John Adam Weinland Shearer is a careful man. The songs he writes and performs with Weinland, his eponymous band, sound the way a baby bird looks: Delicate, almost fragile, anticipating the great weight of the world that lies ahead. Shearer is so cautious with his gentle vocals and quiet guitar that it’s easy to imagine a musician with some secret sadness just waiting to spill out if he sings too loudly or plays too vigorously. Lyrics like “I’ll never tell you where I’ve been/I’ll never tell you what I know” from “Sick as a Gun” off 2007’s La Lamentor only reinforce that image. And the songs from the band’s upcoming April release Breaks in the Sun solidify it. “Sunken Eyes” addresses disappointment and heartbreak, without ever identifying the moment or experience that caused those two emotions. Shearer sings in metaphor and poetry, keeping his true feelings close to the chest. Photo courtesy Tarina Westlund.

Thu., April 2, 9 p.m., 2009