Our Critics' Picks

SAUSAGEFEST ’07D. STRIKERFEATURING HURTS TO LAUGH AND MAD HAPPY

FRIDAY, 13TH

Rock ’n’ roll FURY and the smell of searing MEAT—why, they go together like napalm and nursery school. Beat on the brats at this greasy extravaganza, which combines sausages on the outdoor grill with a triple bill of death-dealing musical all-beef by-products. “Fuck art, let’s kill!” snarls Hurts to Laugh’s Erik Dail over fuzzed-out tablesaw guitars: on the best tracks, the band’s resulting cicada infestation of noise has some of the Jesus and Mary Chain’s scuzzy grandeur. D.Striker is Jeff Meltesen’s ongoing zine-cum-performance-piece that publishes/performs every Friday the 13th, luckily for us, unluckily for Meltesen’s perpetual trash-talking target Glen Campbell. Mike iLL and Rivka, a.k.a. Mad Happy, deliver percolating electro-pop with skritchy, low-tech hip-hop beats and cheeseball synths: comparisons to Tom Tom Club are not off base, except these Brooklyn scene fixtures put on a much wilder live show. And don’t forget the meat! Iggy Pop lived on sausages for a year; see how many you can wolf down before the crowning of Ms. Sausagefest, a hotly coveted honor indeed. Show time is 9 p.m. The Basement—JIM RIDLEY

MUSIC

THURSDAY, 12TH

CHRIS YOUNGThis tall baritone was the biggest consensus winner in five years of Nashville Star, and he’s the victor most likely to sustain a long career. At this point, though, he’s yet to attain that all-important breakthrough at country radio—despite an outstanding first single, “Drinkin’ Me Lonely,” and a decent debut album on RCA. But, as a 22-year-old heartthrob should, he works the Internet and his fan club as diligently and inventively as any Music Row performer. To wit, Young has set up a series of four dates in July and August marketed toward fan club members, Internet surfers and Nashville tourists. His fan club devotees get a discount ticket, and students from Belmont and MTSU can get a discounted fan-club membership at the shows. The Murfreesboro native will show off his laid back, note-bending voice and tradition-leaning songs in the first show of the series. He also appears on the Grand Ole Opry on Friday night. 3rd & Lindsley—MICHAEL MCCALL

VHS OR BETA/THE FEATURES/THE SELMANAIRESThe Features have reached an almost Will Hunting-like status in the local music scene. We can’t wait for the day when someone finally whisks them away and gives them the record deal they deserve and medals for all their years of strife. Their influence upon Nashville’s current indie scene is immeasurable (look no further than The Nobility), but they still have their hopes pinned on wrangling the widespread success that’s been so elusive. On the right night, they can still put on a transcendent show, and this is a rare appearance back in their old neighborhood. Louisville’s VHS or Beta know a little something of The Features’ long, barren road, having been around that block a time or two as well. Purveyors of a radio-ready, dance-floor friendliness not a million miles from that of The Killers, they’re due to release their third full-length, Bring On the Comets, in late August. (See the story on p. 38.) Though Atlanta openers The Selmanaires’ treads are not yet as worn as those of their contemporaries, their catchy kineticism should garner a much broader audience (not to mention a better PA) than the one they played for at a recent late night slot at vintage boutique Local Honey. Sweetwater Saloon in Murfreesboro; VHS or Beta also play Mercy Lounge Friday, 13th w/Autovaughn & Plastic Clap —ANDREW J. SMITHSON

MARC BROUSSARDWith a big voice that churns gravel and grit, this Louisiana soul shaker just dropped an album of classic R&B older than his 26 years, excepting the original he co-wrote with Nashville’s Radney Foster. Broussard’s band mixes chunka-chunka Stax guitar with Muscle Shoals’ high-drama organ washes, and the highlights come when Broussard alters the arrangements a bit, as in the slower-broiled “I Love You More Than You’ll Ever Know,” an Al Kooper tune originally cut by Blood, Sweat & Tears and famously covered by Donny Hathaway. As good as Broussard and band may be, they can’t touch the omnipresent standards by Marvin Gaye, Al Green, Otis Redding and The Staple Singers, nor does he add any new context to “Inner City Blues” or “Love and Happiness.” Other current soul revivalists, such as Ryan Shaw and Ruthie Foster, fare better because they wisely avoid the soul canon. However, for a night of dancing to classic R&B, it’ll be like grooving to an especially fine wedding band. Cannery Ballroom—MICHAEL MCCALL

BLUEGRASS NIGHTS AT THE RYMAN FEATURING DOYLE LAWSON & QUICKSILVER WITH CHERRYHOLMESThe more things change, the more they stay the same, and few acts make the point more clearly than Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver. The 63-year-old veteran has turned over almost his entire band since last year (and lone holdover Jamie Dailey, a spectacular singer/guitarist, has announced his impending departure), yet the new crew—hotshot banjo picker Joey Cox, fiddler Alan Johnson and singers Darren Beachley and Ron Spears—executes Lawson’s custom blend of hard-driving bluegrass, crystalline harmonies and gospel quartets with the same precision and power that has characterized every lineup since 1978’s original. Rounding out the bill is Cherryholmes, a family group with a new album (Black andWhite) that documents their preference for improvement over catering to the faithful with shtick, and serves as the best refutation of any grumblings that they haven’t paid their dues. From parents Jere (bass) and Sandy (mandolin) to Molly Kate (fiddle), the youngest of four kids, they’re all serious musicians—and still great entertainers. Ryman Auditorium—JON WEISBERGER