Casiotone for the Painfully Alone ~ Thursday, January 7
Hannah Persson
Casiotone, painfully alone.
Related Content
More About
When Owen Ashworth was just an unknown film-school dropout recording minimalist pop in his bedroom for an audience of dozens, Casiotone for the Painfully Alone seemed an apt band name. But with the collaborations, stage-sharing tours, and split releases Ashworth has enjoyed over the past year or so, Ashworth might want to consider a new handle. It's not that CFTPA's music has changed that much—Ashworth still favors lo-fi production and basic yet affecting melodies, and earnestness still defines the CFTPA songbook. It's that he grows ever less painfully alone. With every new release of cheap-beat bliss and naked lyricism, his already strong cult following comes closer and closer to mainstream indie superstardom. With Baby Panda, Kids & Animals, The Girl With Violent Arms. Vera Project, 305 Harrison St., 956-8372. 7:30 p.m. $9. All ages. NICHOLAS HALL
Lymbyc Systym ~ Thursday, January 7
What's most immediately arresting about Lymbyc Systym is how warm the band manages to feel, particularly on its most recent effort, Shutter Release. Considering this duo made its name blurring the edges of electronic music with indie-oriented post-rock, that almost certainly wouldn't be the first modifier to spring to most minds. Sweeping sonic vistas and grandiose crescendos abound, but LS manages to make them sound as if they come out of the arms and hands and bodies of the trees—from the very earth itself—rather than as cosmic radiation or the midnight revelations of a computer-aided consciousness. The electronic influence is subtle, supporting rather than defining the music; this allows it to breathe and swell under the obvious influence of humans working with something very specific in mind, rather than simply being an agglomeration of neat ideas pasted together to make something then titled a song. The programming is so well-used that at times it's nearly indistinguishable from the acoustic instrumentation, if you aren't listening with an overly critical ear. That's easy to do with this album; it draws you in and makes its world the only one material, at least for its scant 40 minutes. With Helios, Unlearn. High Dive, 513 N. 36th St., 632-0212. 9 p.m. $10. NICHOLAS HALL
Amateur Radio Operator ~ Friday, January 8
Amateur Radio Operator's somber songs do what great country music does: wallop you with emotion so powerful it can't help but leave a mark. Their effect is not unlike a mood-altering drug, and while this one's definitely a downer, sometimes a little hair of the dog is the only remedy for a melancholy mood. ARO's 2007 debut, Sirens of Titan, has proven a powerful cure for such moments. Mark Johnson's tremulous, nasal vocals make ARO sound like a more countrified Ugly Casanova (remember that Modest Mouse side project?). The band says the songs for their imminent sophomore release are a little more rockin'. But since they haven't released any of those songs for online perusal, you'll just have to show up in person for a taste. With Black Whales, Grand Hallway. Tractor Tavern, 5213 Ballard Ave. N.W., 789-3599. SARA BRICKNER
Richmond Fontaine ~ Friday, January 8
Like his marvelous novels The Motel Life and Northline, author/musician Willy Vlautin's long-running quintet Richmond Fontaine is a memorable and affecting vehicle for the Portland-via-Nevada singer/guitarist's vivid mini-documentaries of fringe-dwellers trying to find their way in the world, the wise and poor choices they make, and the places they're running toward and escaping (if they ever really can). Around since the mid-'90s, Richmond Fontaine's combination of rough-edged twang, bar-band backbone, sun-baked guitars, weepy detours, and Vlautin's gritty, wistful voice owes a bit to Neil Young & Crazy Horse and Gram Parsons; maybe a bit to the ragged roots-punk of Uncle Tupelo and Hootenanny-era Replacements too. But Vlautin's singular, evocative storytelling, painting both heartbreaking and hopeful pictures of the American West and its denizens, helps set the band apart from the pack. That, coupled with the soulful playing of his supporting cast, makes Richmond Fontaine albums—like the new We Used to Think the Freeway Sounded Like a River—something to treasure, and their live shows not to be missed. With Red Jacket Mine, Norman Baker. High Dive, 513 N. 36th St., 632-0212. 9:30 p.m. $7. MICHAEL ALAN GOLDBERG
SHIM ~ Saturday, January 9
SHIM hasn't released fresh material in almost two years (according to their MySpace page, they're currently recording a new album), but this band has always been about live performances anyway. Fans have come to expect and soak up the billowing smoke machines and arena-style lighting that accentuate SHIM's stages, along with the frizzed-out hairdos that go perfectly with the band's saucy music. While they've previously listed classic rock acts like Boston and the Doors as their influences, SHIM is actually pretty reminiscent of the Black Crowes, what with the squealing electric guitars, heavy bass lines, and particularly lead singer Ragan Crowe's (Crowes? Crowe? Anyone?) bluesy, howling melodies. It's high-octane stuff either way (one song finds the band shouting "Let me feel that thunderbolt!"), and in a city that loves rock-and-roll shows, SHIM's devil-may-care energy is always a real crowd-pleaser. With Virgin Islands. Chop Suey, 1325 E. Madison St., 324-8000. 9 p.m. $8 adv./$10 DOS. E. THOMPSON
