St. Louis Music Blog

Friday, November 20
*Elvis Perkins in Dearland/AA Bondy, The Gargoyle
*Japandroids/Surfer Blood, The BIlliken Club
*LFMAO/Shwayze/Far East Movement/Paradiso Girls/Space Cowboy, The Pageant
*Dex Romweber Duo/Bob Reuter's Alley Ghost/Dirt Daubers, Fox Hole at Atomic Cowboy
*Steve Scorfina/Danny Liston, Duck Room
*Jookabox, Antarctica
*Whitey Morgan and the 78s/Deadstring Brothers, Off Broadway
*Anders Parker/Jon Hardy and the Public/The Dive Poets, Firebird
*Nite Owl/Highway Heat/Kind Fire/DJ Stan da Man, Cicero's
*Slave to the MetalFest Hosted by Mistress Juliya, bands at Fubar's website
*Beth Bombara, Schlafly Tap Room
*The Bel-Airs, BB's Jazz, Blues and Soups
*Alison Brown, Sheldon Concert Hall

Annie Zaleski

Dex Romweber, July 2008 at Off Broadway

​This one's flying a bit under the radar, unjustly so: The almighty Dex Romweber Duo is performing at the Fox Hole at Atomic Cowboy tomorrow night, making good on drummer Sara Romweber's July 2008 promise that they'd come back. Bob Reuter's Alley Ghost, the Dirt Daubers and Whistle Pig are also performing.

Romweber was one-half of '80s favorites the Flat Duo Jets. Recently, he landed on Bloodshot Records, which released this year's Ruins of Berlin., an album with guest appearances from Neko Case, Exene Cervenka and Cat Power. As for the Duo's live show, like I said last year:

The Dex Romweber duo specializes in music plucked with the soul and faith of a Sunday morning revival, a fluid mix of blues, surf-rock, rockabilly, proto-rock & roll and garage.

Check an MP3 below.

MP3: Dex Romweber Duo, "Picture of You"

Todd Owyoung

Todd Fink of the Faint at the Pageant, December 2008

As if December 1 didn't already have enough hard choices, what with Camera Obscura at Off Broadway and Holly Golightly at the Firebird: Depressed Buttons -- the DJ troupe featuring Faint members Clark Baechle, Todd Fink and Jacob Thiele -- is at the Gargoyle that night. IMMUZIKATION is also on the bill. Admission is free with a Wash U ID, $10 for general public. (Facebook event page here.) The members of the Faint were last in St. Louis in December 2008 at the Pageant.

Chris Buck

The Magnetic Fields

​The Pageant

*Big Head Todd and the Monsters, Saturday, January 2

*New World Spirits, Saturday, January 16

*Dark Star Orchestra, Thursday, February 11

*The Magnetic Fields, Saturday, March 6

Scottrade Center

*John Mayer/Michael Franti and Spearhead, Saturday, March 20

Chaifetz Arena

*Main Ingredient/The Stylistics/The Emotions, Saturday, March 13

Here's one I didn't see coming: The Magnetic Fields will be performing in St. Louis at the Pageant on Saturday, March 6, 2010. The reserved show tickets cost $26 and go on sale this Friday at 5 p.m. The band has a new album, Realism, out January 23, and it's described on the band's website like this:

The varied reactions to the news that Detroit rockers Sponge are playing a New Year's Eve show at Fubar have surprised me -- on Twitter, they've ranged from, "Hell yes!" to "What year is it again?" to "'Plowed' is such a great song!" Who knew the band would still hit a nerve?

Growing up in Cleveland, the band naturally was quite popular due to its proximity to the D, so songs such as "Wax Ecstatic" (below) were huge hits. However, Sponge hasn't stopped recording or touring since its '90s heyday: A 7" featuring a cover of Eminem's "Lose Yourself" exists; the song is also on a hits and b-sides album available here. All details for the Fubar show are TBA for now.

