I dont know for sure if Melissa Auf der Maur was ever approached to be in the current incarnation of either Hole or the Smashing Pumpkins the two iconic 90s alt-rock outfits for which she once played bass but if so, the flame-haired Canadian singer and multi-instrumentalist was exceptionally wise to stay away. Not that Auf der Maur is averse to looking to the past after all, her recently issued second solo LP, Out of Our Minds, is essentially a concept album about Vikings. Proving you can fashion an album around Norse history and mythology without resorting to death metal, OOOM is primarily proggy, goth-y rock with dreamy vocals set atop, making for a fairly entrancing listen. With The Hounds Below. MICHAEL ALAN GOLDBERG
Fri., Sept. 24, 9:30 p.m., 2010
