Monday, October 8
The Black Keys
Honda Center
Very rarely does a musical duo produce a sound so dynamic and soulful that listeners mistake them for a quin- or quartet, but that is exactly the mistake one makes when first hearing the Black Keys. The Ohio band comprised of Dan Auerbach (guitar, vocals) and Patrick Carney (drums) play blues rock so convincingly, you'd believe they were born and bred in the hard-living shanty towns of the South rather than honing their skills in the abandoned warehouses of old tire factories of Akron. Experience the band's new album El Camino (Nonesuch) live as they begin the last leg of their worldwide tour with a performance at the Honda Center in Anaheim. –Amanda Parsons
See Also:
*Top Five Classic South Park Musical Guests
*Top Five Dive Bars in South County
*Top Five Most Memorable MTV Films
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Tuesday, October 9
Dinosaur Jr.
The Observatory
Dinosaur Jr. were
some outta-nowhere mind-blinders when they first came out in the '80s,
using hardcore punk to make heartbroke pop that wasn't working right
unless it was recorded with every dial in the red. That collapsed during
the early '90s, but then in 2005, Dinosaur reunited after a
particularly acrimonious split between guitarist J. Mascis and bassist Lou Barlow–seriously,
there were some legendary head games happening. Then, they pretty much
tipped over all conventional expectation by going on to be not just a
functioning band but matching and maybe even besting their “original”
work on a streak of new albums that leapt up from where the band had
left off. Newest record I Bet On Sky continues Dinosaur's
gentle evolution–it's a little more sweet than loud this time, but still
there's not a note out of place. — Chris Ziegler
Wednesday, October 10
Dr. John and the Blind Boys of Alabama
Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts
Dr. John
might be the gate between funk, soul, spirituals and whatever mysterious
ancient music persist yet in the city of New Orleans, which draws its
songs from a source deeper and older than anywhere else in the USA. His
bleaked-out early songs and revved-up hits (“Right Place”) prove he's as
fearless as he is versatile, so it's natural to match him with the
Grammy-loaded Blind Boys of Alabama (the gospel-blues group dating back
before World War II) for a concert peeling up the overlap between the
various powerful sounds of Harry Smith's ancient America. Done right,
this show has revelation potential–and these are the exact musicians to
do it right. –Chris Ziegler
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Thursday, October 11
Girl Talk
The Observatory
No, Girl Talk isn't
some after school special which tries awkwardly to tackle the issues of
pre-teen girls. It's the musical project of DJ/remixer Greg Gillis.
The platter-spinning maestro is known for his mashups of famous tunes
and his uncanny ability to turn familiar songs into entirely new
entities. Silly and trivial you say? Well in the past decade he's
managed to churn out five albums. Go figure. —Brandon Ferguson
Friday, October 12
Meiko
The Yost Theater
The Yost Theater puts on three musical events in one night–the festivities start off with a co-headlining act of Meiko and Bobby Long at the early hour of 6 p.m. Local transplant folk musician Meiko, a native of Georgia, came to Los Angeles at
a young age to pursue dreams of stardom–and discovered a natural talent
for getting her songs on network television shows. Her latest album The Bright Side,
out last May, is effortlessly cool and sweet. This night, she shares
the stage with Bobby Long, a British singer-songwriter who wields an
acoustic guitar and soulfully sings from the roots. But should you feel
like dancing afterward, the Yost prepares for another show at 10 p.m.,
this time featuring the DJ stylings of Tatiana. See? Something for
everyone. — Erin DeWitt