"Wax Ecstatic," live in March 2008

El Perro del Mar
Where: The Gargoyle
Playing With: Peter Bjorn and John
Sounds Like: "The 2009 release Love Is Not Pop furthers Sarah Assbring's deconstruction of pop and indie-folk forms -- the melodies linger, the grooves float, the themes sigh -- but a sonic laboratory of dubby delay and electronic glimmer and glitch catalyzes her songs. Mood pieces such as "Let Me In" and "It Is Something (to Have Wept)" -- the latter featuring a lyrical assist from writer G.K. Chesterton -- languidly unfold and gather malevolent momentum, like a carefree club hop devolving into icy, down-tempo, noir remixes." (link) -- Roy Kasten
RIYL: Lykke Li, Ladyhawke, Dragonette
Video for "Change of Heart"

Friday, November 13
*Brendan Benson/Cory Chisel, Blueberry Hill's Duck Room
*Boys Like Girls/Cobra Starship/Versa Emerge, etc., the Pageant -- SOLD OUT
*So Many Dynamos/The Lake/Cold Bear Scout, Off Broadway
*Person L/John Nolan (Straylight Run)/Brian Bonz, Firebird
*Peter Bjorn and John/El Perro del Mar, The Gargoyle (PBJ at Vintage Vinyl, 4 p.m.)
*Vampire Mooose (CD release), Fubar
*Ayse (CD release), The Chapel
*ABBA Mania, Harrah's Voodoo Lounge
*Travis Tritt, Lumiere Place
*Cindy Mangsen/Steve Gillette, The Focal Point
*Boone Project, Old Rock House
*The Estranged, Schlafly Tap Room
*Jackson Cash, The Gramophone
*Resoldered, Fox Hole at Atomic Cowboy
*Thom Donovan/Sheila Shahpari/Shooting With Annie, Cicero's
*Aaron Kamm and the One Drops, Broadway Oyster Bar
*Dave Stone, Mangia

King Khan & BBQ Show
Where: Off Broadway
Playing With: Those Darlins, Jesse Irwin
Sounds Like: What Keegan Hamilton said here and here.
RIYL: Chuck Berry, Black Flag, psych-rock/garage-soul
MP3: King Khan & BBQ Show, "Third Ave."

Molina and Johnson -- that's Will Johnson of Centro-matic/South San Gabriel and Jason Molina of Magnolia Electric Co. -- have collaborated on a new album. The self-titled effort was released by Secretly Canadian last week, and to support it, the pair is embarking on a tour early next year, with a St. Louis stop at the Billiken Club on February 9.

The Mumlers

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The Mumlers
Where: Pop's Blue Moon
Sounds Like: Macabre garage-soul steeped in swampy blues and scratchy 45 RPM records.
RIYL: The Nevermores, King Khan & BBQ Show, Tom Waits, anything on Anti- Records
MP3: The Mumlers, "Coffin Factory"

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Scottrade Center

*Jay-Z/Young Jeezy, Friday, March 19

Off Broadway

*Bobby Bare, Jr./David Vandervelde, Friday, January 1

*Agent Orange, Wednesday, January 20

*Po' Girl, Wednesday, February 3

*The Hot Seats/Pokey LaFarge, Friday, February 19

Sheldon Concert Hall

*Alison Brown, Friday, November 20

*Mitzi MacDonald and Celtic Reign, Tuesday, December 1

*Judy Collins, Saturday, December 5

Jazz at the Bistro

*Alyssa Graham, Wednesday, March 3 - Saturday, March 6

*Dave Samuels and the Caribbean Jazz Project, Wednesday, March 17 - Saturday, March 20

*Joey DeFrancesco, Wednesday, March 31 - Saturday, April 3

Benjamin Wahiche/myspace.com/juliepeel

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Julie Peel
Where: Off Broadway
With: Joe Purdy
Sounds Like: The crispness of autumn. Songs from Peel's debut, Near the Sun, sigh with winsome acoustic guitars and soft-glow percussion -- and are the perfect gentle accompaniment for her husky alto voice.
RIYL: Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, Joni Mitchell, Land of Talk
MP3: Julie Peel, "Unfold"

Friday, November 6
*Son Volt/Peter Bruntnell, The Pageant
*Nelly's Birthday Party -- Pajama Jam, HOME Nightclub
*Tech N9ne/Slaughterhouse/Stevie Stone et al, Pop's
*Breathe Carolina/Cash Cash/more, Fubar
*Buddy Mondlock, Focal Point
*Tenement Ruth, Lemmons
*Poor Historians, Way Out Club
*Eric Moeller And The Strummalongs w/ Scene Of Irony, These Old Ghosts, Firebird
*Elastik Soul/The Luvher Boys, The Gramophone
*Jake's Leg, Cicero's

​Per an email received just now, Jay-Z will be performing next year on March 19, 2010 at the Scottrade Center. Tickets are on sale Saturday, November 14, and prices are TBA. Nice! He's in Champaign, Illinois, next week -- and so anyone who doesn't feel like driving, you don't have to.

