TUESDAY, AUG. 4
Cracker David Lowery's recorded output with his post-Camper Van Beethoven outfit has suffered in the comparison, but then bars don't get set much higher than Key Lime Pie. Cracker's 10th and latest, Sunrise In The Land Of Milk And Honey, is a middle-of-the-pack effort, though Lowery, always an astute culture observer, still has a sharp tongue and lyrical eye. Here, he turns it on eco-survivalists, the teetering nuclear state of Pakistan, the fading promise of the American dream, shell-shocked Iraq War vets, questionable companions and the '80s American punk scene. John Doe, Mark Linkous and Patterson Hood guest on an album of wistful pot-baked country, '70s-riff rock and high-BPM punk. Lowery, by the way, recently did a stint as Guest Editor at Magnet, where he praised The Foot Fist Way soundtrack composed by local rockers Pyramid and called "Dog Wild Heaven" one of the "best less-than-two-minutes songs ever." That's gotta count for something. Visulite Theatre (John Schacht)