodstock (6:30 and 9:30 PM, $43, 845-679-4406).
. . . Get some for free this Saturday at the Coxsackie
Riverside Festival in, yes, Coxsackie; besides
the fun activities and food and all that, there
will be live music from the Last Conspirators
and the Foy Brothers, among others (2 PM,
$2, 731-2666). . . . This is, by all accounts,
a pretty big show, but we’re gonna put it out
there and say that we have no idea who any of
these bands are: Secondhand Serenade, the
Graduate, My American Heart, PlayRadioPlay
and Rookie of the Year play the hits (we
think?) at Northern Lights on Saturday (7:30 PM,
$15, 371-0012). . . . Sunday at Pearl Street Nightclub
in Northampton, Mass., feel the power of the mighty
Melvins, plus guests Big Business
(8:30 PM, $18, 413-586-8686). . . . Monday is
Irish night at the concert series in Albany’s
Washington Park; jig in with music from Searson,
Eileen McSweeney and the McKrells (6
PM, free, 434-3861). . . . Finally, if you don’t
know about this one, you probably don’t want to:
Wilco and Andrew Bird play the shed
at Tanglewood in Lenox, Mass., Tuesday night (6:30
PM, $26-$36, 617-931-2000).
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