British garage-rock queen-bee Holly Golightly is returning to St. Louis for the first time since August 2005 at the Firebird on Tuesday, December 1. Details forthcoming.

Also, John Mayer has announced a show with Michael Franti and Spearhead at the Scottrade Center on Saturday, March 20, 2010. Ticket info also TBA. Mayer's Twitter is the stuff of legend, and his interview style, well, makes me both nervous and in awe. Behold:

What do you think about guys with seventies mustaches?
I don't give a fuck about who wears their face what way. If I could grow a beard, I'd have some nutty things going on on my face.
You can't grow a beard?
It's a pituitary thing. I know you're not that much of a moron.
These are questions my editor wanted me to ask. I'm trying to build my journalistic career here. You're not building a journalistic career. You're making yourself look like a moron and you're not a moron. Who's your editor?

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Touhill Performing Arts Center

*Bryan Adams, Monday, December 7

The Pageant

*Pale Divine, Tuesday, December 29

*Dr. Zhivegas, Thursday, December 31

*Gabriel Iglesias, Sunday, February 28

Fox Theatre

*Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Saturday, February 27

Jazz at the Bistro

*Lou Donaldson Quartet, Wednesday, February 3 - Saturday, February 6

*Freddy Cole, Wednesday, February 17 - Saturday, February 20

St. Patrick's day starts a week early next year in St. Louis: Flogging Molly's annual Green 17 tour is scheduled to hit the Pageant on March 10, 2010. Fan community registrants can buy tickets now, although the show's on sale to everybody on November 14.

On another note, Bryan Adams is scheduled to play an acoustic show on Monday, December 7, at the Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $49.50 to $69.50, and the show starts at 8 p.m.

Please see this link for much of the weekend's goings-on -- the post and comments sum up most everything going on -- and below for some extras.

Friday, October 30
*Our Lady Peace, The Pageant
*Cornmeal/The Bridge, Duck Room

Sunday, November 1
*Teenage Bottlerocket/Black Cobras, Cicero's
* Forever The Sickest Kids/My Favorite Highway/Sing It Loud/The Rocket Summer/Vita, Pop's
*Justin Roberts and the Not Ready for Naptime Players, Off Broadway

Dave Green

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Uncle Monk
Who: The old-timey bluegrass project of Tommy Ramone
Where: Off Broadway
RIYL: Avett Brothers, Lucero, Ha Ha Tonka
MP3: Uncle Monk, "Round the Bend"

Halloween falls on a Saturday this year -- which means that the ooky-spooky celebrating (and, let's be real, debauchery) begins on Friday night. In light of this, here's a rundown of all the shows going on so far. Did we miss any? Chime in below.

Wikimedia Commons

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October 30
Binge and Purge: Halloween covers set, with bands as The Germs, The Wipers, X
Atomic Cowboy: Halloween Funk Jam featuring Steddy P & DJ-MAHF, Spark1duh, DJ-Who
Black Bear Bakery: May Day Orchestra debuts new folk opera

Electric Six!

The Pageant

*The Unconscious/The Great Crusades, Monday, December 28

*Memories of Elvis, Saturday, January 9

Off Broadway

*Afro Zep, Saturday, November 7

*Frontier Ruckus/Theodore, Sunday, November 15

*The Rural Alberta Advantage/Shaky Hands, Wednesday, December 9

*Funky Butt Brass Band, Friday, December 18

Firebird

*Anders Parker/Jon Hardy and the Public/The Dive Poets, Friday November 20

*Grand Buffet, Thursday, November 26

*Mayday Parade, Sunday, December 13

*Electric Six, Wednesday, December 30

Enough to do this weekend for ya? Goodness...

