Sound Menu March 21 2007

THURS/22

??
ATLANTA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA & CHORUS Remember 9/11? San Francisco composer John Adams conducts the first Atlanta performances of his profound, heart-wrenching and controversial “On the Transmigration of Souls” for choruses, orchestra and live electronics. Written in the aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001, for the New York Philharmonic, Adams nevertheless hopes the work will “summon human experience that goes beyond this particular event.” Violinist Midori is soloist for Adams’ “Violin Concerto,” and the program rounds out the Manhattan imagery with Aaron Copland’s introspective “Quiet City,” evoking the nocturnal melancholy and anxieties of an urban society in 1940. $26-$73. 8 p.m. Symphony Hall, Woodruff Arts Center. 404-733-5000. www.atlantasymphony.org. — Mark Gresham

??
AVETT BROTHERS, EVERYBODYFIELDS Is it punk or bluegrass? Hell, I don’t know. But the Avetts have caused quite a stir at various national acoustic music festivals for the past couple of years. Eschewing the traditional precision, tuning, and melody of bluegrass for the unusual and dissonant sounds they are producing, there’s no doubt that the Avetts have caught on with the trendoids. $17.50. 8:30 p.m. Variety Playhouse. 404-524-7354. www.variety-playhouse.com. — James Kelly

??
UNCLE EARL, CROOKED STILL Nice double bill! Uncle Earl is an all-female bluegrass band featuring some amazingly talented musicians, particularly the banjo whiz-girl Abigail Washburn. Their new CD is called Waterloo, Tennessee, and is a must-have. Crooked Still mines the traditional music vein, and sounds as authentic as it needs to. $19. 8 p.m. Eddie’s Attic. 404-377-4976. www.eddiesattic.com. — JK

??
FRI/23

??
BUNNY RABBIT Is Bunny Rabbit a pair of freaky revolutionaries or booty-rap jokesters? I have trouble deciding which. Lovers and Crypts, produced by Black Cracker, is sinuously electro, and the spoken-word rhymes from Bunny Rabbit are both poppy and provocative. Still, it’s been done so many times before. Maybe it’s not worth thinking about too much; this is music for fun, as the presence of fellow New York pranksters tha Pumpsta and Bruno and the Dreamies confirm. $7. 9 p.m. Drunken Unicorn. www.thedrunkenunicorn.net. — Mosi Reeves

??
COLD WAR KIDS, TOKYO POLICE CLUB Singer Nathan Willett’s love ‘em or hate ‘em Jack White/Richard Hell-styled warble spars with songs that twist and weave in unusual directions on this blogger’s-delight debut. The Kids’ innovative piano-based indie rock veers off road but somehow pulls back before heading off a cliff. It’s a nifty trick and the live show reportedly connects the many loose ends. Toronto-based openers Tokyo Police Club radiate enough gnarly, disjointed Buzzcocks’ energy to generate a press-worthy buzz akin to that of the headliners. $12. 9 p.m. Vinyl. 404-885-1365. www.vinyl-atlanta.com. — Hal Horowitz

??
DEAN & BRITTA The ex-Luna members enjoyed making their new album so much, they got married while recording it. No surprise there since the languid, jazzy lope of the songs, along with Britta’s sensual chanteuse vocals, exudes sexy passion more than anything in the Luna catalog. Dean Wareham’s dry talk-sung vocals perfectly complement his wife’s velvety, ice-princess croon, making the duo a contemporary version of the classic Lee Hazlewood and Nancy Sinatra pairing. Cortney Tidwell opens. $15. 8:30 p.m. Variety Playhouse. 404-524-7354. www.variety-playhouse.com. — HH

??
MARK WILLS A product of the Buckboard in Smyrna who had a fairly decent little chart run in the late ’90s with his inspirational take on country, Wills has sort of faded from the big time since then. His recent work is loosely based on more nostalgia for the ’80s (ugh!) and what little twang there was to begin with has all but disappeared. He is still cute, though. $14-$100. 9 p.m. Wild Bill’s. 678-473-1000. www.wildbillsatlanta.com. — JK

