Gods and Rock Stars

If you’re like me, and I know I am, you’re hoping the weather straightens up, flies right and spreads greenery and warmth around the place as it should be doing because it’s the end of April and nearly May.

If you’re not like me, you can look on the bright side: crummy weather means no outdoor music; no outdoor music means fewer chances of leaving a show with more on your clothes than you came in with; and cleaner clothes smell better.

It’s one of Mark Eitzel’s 60-watt silver linings, but it still gives light. Meanwhile, here are some mostly warm and punchy performers.

 

 

Tuesday, April 29

Sea Wolf at Shank Hall

“Man is least himself when he talks in his own person,” Oscar Wilde wrote. “Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.” There are probably quite a few singer-songwriters working under “band” names who would like to use that quote but might feel ashamed of calling upon such an exalted source. (I have no such shame.)

Alex Church, he who is basically Sea Wolf, doesn’t seem too concerned about letting folks peer behind the mask, because, whether working with a full band as he did on 2009’s White Water, White Bloom or largely solo with rhythm machines and synths on 2012’s Old World Romance, his music is plain and earnest. And not necessarily “earnest” the way Oscar meant it.

This “Fortune” may favor you:

 

Friday, May 2

Zeus at Cactus Club

To paraphrase Harlan Ellison, when belief in a god dies, so does the god…but its memory might live on as the name for a whimsical indie-rock band. (There are also, of course, some metal bands with this name, but they’re not coming through town this week.)

Affiliated with the hip Canadian collective Broken Social Scene (and often backing BSS member Jason Collett), this group got its first modest buzz from a cover of the Genesis song “That’s All” in 2009. The most recent LP, 2012’s Busting Visions, is rambling Americana with quirks that My Morning Jacket or even Neil Young could appreciate.

On the genuflection scale for dead gods, this rates roughly 5 out of 10:

 

Friday, May 2

Leon Russell at Pabst Theater

When you’ve played piano, guitar and other assorted instruments for everyone from Jerry Lee Lewis and Glen Campbell to Phil Spector and Bob Dylan, what else can life show you? Since the misty transition from the 1960s to the 1970s, Leon Russell has been trying to figure that out.

Despite decades of good stuff in the vein of Dr. John’s swampy rock, blues and country—with handfuls of his own Oklahoma dust mixed in—Russell’s visibility had faded until the advent of The Union, a 2010 album he with Sir Elton John at the royal’s own request. His solo follow-up, this year’s Life Journey, swings easy with the Great American Songbook and reliably hits those sore sweet spots.

Here’s a nice-n-dirty Russell original from the album:

 

Saturday, May 3

William Fitzsimmons at Shank Hall

Do not hold it against William Fitzsimmons that his songs have been featured on such shows as Grey’s Anatomy and Army Wives: the music is better than that, and he does need to make a living in a time when the general public doesn’t otherwise throw money at subtle folk musicians.

On his latest LP, this year’s Lions, the Pennsylvania native risks crossing the line between subtle and inaudible: his voice rarely rises above a tuneful whisper, and the melodies almost apologize for their prettiness. Yet the songs accumulate the weight of a man trying to make sense of his own thoughts and encourage listeners to do the same.

In a relatively quiet club, this should have an impact:

 

Monday, May 5

Uh Huh Her at Turner Hall Ballroom

Just to be clear: Uh Huh Her, which is indeed named after PJ Harvey’s excellent 2004 album, wasn’t formed by an actress from The L Word. It was formed by Lesha Hailey, one-half of the alt-pop duo the Murmurs, who became an actress on The L Word, then became a musician again.

Anyway, Hailey (mostly on bass and keyboards) and Camila Grey (another music veteran, on lead vocals, guitar and keyboards) have made a very breathy and romantic form of Electronic (Dance) Music since at least 2007, and UHH’s latest full-length, Future Souls, dropped earlier this year with plenty more breathy, romantic stuff. And it’s not just for…L Words.

Proof!