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D. Rider
Who: The new band founded by Todd Rittmann of post-rock pioneers U.S. Maple. Think brain-bending percussion, diffracted found sounds and sinewy guitars.
Where: Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center
With: The Conformists
RIYL: Cheer-Accident, Bowie's weirdest moments, experimental jazz-rock-skronk hybrids
MP3: D. Rider, "Touchy"

Friday, October 23
*MUTEMATH/As Tall As Lions, The Pageant
*Jon Hardy & the Public/Sleepy Kitty/Murder City Players, Firebird
*Tribute to Warren Zevon, featuring Bob Reuter, Rough Shop, et al, Off Broadway
*D. Rider/The Conformists, Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center
*The Lovin' Spoonful, Argosy Casino/Alton
*The Mighty Diamonds/Yellow Wall Dub Squad, Club La Onda
*Mike Zito, Old Rock House
*Rise And Fall/ Harm's Way/Creatures/Everything Went Black/ Expire, Fubar
*Gumbohead, Broadway Oyster Bar
*Kenny Garrett, Jazz at the Bistro
*From Left to Right, Cabin Inn
*Rum Drum Matt and Two Timin' Shane, Fox Hole at Atomic Cowboy
*Surtsey, Vintage Vinyl
*Dead Zebbra, Way Out Club
*Make Me Break Me/Strych9Hollow, MJ's Mistakes/Trayswyre/From Skies of Fire/Break These Walls, Pop's
*Tight Pants Syndrome/AXO/Royal Pine/Final Veil, Lemmons
*John Maxfield Band/Mungus/Hathead Jones, Cicero's
*Jim McClaren, Schnuck's Culinaria Downtown (4 p.m.)
*Arthur Williams, BB's Jazz, Blues and Soups
*Maude Maggart, Kranzberg Arts Center

Geez, as if last night's bonanza of shows wasn't enough, there's a ton going on tonight, too...

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The Egg
Where: Old Rock House
Who: British indie-electro-funk act whose latest, Forwards, is much closer to UK post-punk and shoegaze. (The track below hints of the Bunnymen and New Order.)
Playing With: The Lotus

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The Fox Theatre

*R. Kelly, Tuesday, December 8

*Lady Gaga, Thursday, January 7

Jazz at the Bistro

*The Bad Plus, Wednesday, January 6 - Saturday, January 10

Firebird

*The Graduate, Wednesday, November 4

*Big D and the Kids Table, Wednesday, December 2

Scottrade Center

*The Point HoHo Show feat. Breaking Benjamin/Papa Roach/Sick Puppies, Sunday, December 13

Friday, October 16
*Mirah/Norfolk & Western, Billiken Club
*Tom Russell, Off Broadway
*The Blakes/The Orbz/Via Dove, Firebird
*Ernie Isley and the Jam Band, Blueberry Hill's Duck Room
*Flow Clinic/Mustardfish/Lord of the Yum-Yum, Lemmmons
*Trey Songz/Mario/Day 26, The Pageant
*This Is Energy/Novella/Opposites Attack/Last Nights Vice/BAMF!, Fubar
*Lonesome Wyatt and Rachel Brooks, The Fox Hole at Atomic Cowboy
*ATB, Lure
*Death Ships, Cicero's
*Rough Shop, Cabin Inn
*Dave Stone, Mangia

Tegan and Sara at the Pageant, April 2, 2010

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Fubar

*Evergreen Terrace, Wednesday, November 4

*Breathe Carolina/Cash Cash, Friday, November 6

*Kate Voegele, Saturday, November 7

*Vampire Moose CD Release, Friday, November 13

*Wednesday 13's Gufire 76/Bullets and Octane, Saturday, November 14

*Days of the New, Saturday, November 28

*I See Stars/We Came as Romans, Thursday, December 17

*Hawthorne Heights/An Arbor/Monty Are I, Saturday, December 19

Family Arena

*John Tesh, Saturday, December 5

*The Charlie Daniels Band, Thursday, December 17

*B.B. King/Buddy Guy, Thursday, February 18

Again, St. Louis, there's no reason not to go out tonight. Don't let a little rain stop ya!

First at the Gargoyle is the always-solid Dr. Dog. I know they've been through St. Louis a ton, and man, they just keep getting better and better. Jeffrey Lewis opens.

Speaking of musicians who love coming to STL: William Elliott Whitmore, another local fave, is bringing his whiskey-grizzled voice to Off Broadway. Hoots and Hellmouth and Jesse Irwin are also on the bill. Here's a funny video of the former on morning TV in Philadelphia.