Photo Credit: Eliot Sell
Myles Coyne at Boone and Crockett on Jan. 9
Thursday, Jan. 8
Myles Coyne w/ The Grasping at Straws and Donovan The Shark @ Boone and Crockett, 9 p.m.
Milwaukee songwriter Myles Coyne likes to keep busy. The leader of Myles Coyne and the Rusty Nickel Band and a player in bands as diverse as Ladders, Temple and Animals in Human Attire, Coyne will park at Bay View’s Boone and Crockett this month for a four-date Thursday night residency. Each show is free and will feature Coyne running through a variety of originals and covers, supported by a pair of mostly folk-leaning local acts. For this first night of the residency, Coyne will share the stage with the indie-folk acts The Grasping at Straws and Donovan The Shark. Each night will feature a drink deal: a free Pabst Blue Ribbon with each customer’s first drink.
Music Under Glass: Neil Diamond & Nostalgia Show @ Mitchell Park Domes, 6:30 p.m.
Summer spoils our city with endless concerts in county parks, but when cold weather rolls around, those live music offerings dry up. Since 2009, however, the Mitchell Park Domes have helped fill the void until warm weather returns with its Music Under Glass concert series. This week the Thursday night series returns, opening its 2015 season with a performance from the Neil Diamond tribute act Neil Diamond & Nostalgia Show. Future installments will feature local outdoor festival staples like blues-rockers Reverend Raven & The Chain Smokin’ Altar Boys and Celtic folk-rockers Tallymoore. Tickets are $7 for adults, and $5 for minors ages 6-17 and resident seniors, students and people with disabilities.
Friday, Jan. 9
Marshall Crenshaw and The Bottle Rockets @ Shank Hall, 8 p.m.
Some artists instantly announce themselves as great songwriters; others prove themselves over time. You could argue Marshall Crenshaw has done both. The Detroit-born songwriter instantly endeared himself to pop-rock aficionados with his 1982 self-titled debut, a spry collection of good-humored rock ’n’ roll tunes that took more than a few cues from Elvis Costello, but over the following decades Crenshaw has escaped those Costello comparisons, maturing into a more reflective writer without ever fully abandoning the warm humor and nervous energy that made his debut record such a thrill. Crenshaw shares this show with his regular tourmates The Bottle Rockets, the long-running alt-country outfit led by former Uncle Tupelo player Brian Henneman. Unlike many of their alt-county peers, The Bottle Rockets were never afraid to embrace unabashed Southern rock, though as they demonstrated on their latest album, Not So Loud: An Acoustic Evening, their songs are electrifying even when they aren’t plugged in.
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Chubby Checker and the Wildcats @ Potawatomi Hotel and Casino, 8 p.m.
Even some longtime Chubby Checker fans might be surprised to learn that the early rock ’n’ roll icon is still touring, but that’s not to diminish his legacy. Checker was one of rock’s first true superstars, and his signature hit “The Twist” helped establish the genre’s long-term popularity, while inspiring a slew of similar dance crazes. Leaning on that song’s success, Checker released a host of Twist-related singles in the years that followed, including “Let’s Twist Again,” “Slow Twisting,” “Twistin Round the World,” “Twist It Up” and 1988’s “The Twist (Yo, Twist!),” a collaboration with the rap group The Fat Boys.
The Paul Collins Beat w/ Prognosis Negative @ Bremen Café, 8 p.m.
Paul Collins is best known in ska circles as a footnote: He’s the leader of the American group The Beat, which forced the British ska band of the same name to rechristen themselves as The English Beat in America. In power-pop circles, though, Collins is a minor legend, celebrated for his catchy, spirited guitar-pop records. Unlike many songwriters from his generation, Collins never threw in the towel. He continues to record prolifically (his latest album is last fall’s Feel The Noise) while touring with his latest version of The Beat. For this latest tour, he’s hosting a DIY record fair/happy hour before each show. Fans are encouraged to arrive a bit early to enjoy some cheap drinks and DJ-ed music while browsing merchandise.
Work w/ Marielle Allschwang and Blue Unit @ Cactus Club, 10 p.m.
Playing like The Hold Steady if that band’s irrepressible rock ’n’ roll spirit had been completely crushed by the weight of adult responsibilities, the Milwaukee trio Work plots a middle point between nervy indie-rock and slow, down-and-out country. Bitter humor pervades their latest album, The Long Con, with acid-tongued songs like “The Angels Sang, But Not Very Well” and “That’s My Story and I’m Stuck With It.” Opener Marielle Allschwang does double duty in the bands Altos and Hello Death, but she’s a born natural solo performer as well, commanding the stage with hushed intensity. Rounding out this bill is Blue Unit, a new band featuring members of local shoegaze standbys Brief Candles.
Saturday, Jan. 10
Thistledown Thunders @ Anodyne Coffee, 8 p.m.
Pairing Animals in Human Attire singer/banjoist Jack Tell with Ernie Brusubardis, Krystal Kuehl and Johanna Rose, all players in Calamity Janes and the Fratney Street Band, among other projects, the Milwaukee bluegrass ensemble Thistledown Thunders can be found playing clap-along mountain music most Wednesdays at the Bremen Café. For this show they’ll step away from their usual stomping grounds to bring their free-spirited sounds to Anodyne Coffee’s new location in Walker’s Point, which has quickly established itself as a bustling music venue. In the coming weeks, the coffee shop will also host shows from Hayward Williams, Panalure, The Lowest Pair and Whiskey of the Damned.
