Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles at the Mint, Los Angeles, June 23

I had the opportunity to catch Sarah Borges and her band, the Broken Singles, at the Mint this week. While I had included her show in my list of recommended shows, I was reminded how much I enjoy Borges as a performer and how I probably didn’t convey that enough in the preview blurb.

The wise-cracking, raven-haired Borges (pronounced like “gorgeous”) certainly is a vivacious frontwoman. Since this is Los Angeles, comparisons can be made to Sandra Bullock (more the feisty Speed model than say the recent All About Steve). Musically, however, she recalls Neko Case back in the days when she played with the Boyfriends, and before she turned into an NPR art-pop darling.

Borges has her own “boyfriends” backing her up: guitarist Lyle Brewster, drummer Robert Larry Dulaney and bassist/comic sidekick Binky. Together they whipped up twangy rock ‘n’ roll that’s part grange and part garage. A good example of their sound would be their energizing cover of the NRBQ’s “It Come To Me Naturally,” a good-natured, roadhouse rave-up that they perform with grit and sass.

So far, Borges has put out 3 full lengths: Silver City (2005), Diamond In The Dark (2007) and The Stars Are Out (2009) – and all are highly recommendable. She’s known on these works almost as much for her excellent array of covers (Stars’ covers range from Smokey Robinson to The Magnetic Fields, for example) as her own originals. And if she hasn’t crafted her own standout signature tune, she certainly has accumulated a very strong set of originals.

At the show, she announced that they have a DVD coming out and have been working on demos for her next CD; efforts that hopefully will give her the popularity that she deserves

Go See Hear in L.A.: June 21-27

The start of Summer starts off with one of the hottest – and busiest - weeks of music shows in LA so far. At least when it comes to my concert radar. It's one of those weeks that it is not only difficult to pick the show of the pick but it's hard to pick just the top shop of the night since several nights have more than one show to recommend.

Peggy Sue is a cool, young UK group, led by co-singers Rosa Slade and Katy Young, with an intriguing “folk noir” sound draws upon old and modern elements. Their 6/22 show at Spaceland supports their US debut, Fossils and other Phantoms that’s out on Yep Roc. www.myspace.com/peggywho

The veteran band Blue Rodeo performs at the Mint on June 22. One of Canada’s most esteemed groups for around 20 years, they are still creating their signature harmony-rich country rock as their recent double album The Things We Left Behind proves. www.myspace.com/bluerodeomusic

The Viper Room hosts the all-female quartet, Katzenjammer on the 22nd too. Hailing Norway, they play a lively gypsy folk-rock and I found their US debut Le Pop, which comes up at the end of June on Nettwerk, a kicky listen that should attract them a good deal of attention. They’re also known for using a trunkload of instruments on stage, suggesting that they are fun to see in concert too. www.myspace.com/katzenjammerne

I have been a longtime fan of Josh Ritter, who’s one of the most talented singer-songwriters of his generation. His new disc, So Runs The World Away, stands as his most ambitious work of his young career. He has a show at the Music Box on June 23, with the talented Carolina Chocolate Drops is opening with their take on old time string music that’s inspired by their African American backgrounds. www.myspace.com/joshritter, www.myspace.com/carolinachocolatedrops

Sarah Borges has been another of my favorite acts in recent years. Her music is a captivating mix of barroom country and rock ‘n’ roll – maybe it’s “punky tonk.” On her last album (The Stars Are Out, Sugar Hill Records), her covers range from NRBQ to Lemonheads and Smokey Robinson. Known for her energetic live shows, She brings her band the Broken Singles to the Mint on 6/23. www.myspace.com/borgesrocks

Last month, Kate Miller Heidke was in town opening for Ben Folds. In my LA Weekly preview of that show, I praised the quirky Australian songtress’ album Curiouser for its lively dance pop music (that) comes colored with a theatrical streak and then twisted up in ‘70s New Wave disco." You have another chance to check out this colorful performer as she returns to L.A. for her own set at the Hotel Café on 6/24.www.myspace.com/katemillerheidke

The 24th also is a night for a special benefit at the Echo that MusiCares is doing for Nashville Flood Relief. The lineup includes such wonderful roots rockers as Syd Straw, Exene Cervenka and Dave Alvin, plus the great Carlene Carter will be performing too. She did a strong comeback album, Stronger, a few years back and her classic album, Musical Shapes was the inspiration for this blog title. For more show info., visit http://www2.grammy.com/MusiCares/NashvilleFloodRelief/

Maryland-bred singer-songwriter Joe Pug might not do anything fancy on his debut The Messenger but it still impresses by being a mature effort from a first timer. He has a show at the Echo on 6/25. www.myspace.com/thejoepug

While legendary indie rock Lou Barlow is the headliner at the Bootleg on Sat. June 26, I want to sing the praises of his opening act, Sarah Jaffe . The twenty-something Texan’s debut full length Suburban Nature caught my ear for its captivating offering of bedroom folk that’s energized with edgy emotionality. www.myspace.com/sjaffe

On the 26th, McCabe’s hosts Greg Brown, a mainstay in the American folk scene since the early ‘80s. Possessing a rich voice and literate story-songs, I always think of him as a Midwestern Dave Alvin. The Iowan, by the way, is married to Iris Dement and is the dad to musician, Pieta Brown. www.myspace.com/folkingregbrown

Last year, Peter Case had heart surgery, so not only is it great to welcome him back to the stage – he has a show that Claremont Folk Music Center on June 26 and one at McCabe’s on July 9 – but it’s also great that his new disc, Wig, is such a wonderfully bluesy, rockin’ affair. www.myspace.com/petercase

The 26th is also the date that the Wiltern will be shaking with the sweet soul music served up by Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings. They are coming to town supporting their new album, I Learned The Hard Way, and it’s heartening that their old school soul sound is getting a niche in the mainstream. www.myspace.com/sharonjonesandthedapkings

AMA Conference countdown

The Americana Music Conference is now less than a week away so the countdown has really begun in earnest (as in Tubb) for me. My panel (A is for Americana) starts off the morning on Thursday and I’ve been looking over the daily schedule. A number of other panels and workshops have caught my eye, and like the musical showcases, it will tricky to get to all of them. For example, following my panel on Thursday morning, Rosanne Cash will be doing her Keynote Interview but overlapping with that is an Artist Development panel focusing on Sarah Borges, a singer I’ve been a big fan of. Another Thursday highlight looks to be the songwriting workshop with Mary Gauthier and Darrell Scott. One of the cool things of the conference for me is to get an up-close listen to musicians talking about their craft. Chip Taylor will be holding one of these sessions on Friday and Will Kimbrough has one of Saturday. Looking over the listings, it just reminds me what a wealth of interesting events the conference has.