This Week’s Shows that I Wish I Could Check Out

There are a number of intriguing shows going on between Nov. 3-8 that I will I could get out to see, but maybe you will.
On November 3, Lucero brings their Ramblin’ Roadshow and Memphis Review, which features Jack Oblivian and John Paul Keith and the One Four Fives, to the Echo. Lucero have a wonderful new disc out, 1372 Overton Park, which comes packed with Springsteen-via-the-Replacements ramshackle rockers. If you are a fan of bands like Hold Steady or Marah and aren’t a fan yet of Lucero you should check them out because you’ll be a convert.
Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson, who comes to Spaceland on Nov. 4, is something of a mystery figure to me. He has generated some buzz back East and I have listened to his disc Summer of Fear. It kinda of reminds of the New York City branch of the late 80s College Rock updated with some current Indie Pop flourishes (for example, the trumpet-powered “The 100th of March,” which nearly tops the 6 minute mark). Summer of Fear is on Saddle Creek – if that steers your opinion one way or the other. I hope to listen to the disc some more and see if I can decipher more of songs, and if it holds up to repeated listens.
The following night, Nov. 5, Will Hoge returns to town with a show at the Hotel Café. The Nashville based rocker would have fit in nicely on the Lucero bill as Hoge delves into gritty yet literate roots rock. Hoge survived a nearly fatal traffic accident a few years and his new album is the all-too-aptly named The Wreckage. While he might not move around as much on stage as he used too, he still produces potent music.
Friday’s fine show is Rupa and the April Fishes. By day, Rupa is a doctor in San Francisco but she hasn’t forsaken music for her career in medicine. The multi-lingual singer guides her band through a colorfully woven style of gypsy-like world music. It’s a festive sound that belies some of the more serious lyrical content and is so invigorating that you forget that she isn’t singing in English – not that that’s important. The group is now out celebrating their new release Este Mundo (on Cumbancha).
The week wraps up with a recommended double bill. Over the weekend, Largo at the Coronet hosts Over The Rhine with Kaite Herzig sharing the bill. OTR is a long-standing band from Cincinnati centered around the couple Linford Detweiler and Karin Bergquist. They have become known for the haunting, dark-hued songs, although they did lighten up a little on their late full length, 2007’s The Trumpet Child. Nashville-based singer/songwriter Katie Herzig is starting to make a name for herself, and deservedly so. Songs off of her tasty disc Apple Tree have shown up on TV shows and NPR shows (but don’t let that prejudice you). Herzig has a delightful way with a tune (as exemplified on tracks like “Hologram” and “Forevermore”) and it’s her quirky charms which differentiates her from the folk-pop pack.

Hey, Hoge

It was a real treat to see Will Hoge perform earlier this week as he passed through Los Angeles for an early set at the Mint. A treat because it reminded me what a terrific, if over-exposed roots rocker he is. It was also good to see that the Nashville-based musician was still just alive and kicking after being hit last year by a van while he was riding on his scooter. The main consequence of this accident – at least in this show - just seemed to be that he sat down more than he used to.
But the music was still as strong as ever. On his electric numbers, he conjured up the spirit of a younger Bruce Springsteen, much like his fellow rootsy neo-classic rockers like Marah and Hold Steady. Hoge’s songs this evening, however, favored more relationship-based songs rather than the character-flavored tunes that those aforementioned bands favor. On his acoustic songs, I got to thinking that any of these could be easily picked up by some better known Nashville acts – although they undoubtedly wouldn’t match Hoge’s ragged charms.
Hoge, who looks a little like Law & Order’s Jeremy Sisto, flashed his Southern civility when he complimented the club’s soundman for fixing his microphone during a song, while also serving up a dig at the Troubadour. Mostly it was a night for Hoge to showcase tracks from his upcoming disc, The Wreckage, while also touching on some older songs. He closed his all-too-short set with a Wreckage track “Hard To Love” but Hoge was very easy to love if you are a fan of well-crafted blue-collar rock ‘n’ roll. Hopefully, his new album will give him a well-deserved career boost.