Vibes blog

Hank III Not sure whether spending our nation’s birthday with somebody other than Hank Williams’ grandson might be contrary to the Patriot Act, but I’ll look into it. Hank III’s live shows come in two flavors, of course: the country one that links him to his grandpappy like there never was a Williams Jr., and Assjack, Hank III’s brutal hard-core alter-ego. There’s nothing too original in either, but it’s all done like Hank III’s life depends on it. Given his partying proclivities, it just might. With Lucky Tubb. Amos’ Southend

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Matt & Kim Not a lot of subtlety here, as this Brooklyn duo pairs ’80s synth-pop rhythms with a pop-punk ethos and a high-octane (and high-fructose, given their fondness for food fights) live show to create danceable mayhem. Matt Johnson’s bubbly melodies and the hyper-kinetic beats of (adorable) drummer Kim Schifino create a simple framework for songs about … well, it doesn’t matter what they’re about, does it? The idea here is fun and from that standpoint M&K fulfill the mission statement. With MSTRKRFT and A-Trak. The Forum

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TUESDAY, JUNE 23

Pattern Is Movement Most bands take their new compositions straight into the studio or onto the road merely for fine tuning; this Philly duo works inside-out on tour, discovering their songs’ true nature on stage and then taking them into the body shop for detailing (local producer Scott Solter at their service, again). This fits the aptly named act to a tee, as PIM is all about puzzle-making – seemingly disparate sections put together to create its own logical framework. At one time a quintet, the pieces now consist mostly of banks of different keyboards, polyrhythmic percussion patterns, and vocals that would make good musical accompaniment to an Ionesco play. With Yardwork and Fluffy Lumbers. Milestone

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SATURDAY, JUNE 20

Stephen Warwick & the Secondhand Stories. Warwick is one of the city’s most underrated songwriters, but that’s likely to change now that – if the rumors are true – the debut is done. There is, as someone somewhere wrote, something here for nearly everyone, from “singer-songwriter fans and indie aficionados” to “lap-top folkers and Americana geeks.” If you prefer your footholds have actual names, imagine Elliot Smith in a better mood with some Stephen Merritt, Mark Linkous, Jeff Mangnum, Dylan and Skip James coursing through him, and you’re in the diverse neighborhood. With another unsung local act, the Mike Strauss Band. The Evening Muse

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Richard Swift. The Fray blah-blah-blah, hit song on Lost blah-blah-blah, blah-blah-the American Coldplay-blah, etc. The only possible reasons for attending this show if you’re not a weepy 16-year-old are to hear what the acoustics sound like at the new Uptown venue, or opener Richard Swift, who’s been described as “Prince sitting in on the Plastic Ono Band sessions.” In fact, given Swift’s sophisticated melodies, keen sense of the macabre and droll lyrics (all displayed on this year’s theatrical The Atlantic Ocean), you wonder if this pairing was arranged as a lark – sort of like Nilsson opening for ‘NSync. Opening gig for the Uptown Amphitheatre.

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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 10

Ted Leo & The Pharmacists. Churning out record after record of the type of intelligent pop/soul/reggae-fueled punk that lunkheads like Green Day aspire to but couldn’t reach given several lifetimes, the Head Pharmacist’s progenitors are Weller, MacGowan, Strummer, Parker and Costello – smart, sardonic songwriters with a romantic streak who know the value of brevity, passion and unvarnished honesty. Leo was a victim of the recent Touch & Go shuttering, but it’s worth visiting his entertaining blog/Web site regularly to tune in for updates. You’ll laugh, you’ll learn (dude knows his legislative processes and World Cup), you’ll hear some ridiculously catchy music – just like his shows, in other words, only you get to share the experience and get in some cardio-pogo. With Titus Andronicus and locals Bruce Hazel & Some Volunteers. Neighborhood Theatre

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Arbouretum There was a moment in the early ’70s when the idyllic pagan tropes of Brit-folk turned dark and heavy, and the Black Sabbaths of the world supplanted the Fairport Conventions. This Baltimore quartet led by singer Dave Heumann would have been the perfect bridge between the two, marrying the former’s sinister gothic riffs with the latter’s more psychedelic dynamics. Heumann gives it all a North American twist, epic guitar leads made of Crazy Horse feedback and Sonic Youth noise. Arbouretum is mostly about texture, though, and works best when the laid-back verses subside into classic stoner rock solos that bridge eras-often by demolishing them. With ex-Sub Poppers Love as Laughter and Ultimate Optimist. Milestone

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Marnie Stern Two things tend to hold true with the dreaded “shredder” tag: First, you’re probably male, and second, you probably noodle too much. Marnie Stern puts the lie to both stereotypes, explaining to Guitar Player magazine that “I’ve never done a solo in my life. Everything I do is fully composed and layered to go with the song.” And while her finger-tapped, mile-a-minute riffs look like shredding, Stern’s two full-length records show a wide – and welcome – chasm between her spiky pop-colored rock (think an early Modest Mouse and Hella mix) and the average Phygian Dominant wank-off. With Des Ark and The Flying Eyes. Snug Harbor

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Audioform CD release: The acid-jazz/funk maestros were recently faced with the choice of changing the name they’ve built coast-to-coast, gig to sweaty gig, over the last four years, or entering court $y$tem purgatory to fight for it. The Charlotte-based collective decided that, with a new release recorded with Soulive’s Alan Evans in the can, they’d have to make a decision. Find out that decision at the show. In the meantime, the band’s new disc doesn’t stray far from what has worked so well for so long, since it’s built on similar late-’60s Blue Note horn heds with big bottom-end funk/fusion booty-shake. The release is digital via iTunes, but you can pick physical copies up at Lunchbox or Manifest Records. With Hot Politics. Neighborhood Theatre

Hymns/Yardwork Hymns now call Brooklyn home, but the band’s primary songwriters Brian Harding and Jason Roberts grew up playing music in Harrisburg and raiding their folks’ record collections. The band’s sterling sophomore disc, Travel In Herds, salutes The Byrds, The Band, The Kinks and the Stones, and somehow pulls it off without sounding derivative. Upon hearing Yardwork for the first time, a local bass player jokingly suggested it’d be terrible if his counterpart in that band were to have an accident in the hopes they could take his place; that says a lot about this collective’s infectious energy, punk-fueled hoedowns and bright-ass future. With Death On Two Wheels. Snug Harbor

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