2013 Live Music Preview
The opening weeks of the year are always something of a wasteland for live music and for my own creative energy, hence the radio silence around here for the past two weeks. Luckily though, things will be heating up soon enough with a set of killer shows in the next few months. Read on for some recommendations of the first 2013 shows you shouldn’t miss.
Kicking things off this coming Saturday the 19th, Mission of Burma will headline Cambridge’s brand new venue The Sinclair. Months of delays and cancelled or relocated shows plagued the venue’s opening, but at last the 500(ish)-capacity Harvard Square club is hosting shows. Check out the new space and take in a performance by local noise-rock/post-punk legends Mission of Burma, who are still riding high in a reunion phase that’s now lasted much longer than their original 1979-1983 run.
Coming up on Friday the 25th is former Girls frontman Christopher Owens at the Paradise, who will be presenting his first solo LP Lysandre from start to finish. Don’t go into this one expecting the joyous garage-rock vibes of Girls; Lysandre is a baroque folk-pop affair, and Owens has been populating his encores with covers of Cat Stevens and Bob Dylan rather than cuts from his old band. My own feelings toward Lysandre are mixed, but Owens is a charming guy and the ensemble he’s put together to tour the record is quite something according to early show reports.
The last week of January brings Jersey punks Titus Andronicus to The Sinclair on the 27th for a sold-out show rescheduled from way back in November. Do your best to score a ticket to this if you haven’t already; Titus are one of the best live bands around. Spooky, witch-house-y electropop duo Purity Ring will also play to a sold-out crowd at the Paradise on the 30th. The group’s one-of-a-kind stage and lighting setup allow them to pull off something pretty unique in the realm of live electronic music that’s well worth seeing if you can manage it.
February also brings a wealth of excellent shows. If you don’t mind the drive, reclusive Neutral Milk Hotel frontman Jeff Mangum will be at Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel in Providence on the 10th. This is something of a redemptive opportunity for fans such as myself who missed out on Mangum’s Boston dates in the past year or two and don’t wish to see him recede into the mist again without taking in at least one performance.
The 12th presents an intriguing choice between always-entertaining indie-pop/hip-hop crew Why? at Brighton Music Hall and ultra-mysterious avant-garde rockers The Residents at the Institute of Contemporary Arts. I am forever a proponent of Why?, but given that they headlined a Middle East Downstairs show not too far back, The Residents might get my vote here. The costumed crew rarely tours and their show promises to be a memorable one.
Indie rock legends Yo La Tengo play an already sold-out show at the Paradise on the 13th. Count yourself among the lucky if you’ve got tickets for this one. It’s been a while since the band’s last proper tour, and buzz for their stellar new LP Fade is near deafening. That’s not to mention that with a sprawling three-decade discography and an encyclopedic repertoire of covers to draw from, their shows are always unique and invariably excellent.
Sunday the 24th pits Conor Oberst’s reunited punk band Desaparecidos (Paradise, already sold out) against lo-fi surf-pop purveyors Beach Fossils (T.T. the Bear’s, poised to sell out). Oberst fanatics will want to check out a rare live appearance from the long-thought-dead side project. Adherents to the sunny sounds of Real Estate and Wild Nothing will be more than pleased at T.T.’s.
Up-and-coming psych-rockers Unknown Mortal Orchestra, who played Boston with opening slots for Liars and Grizzly Bear last year, will headline Brighton Music Hall on March 2nd. Early reports on the trio’s upcoming second LP are very good, and the energetic, glam-indebted and highly entertaining Foxygen will be joining them at the show.
Indie giants Animal Collective and Tame Impala will headline Boston’s House of Blues on the 7th and the 12th, respectively. Animal Collective’s elaborate stage decorations and sprawling electro-jams haven’t hit Boston in quite a while, and an opening set from the upbeat and perpetually danceable Dan Deacon only sweetens the deal. A week later, Tame Impala will continue riding the Lonerism wave to their biggest Boston stage yet. This will be another chance to check out their psychedelic sounds if you missed their well-reviewed Royale gig back in November.
Closing out the month will be much anticipated returns to Boston from Nick Cave and Sigur Ros. Cave and the Bad Seeds play the Orpheum on the 24th in support of their first new record since 2008. The renowned Australian singer-songwriter recently dissolved the lecherous garage-rock side project Grinderman, and promises a less rock-oriented sound for Push the Sky Away. Given Cave’s near-flawless track record, expect top-knotch results from both the record and the show.
Icelandic post-rock legends Sigur Ros bring their tour in support of 2012’s Valtari to Agganis Arena later that week on the 26th. As anyone who caught their outdoor shows over the summer will tell you, the band surely did not lose their touch during their 2009-2012 hiatus. Sigur Ros sound as gorgeous and breathtaking as ever, and even if the venue is less than ideal, they’re absolutely a live act that’s worth your time.
What I’ve neglected to mention and what’s still to be announced are anyone’s guess, but 2013 is already shaping up to be another amazing year of live music in Boston. See you out there.