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The
Black Crowes
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Dan
Deacon Ensemble, Lightning Bolt
Northern
Lights, Thursday
Fast drumming, distorted vocals, and love for kitsch are all
qualities that make Dan Deacon and Lightning Bolt great for
a shared bill, but the best might be a mutual disdain for
the stage. Lightning Bolt, a bass and drums duo, have long
insisted on playing their manic, athletic noise rock from
smack-dab in the middle of the crowd, where things tend to
get loud, sweaty and violent. And Deacon’s sets are full-blown
interactive aerobics classes, with the dorky maestro leading
the audience through inhibition-reducing charades. Even with
his 14-piece ensemble this time around, Deacon’s likely to
bring the fun right down to the floor. Albany’s own Ghoul
Poon open. (Oct. 14, 8 PM, $15, 1208 Route 146, Clifton
Park, 371-0012)
MC
Frontalot
Valentine’s
Thursday
“Never
has a little boy sat so alone at his computer and busted out
such inconceivably thick rhymes.” So said linguist, philosopher,
political activist and hip-hop critic Noam Chomsky of Damian
Hess, aka MC Frontalot, progenitor of the nerdcore genre,
and self-declared “World’s 579th greatest rapper.” Ever since
2005’s Nerdcore Rising, Frontalot’s science-heavy lyricism
has landed him gigs at video game conferences and cameos on
Sesame Street, and spawned a whole movement, including
MC Hawking, Optimus Rhyme, and Schäfer the Darklord, the latter
of whom guests on Frontalot’s latest Zero Day, as does
Daily Show correspondent John Hodgman. The Pony in
the Pancake open. (Oct. 14, 8 PM, $15, 17 New Scotland
Ave., Albany, 432-6572)
The
Black Crowes
Palace
Theater, Friday
After 20 years and nine studio albums, the Black Crowes are
giving it a rest. Though, unlike the “hiatus” that took the
band out of circulation for four years at the start of the
century, this one seems amicable—they’re simply putting the
band on indefinite pause to work on outside projects, like
families. That’s bad news for hardcore fans, but for those
who haven’t seen the band at work in some time it’s a blessing:
The Robinson brothers and company have been making some of
their best music in recent years, thanks to the addition of
North Mississippi Allstars guitarist Luther Dickinson. The
recent career- retrospective Croweology features new,
acoustic renditions of the band’s best-loved songs; their
Say Goodnight to the Bad Guys Tour, which plays Albany on
Friday, presents those songs in a three-hour show that’s half-acoustic,
half-electric. (Oct. 15, 8 PM, $42.50, 19 Clinton Ave.,
Albany, 465-4663)
The
Psychedelic Furs
Bearsville
Theater, Friday
If you’re a regular Metroland reader you already know
that we’re a bunch of old farts who get excited by stuff like
this, so bear with us. Led by singer Richard Butler, English
band the Psychedelic Furs bridged the gap between the Sex
Pistols and the Smiths in the early ’80s with their sneering,
somewhat retro pop. They’re warming up for a European tour
with two shows here in the states, one of which happens to
be in Woodstock. And in the tradition of dozens of bands,
they’re rolling out the entirety of their great 1981 record
Talk, Talk, Talk—it’s the one with the original version
of “Pretty In Pink,” which inspired the title (and the re-recorded
title track) of the John Hughes film. Ducky won’t be there,
but we sure as hell will. (Oct. 15, 9 PM, $45, 291 Tinker
St., Woodstock, 845-679-4406)
Chris
Brown
Washington
Avenue Armory, Saturday
How To Derail A Pop Career 101: Chris Brown once had a most
promising future in front of him. He sold more than four million
albums and boasted two No. 1 singles before his 18th birthday,
simultaneously taking his star into the acting realm. He was
gearing up for what could have been a career-defining third
album, on which he claimed to emulate Prince and Michael Jackson.
(What balls!) Then, in Feb. 2009, Brown was arrested for viciously
assaulting then-girlfriend (and fellow pop star) Rihanna.
And oh, did the walls come crashing down: Released in the
months after a felony conviction, Graffiti all but
tanked, selling a sliver of its predecessors. Brown is now
touring in advance of a forthcoming album called F.A.M.E.,
which reportedly stands for “forgiving all my enemies,” an
ironic title from someone whose lasting contribution to pop
culture is punching a woman in the face. (Oct. 16, PM,
call for prices, 195 Washington Ave., Albany, 694-7160)
Ryan
Bingham and the Dead Horses
The
Linda, Sunday
We’ve written about Texas singer-songwriter Ryan Bingham before,
in the context of his being an up-and-coming country star
playing the club circuit. After a few well-received local
shows at Valentine’s, Bingham and his band the Dead Horses
are moving up to a slightly bigger stage at the Linda. We
suspect the upgrade has more than a little to do with the
fact that he picked up an Academy Award earlier this year
for the theme song from Crazy Heart. But beyond that
are three albums of excellent, folk- and blues-flavored country-rock,
including this year’s T-Bone Burnett-produced Junky Star,
helmed by Bingham’s aged-beyond-its-years voice. The Rustlanders
open the show. (Oct. 17, 8 PM, $15, 339 Central Ave., Albany,
465-5233)
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| Also
Noted |
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| Buffy
Sainte-Marie |
Get
your Halloween costume on early and go see the
legendary GWAR at Northern Lights on Friday
(7:30 PM, $20, 371-0012). . . . Fans of hard bop,
take (blue) note: the SF Jazz Collective,
featuring Capital Region native Stefon Harris
among a star-filled ensemble, will perform the
compositions of Horace Silver in their Friday
concert at the Egg (8 PM, $29.50, 473-1845). .
. . The Eighth Step at Proctors presents Imagine—A
World Without Domestic Abuse, a benefit for the
Schenectady YWCA, on Friday, with music from Bethany
and Rufus, Lui Collins, and Annie
and the Hedonists (7:30 PM, $25, 346-6204).
. . . Award-winning songwriter and activist Buffy
Sainte-Marie performs Friday at the Iron Horse
Music Hall in Northampton, Mass., just down the
road from her alma mater, UMass Amherst (7 PM,
$25, 413-586-8686). . . . Blue-collar British
songwriter Jez Lowe plays his well-covered
originals at Old Songs on Friday (8 PM, $20, 765-2815).
. . . If yer blues is the Delta blues you’ll dig
Danielle Miraglia, in concert at Caffe
Lena on Saturday along with Lonesomeville singer-songwriter
Les Sampou (8 PM, $18, 583-0022). . . .
’90s L.A. Hardcore greats Strife are back
and at Valentine’s on Tuesday (6 PM, $12, 432-6572).
. . . Also Tuesday, Cobra Skulls, the Sidekicks,
and Menzingers are at Bogie’s (8 PM, 482-4393).
. . . Get your Halloween costume on early and
go see the legendary Misfits at Northern
Lights on Wednesday (6:30 PM, $18, 371-0012).
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