WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 17
Lost in the Trees This collective's tentacles stretch from Chapel Hill to Boston, nine (or more) members giving full voice to Ari Picker's high-drama compositions. Rich arrangements blend accordions, tubas and string sections with processed beats and guitar-freakouts; like regional fellow travelers Buschovski or Physics of Meaning, these songs eschew trad pop and rock formats for a much broader and richer legacy of song craft, where everyone from the Arcade Fire, The Beatles, Bach, Gershwin and Waits found inspiration. With a great new disc in tow – All Alone in An Empty House – this one's got "memorable gig" written all over it. With the Ultimate Optimist at The Evening Muse late show (John Schacht)
Three Doors Down It was announced last week that singer Brad Arnold has been advised by his doctors to take time off to rest his voice. So, the band has postponed the next seven shows of their tour, including this one, scheduled for Charlotte's Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre. Tickets purchased online will be refunded automatically. Tickets purchased in person should be returned at point of purchase. The band plans to reschedule. (Jeff Hahne)
THURSDAY, SEPT. 18
Calabi Yau When a band is named after a manifold used in superstring theory – hell, when a band references theoretical physics at all – it's probably a safe bet that you won't hear a cover of "American Woman" blaring through the speakers. Their recently released Actuel E.P. (named after the avant-jazz label of the same name) is a fine showcase for the band's surprisingly hummable take on post punk: equal parts free skronk, electric blooz, fed-back blips and twitters, and not a little bit of Drano-drinking drone tossed in for good measure. With Extra Hard. Milestone (Timothy C. Davis)
FRIDAY, SEPT. 19
Eilen Jewell Call it mood country, where the mood is a cross between Chris Isaac and Loretta Lynn. Jewell paints vivid images of lost American highways with her sad voice and music, which is just the right weave of timeless country, blues and a hint of jazz. A drive through a desert highway in the still of the night is the vibe here. She croons her tales while the Boston-based singer's scrap band colors the words. Evening Muse (Samir Shukla)
Sunny Ledfurd I used to give these guys (now "this guy" – Dugi Bakalli) all kinds of shit due to their rather knuckleheaded take on NuMetal. Since the full band days, Bakalli has taken his sound all Kenny Chesney-meets-Jack Johnson-at-Lake Norman-with-tequila-in-tow, to, if not delightful effect, effective effect. It ain't Proust ("I'm the Myrtle Beach midnight mayor/gonna shag on the Strand like a player/we get hurricanes fuck a tornader"), but it's good enough for fancy-free floating around on a pontoon boat, rebel flag raft at the ready. (Mind you, if you're into such "good times.") With Ziggy Pockets and Piedmont Boys. Amos' Southend (Davis)
SATURDAY, SEPT. 20
Jamie McLean Band Guitar slinger McLean has put in six-string duty with the Dirty Dozen Brass Band and lent his studio chops to everyone from Norah Jones to Chuck D. McLean's classic riffs and southern rock tips the hat to the Faces and The Black Crowes while instilling his signature into all facets of blues rock. McLean and his band are on the road plugging the freshly released album, American Heartache. Double Door Inn (Shukla)
SUNDAY, SEPT. 21
Randy Burke Best-known for fronting locals the Naked Ramblers in the mid-80s, Burke's crew took the college rock format and stood it on its head, channeling more Beefheart than Bad Brains into the mix. The band was never afraid to poke fun at the pretensions of rock, and as a solo artist that's part of Burke's raison d'etre as has been stated succinctly elsewhere, "a singer-songwriter that 'interacts' with the audience while singing songs of odd men's deeds." You'll have to imagine the rest, or better yet, find out for yourself. Opening for Throw Me the Statue, LA Tool and Die, and Bloody Organs. Milestone (Schacht)
Holy Liars This Athens, Ga. quartet plies the dirt roads with fuzzed-out garage rock and battered guitars slung low, riffed-up to the max. Consider Holy Liars' down and dirty, grungy Americana as the southern rock of this young century. Their recent release Smoke is an apt moniker. Also on the bill are Sleepy Horses and Transmission Fields. Snug Harbor (Shukla)
Benefit For Charles Hairston If you read this week's cover story, you know the background. Local frontman for The Monday Night All-Stars Hairston, 61, is fighting a battle with cancer and has mounting medical bills. If you've been to the Double Door on a Monday night in the last 13 years, chances are you've seen him sing, dance and impress the hell out of the crowd. The Double Door Inn (Hahne)
