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| St.
Vincent |
The
Defibulators, the Blue Ribbon Boys
Jason’s
Upstairs Bar, Thursday
“City-billy”
is how The New Yorker classified this Brooklyn band
of merrimakers, and it’s as close to justice as one word could
do them. But we have to admit, we prefer the band’s own choice,
“whackabilly,” as it better illustrates the anything-goes
nature of the Defibulators. With a lineup that includes upright
bass, banjo, fiddle, backhills harp, Telecaster, and junkyard
percussion (read: washboard) the Defibulators are finding
the through line from bluegrass to bar band. They’ll share
the stage in Hudson tonight with the Blue Ribbon Boys, whose
throwback sound—to the music of the 1930s and ’40s—is one
of the area’s best clubgoing bets. Check out their Nirvana
cover. (Aug. 6, 8 PM, $10, 521 Warren St., Hudson, 828-7303)
St.
Vincent
Pearl
Street Nightclub, Thursday
Dylan Thomas would dig Annie Clark. Under her stage name,
St. Vincent, taken from the hospital where Thomas died, Clark
makes music that is fully aware of the ironies, both cruel
and quirky, that constitute the everyday. Death, in a miraculous
process, creates new growth; the old give way to the young,
the fall leaf to the spring bud; in death we find a mirror
for life, a reason that makes it valuable. To contain that
contradiction and to celebrate it was Thomas’ aim, yielding
work that saw life from the perspective of multiple generations
all living and dying together. This, too, is Clark’s project,
revealing all of the simultaneous emotions that shape a feeling
like love. Of course, she also fucking rocks. (Aug. 6,
8:30 PM, $15, 10 Pearl St., Northampton, Mass., 413-586-8686)
10
for $10 Tour
Northern
Lights, Friday
Here’s a lesson in how to maximize the bang-for-buck ratio
for concertgoers, one that even the least economically minded
among us can grasp. Headlined by Poison the Well, the 10 for
$10 Tour does exactly what it claims to: Each date on the
tour features sets by 10 different hardcore acts, with all
tickets priced at just $10. Literally, a bang—er, band per
buck. The tour is sponsored by IndieMerchStore.com, whose
aim is to give money-stressed fans an affordable live-music
option, and revive the era of the hardcore matinee. (And also
make some of us really miss the QE2.) Besides the headliners,
the Clifton Park edition of this all-day show will feature
Vision of Disorder, Bane, Terror, War of Ages, the Ghost Inside,
the Mongoloids, Trapped Under Ice, Crime in Stereo, and This
Is Hell. (Aug. 7, 3 PM, $10, 1208 Route 146, Clifton Park,
371-0012)
Ryan
Montbleau Band
Putnam
Den, Friday
Boston soul man Ryan Montbleau is what you’d call a self-starter.
Dude worked his way up from a day gig substitute teaching
and nights in coffeehouses and open mics, to a national tour
circuit, in a couple of years, without outside funding. He
measured enough success in his solo travels to eventually
assemble a touring band bearing his name. The group now rack
up more than 200 gigs every year, and their name frequently
pops up on Bands to Watch lists in major music magazines.
But as self-supported ventures go, sometimes hard work is
not enough—for their next album, Montbleau and his band are
calling on their considerable amount of fans to donate what
they can. You can pitch in by checking them tomorrow (Friday)
night at Saratoga’s newest concert venue. (Aug. 7, 9 PM,
$12, 63A Putnam St., Saratoga Springs, 584-8066)
Creed
Saratoga
Performing Arts Center, Tuesday
Remember all those times we said we’d move to Canada if G.W.
Bush got in for a second term? We made similar promises with
regard to a Creed reunion, though it was more like “If Creed
get back together, I’ll quit listening to music.” Of course
we didn’t keep the first promise either, so we’re not compelled
to follow through. And we may not need to anyway: Just as
the rise of Creed marked the ascension of Jesus-rock to the
multi-platinum-selling heights reserved for such worldwide
megastars as Vanilla Ice and Hootie and the Blowfish, the
band’s second coming is sure to signal something far more
fearsome—perhaps the initial stages of the apocalypse! Or
maybe there’s a simpler explanation for the reformation: Given
Scott Stapp’s habit of striking a Jesus Christ pose, it’s
only logical for him to go the resurrection route. (Aug.
4, 7:30 PM, $25-$85, Saratoga Spa State Park, Saratoga Springs,
587-3330)
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| Also
Noted |
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| Pumped
for Dumplin |
Summer’s
almost over, already—we’re down to the last two
Alive at Fives. Tonight (Thursday), it’s the Neville
Brothers with guests Mingo Fishtrap (5
PM, free, 434-2032). . . . John Mayer-endorsed
trumpeter Chris Botti blows into Tanglewood
tomorrow (Friday), where he’ll perform with the
Boston Pops Orchestra (8:30 PM, $21-$115,
888-266-1200). . . . Friday at Valentine’s, it’s
the reunion of Pumped for Dumplin, the
short-lived “supergroup” featuring Frank Moscowitz
and Martha Kronholm of Princess Mabel, plus Katie
Haverly and Nick Matulis; Mission Control Of
and Restys open (9 PM, $5, 432-6572). .
. . Red Square has a triple bill on Friday, with
the Bryan Brundige Collective, Ikebe
Shakedown, and Duchess and the Afro-Dub
Rebels (8 PM, $10, 465-0444). . . . Speaking
of reunions, the Rolling Stone Pub and Grill in
Burnt Hills hosts its version of a Summer of Love
flashback on Saturday with an all-day show that
reunites some of the area’s favorite acts of the
’60s and ’70s, including Ruff Francis,
Chicken Fingers, Bits and Pieces,
and more (noon, $3, 384-2511). . . . Living
in the Light may be an ironic title for a
blues record, but that’s what Ronnie Earl and
the Broadcasters have called their latest;
they’re at the Linda Saturday night (8 PM, $25,
465-5233 ext. 4). . . . This ought to be something:
Saturday at Mass MoCA, Julia Greenberg
performs the songs of Dory Previn (7:30 PM, $18,
413-662-2111). . . . Woodstock is hopping on Saturday:
Singer-songwriter-violinist Tracy Bonham
is at Alchemy (845-684-5068), while the Bearsville
Theater hosts the Woodstock Reggae Festival, featuring
Innervisions and the Big Takeover,
among others (8 PM, $20, 845-679-4406). . . .
It’s Canalfest weekend, and Amsterdam’s Riverlink
Park will celebrate with live music from the NRBQ
offshoot Terry Adams Rock & Roll Quartet,
plus Medrock and the Barefoot Boys
on Saturday, and the Joey Thomas Big Band
on Sunday (2 PM, free, amsterdamny.gov).
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