??
SHAKING RAY LEVIS Chattanooga’s Shaking Ray Levis celebrate the release of a new live recording, titled A.S.A.P. Wings. For this go around, the group features long-standing members Dennis Palmer (keyboards) and Bob Stagner (percussion), along with Athens’ avant-garde fixture Killick Erik Hinds (H’arpeggione). Expect an evening of wild improvisation bound by bombastic rhythms that explode into moments of chaos before shrinking back to revel in silence and the sounds of insects. $7. 9 p.m. Eyedrum. 404-522-0655. www.eyedrum.org. — Chad Radford

??
SQUAT, GEORGIA FIREFLIES Jazz, rock, blues and more are all squished out of Squat, a reserved but improv-happy Athens-Atlanta combo of versatile musicians still celebrating the release of their recent self-titled album. The Fireflies glow with the sound of old-old-time folk music, tempered by the wise-guy, indie-vet slant of Jeff Holt, Brian Fletcher and friends. $12. 8 p.m. Smith’s Olde Bar. 404-875-1522. www.smithsoldebar.com. — Lee Valentine Smith

??
SAT/24

??
CHICKEN RAID 2007 This annual daylong party featuring local and regional blues legends along with upstarts pays tribute to the music and legacy of Atlanta’s Mr. Frank Edwards (1909-2002). Mudcat, who also releases his new CD next week, plays master of ceremonies to a gaggle of rootsy, rowdy acts headlined by Birmingham’s one-man band Adolphus Bell. Chow down on Southern barbecue and welcome spring while supporting a good cause. Proceeds benefit Edwards’ family and the Music Maker Relief Foundation, which Mudcat works for tirelessly. $15. 2 p.m. Northside Tavern. 404-874-8745. www.northsidetavern.com. — HH

??
SUN/25

??
BATTLES, LONEY, DEAR, KEBBI WILLIAMS, KINAH BOTAH Battles is an anomaly of experimental virtuosity. Featuring members Don Caballero, Helmet and Prefuse 73 under the direction of Ty Braxton, son of Anthony Braxton, Battles is a powerhouse of rhythms. The music is a fast and fluid affair of groove-driven nods and cerebral arrangements bound by streamlined strains of alien hip-hop and post-rock equilibrium. Loney, Dear and Williams and Botah open. $10. 8:30 p.m. Drunken Unicorn. www.thedrunkenunicorn.net. — CR

??
PUBLIC ENEMY Before Flavor Flav made “Flavor of Love,” and before Chuck D. turned into a commentator on hip-hop culture’s many ills, the two made “Public Enemy No. 1,” a song that tweeted out of stereo systems like steam out of a teapot. It’s been two decades since the totemic single and the awesome Yo! Bum Rush the Show established Public Enemy as a leader of men, and the pair will celebrate the occasion with a concert at Sugarhill. Several acts from Chuck D.’s Slam Jamz imprint such as Most Hi-Fi, Dirty North and Crew Grrl Order open. $26.50-$30. 7 p.m. Sugarhill. 404-658-0068. www.sugarhillatl.com. — MR

??
MON/26

??
RICKIE LEE JONES The talented and enigmatic hipster takes on the words and sometimes the personae of Jesus on her new album, The Sermon on Exposition Boulevard, just in time for the coming Easter season. Inspired by Robert Lee Cantelon’s book The Words of Jesus, the album consists of the words and deeds of Christ, presented in a completely fresh approach with a punky and endearingly sincere reverence. In addition to her swingin’ “Sermon on the Mount of Cool,” she’ll probably revisit a few tunes from her elegant yet sometimes overlooked catalog of astute character studies, presented with her unique and singularly evocative gritty glamour. $30. 8 p.m. Variety Playhouse. 404-524-7354. www.variety-playhouse.com. — LVS

??
SONIC GENERATOR For their final concert of the season, the techno-musicians of Sonic Generator tackle performance art from Joshua Freed’s recent “Headset Sextet” (for six speakers listening to headphones and repeating streams of text they’ve never heard before), to the classic “Credo in Us” for piano, two percussionists, and radio/phonograph by avant-garde icon John Cage, and other ear-stretching works by Steve Reich, Michael Gordon, Gordon Fitzell and Keeril Makan. Free. 8 p.m. Georgia Tech Alumni House. 404-385-7257. www.sonicgenerator.gatech.edu. — MG

