Jay N. Miller
Another busy spring stretch of music everywhere, and it seems like Sundays are becoming really packed.
THURSDAY, May 9: Guitarist Albert Lee headed to Fall River
The rock 'n' soul of St. Paul & the Broken Bones takes over Roadrunner in Allston. Acclaimed British guitarist Albert Lee headlines the Narrows Center in Fall River. Uncle John's Banjo gets down to its Grateful roots at Soundcheck Studios in Pembroke. The Spire Center in Plymouth showcases local rock with Mini Yellow Witches, and The Rins. Fiddle fans will be delighted by The Hanneke Cassel Band at Club Passim in Cambridge. British songwriter Martyn Joseph returns to The Fallout Shelter in Norwood. Cat & Nat's May Soiree is a comedy show geared toward today's women at Boston's Wilbur Theater. Los Angeles indie rockers Cheekface hit at Brighton Music Hall.
FRIDAY, May 10: Adam Ezra Group playing in Plymouth
The Adam Ezra Group is one of the Boston area's finest musical machines, blending genres to bring an incessantly upbeat brand of music to places like the Spire Center in Plymouth tonight. Rappers Freddie Gibbs and Madlib take over MGM Music Hall in Boston. A bit of rock, a bit of R&B, a lot of offbeat tunes make Chicano Batman a most entertaining night out at The Paradise Rock Club in Boston. The Cookers are a veritable jazz all-star sextet, with saxes played by Donald Harrison and Craig Handy, at Scullers Jazz Club in Boston. Comic Steve Sweeney hosts a lineup of Boston's best at The District Center for the Arts in Taunton. The Mirror Cabaret offers a different night at City Winery in Boston. Hot Water Music gets Royale in Boston up and dancing. Karim Nagi plays a night of "diaspora folklore" at Club Pasim in Cambridge. Slider rocks The C Note in Hull. Florida Girl – her new album title – Lydia Luce performs at The Lizard Lounge in Cambridge. Rhode Island Music Hall of Famer Mark Cutler and his Men of Great Courage rock out at Nickanee's in Providence. Rhode Island. Songsmith Olive Klug sings at Brighton Music Hall. Road trip: Air Supply headlines the Lowell Auditorium. Songwriter Alice Merton at The Sinclair in Cambridge. Heavy metal thunder with Sudden Death at Big Night Live in Boston.
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SATURDAY, May 11: Bluegrass legend Peter Rowan coming to Plymouth
Bluegrass legend Peter Rowan performs at the Spire Center in Plymouth. City Winery has a noontime show with Come Together, a Beatles tribute, and then a nighttime show with pop star Rickie Lee Jones. The Dave Matthews Tribute Band plays Soundcheck Studios in Pembroke. The One Dime Band rocks The Next Page Cafe in Weymouth. Suzanne McNeil sings at The Olde Hitching Post in Hanson. Pop songbird Madison Beer is at MGM Music Hall in Boston. Folksinger Susan Werner is one of the best songwriters in any genre, and well worth a trip to Franklin's Circle of Friends Coffeehouse. Sanguisugabogg is the metal band lighting up The Paradise Rock Club in Boston. British shoegazers Ride are at Big Night Live in Boston. A doubleheader for Brazilian Night at The RegattaBar in Harvard Square, with Receita de Samba and the Henrique Eisenmann Trio. Rachel Sumner and Traveling Light is the bluegrass band at Club Passim in Cambridge. Jazz singer Gabriele Stravelli at Scullers in Boston. Sawyer Hill rocks The Sinclair in Cambridge. Blues-rock trio Mojo heats up The District Center for the Arts in Taunton.
SUNDAY, May 12: Suzanne McNeil singing in Weymouth
Music starts early with Suzanne McNeil warbling for brunch at The Sports Emporium in Weymouth at 1 p.m.; The Shady Roosters rocking the Spire Center in Plymouth at 2 p.m.; the blues jam hosted by the Michelle Rockwell Band kicking off at Players in Rockland at 4 p.m.; and The Burren in Somerville hosting the "We Shall be Released Tour" of songwriters-with-new-albums-imminent, featuring Grace Pettis, Joe Crookston and Robby Hecht swapping songs at 4 p.m. Sunday night, look for rocker Ariel Posen at City Winery in Boston; Aussie metal band Alpha Wolf at The Paradise Rock Club in Boston; Scottish rock favorites Sunny Day Real Estate at Big Night Live in Boston; the punk-pop of Say Anything at MGM Music Hall in Boston; the "tropical futurism" of Combo Chimbita at Brighton Music Hall; and one of my fave band monickers, the Psychedelic Porn Crumpets rocking Royale in Boston.
Coming attractions
MONDAY: North Carolina folk-rockers Rainbow Kitten Surprise open a two-night stand at Roadrunner in Boston.
TUESDAY: Experimental-rock perennials Swans land at The Paradise Rock Club in Boston.
WEDNESDAY: Ex-Bostonian Glenn Yoder & the Western States continue their residency at The Lizard Lounge in Cambridge; while L.A. songsmith/record producer Julia Holter visits Brighton Music Hall.
MAY 16: Beantown rockers Jukebox the Ghost shake up The Sinclair in Cambridge for three nights in a row (through Saturday); while blues princess Shemekia Copeland heats up the Narrows Center in Fall River; and for a road trip, guitar virtuoso Tommy Emmanuel is at Lexington's Cary Hall.
MAY 17: Comedians Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood bring their TV routines to Memorial Hall in Plymouth; while Arlington's acoustic blues master Chris Smither performs at the Narrows Center in Fall River; and rock 'n' blues titan Anders Osborne arrives at City Winery in Boston.