??
TUES/27

??
CELTIC WOMAN The Celtic Woman show takes a lot of the unique elements of Irish musical culture, and presents them to the world in a similar way that the Riverdance shows did. Unfortunately, the blend of contemporary pop music and traditional Celtic music doesn’t work all the time. It’s all a bit too contrived and homogenized for my taste, but then I love the Pogues. $32.50-$65. 8 p.m. Fox Theatre. 404-881-2100. www.foxtheatre.org. — JK

??
JOHN DIGWEED, MSTRKRFT Digweed has been one of the world’s most popular and influential DJs for more than a decade. His musical tastes, which ranged from the house and rave styles of the early ’90s to the minimal techno and new trance of today, frequently mirrors the course of popular dance music. As MSTRKRFT, Jesse Keeler (formerly part of the late, lamented Death From Above 1979) and Al-P are better known for producing club hits like “Work on You” and The Looks than rocking nightclubs. With luck, they’ll have the same lasting power that Digweed has. $20. 10 p.m. The Fountain Club at Wetbar. 404-745-9494. www.wetbaratlanta.com. — MR

??
NATIONAL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA OF RUSSIA According to Pravda, this new orchestra, led by conductor/violinist Vladimir Spivakov, was created in 2003 at the initiative of the Russian government to symbolize “the new cultural policy of Russia, which has entered a period of political and economic stability.” Comprised of top-level musicians from Moscow and St. Petersburg, the orchestra is touring the United States with piano soloist Olga Kern. Sold out; call to be placed on waiting list. $60. 8 p.m. Emerson Hall, Schwartz Center. 404-727-5050. www.arts.emory.edu. — MG

??
RYFYLKE, ISIA COOPER, DUET FOR THEREMIN & LAP STEEL Norwegian two-piece Ryfylke combines a strong element of field recordings and found sound ambiance that is picked apart by electronic means and reshaped into massive swells of drone and noise music. Atlanta-based singer/songwriter Cooper strums and sings a minimal approach to traditional folk and pop music. Duet for Theremin & Lap Steel explores the rich, sonic textures. $5. 9 p.m. Eyedrum. 404-522-0655. www.eyedrum.org. — CR

??
WED/28

??
PIGEON JOHN, PROCUSSIONS, MACROMANTICS, MARS ILL Pigeon John isn’t your everyday rapper. He doesn’t use profanity, even on upbeat party songs such as “Freaks,” and often performs at churches and Christian music events. He may be squeaky clean, but he’s one of the best MCs on the underground circuit, and his album Pigeon John and the Summertime Pool Party is highly recommended for anyone, Christian or otherwise, who likes hearing quality hip-hop. Three equally accomplished rap acts — the Procussions, Macromantics and ATL duo Mars Ill — join him for a concert worth adding to your calendar. $10. 9 p.m. Drunken Unicorn. www.thedrunkenunicorn.net. — MR

??
THURS/29

??
THE CHARMS, LIZARDMEN, PLAYER/KOMMANDER, DENTED In the tradition of the retro vibe of Little Steven’s Underground Garage concert series, Smith’s is offering its Spring Garage Sale show. Veterans of two Little Steven tours and on the roster of his Wicked Cool label, the Charms’ Boston-bred pop mind-set falls somewhere between Blondie and Josie and the Pussycats, but without the cloying cuteness of a cartoon and with an engaging, tambourine-slinging singer. Also on the bill: the Lizardmen (another Underground Garage alum), Dented and Player/Kommander, featuring glam icon James Hall. $10. 8 p.m. Smith’s Olde Bar. 404-875-1522. www.smithsoldebar.com. — LVS

??
Bands/performers/venues wishing to be included in Sound Menu’s noted-acts boxes may send recordings, press material and schedules two weeks in advance to Creative Loafing c/o Rodney Carmichael, 384 Northyards Blvd., Suite 600, Atlanta, GA 30313, or e-mail information to: rodney.carmichael@creativeloafing.com. To be included in the listings only, e-mail venue and band schedules by Friday at noon (for the issue that comes out the following Thursday) to soundboard@creativeloafing.com.