CHARLIE LOUVIN

FRIDAY, 6TH

One of country music’s greatest figures, Charlie Louvin turns 80 on Saturday. Along with his brother Ira, who died in 1965, Charlie has influenced an untold number of musicians. He’s still an inspiration, as this weekend’s slate of events demonstrates. On Friday, he’ll appear at The Mercy Lounge along with young admirers such as Laura Cantrell, Bobby Bare Jr. and Teddy Thompson, whose forthcoming Upfront and Down Low features a version of his “You Finally Said Something Good (When You Said Goodbye).” On Saturday at 1 p.m., Louvin signs CDs and does a stint as guest DJ at Grimey’s, swings over to The Grand Ole Opry, and ends the day with a show at The Ernest Tubb Midnight Jamboree. He’ll appear at 2 p.m. on Sunday at The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s Ford Theater, where he’ll premiere the video for “Ira,” one of the songs on this year’s fine Charlie Louvin. —EDD HURT

MUSIC

THURSDAY, 5TH

BLUEGRASS NIGHTS AT THE RYMAN FEATURING VINCE GILL WITH JESSE MCREYNOLDS & THE VIRGINIA BOYS Look for lots of deft mandolin picking at tonight’s entry in the Ryman’s annual summer bluegrass series, “Bluegrass Nights at The Ryman.” While IBMA Hall of Famer McReynolds is an acknowledged master whose innovative cross-picking style still bears creative fruit, Vince Gill is no slouch on the instrument himself. For proof, just listen to his work on the two solo albums by guitarist Jeff White, a frequent Gill sideman who’ll be part of tonight’s band—along with bass man Mike Bub, banjo whiz Charlie Cushman (who’s been touring with Gill) and a few other yet-to-be-named but undoubtedly top-notch players. Given the breadth of his interests, it can’t be said too often that bluegrass is one of Gill’s oldest and most enduring pursuits. And whether he’s tackling an old Stanley Brothers’ classic (he recorded their “Lonesome River” more than 25 years ago with Here Today) or one of the new ’grass songs from his These Days set, the man knows how to do it right. Ryman Auditorium —JON WEISBERGER

FRIDAY, 6TH

KINK ADOR From Lafayette, Ind., Sharon Koltick is a bass-playing singer and songwriter with a flair for subtly reggae-inflected pop tunes that embrace ’80s new-wave ennui. Having already garnered notice in the Indianapolis area for her band Kink Ador, Koltick moved to Nashville a year ago and promptly assembled a new edition of the group, which includes guitarist and violinist John Zambricki, keyboardist Wade Van Orman and drummer Brad Naylor. They’ve been writing, and lately have been recording with producers Jack Clement and Mo Sweeney at Clement’s famed Cowboy Arms Hotel and Recording Spa. Clement says he plans to sit in with the band at a show later this summer, and Kink Ador has cut a new-wave version of Allen Reynolds’ “Ready for the Times to Get Better,” a 1978 country hit for Crystal Gayle, which ought to suit Cowboy Jack’s aesthetic just fine. The 5 Spot; also playing Tuesday, 10th at The Rutledge —EDD HURT

MYSORE V.K. RAMAN South Indian music has three primary lead instruments: the veena, a stringed instrument that’s cousin to the better known sitar, the violin and the bamboo flute. The South Indian flute couldn’t be simpler—a piece of bamboo closed at one end with simple mouth and finger holes drilled in it, and no keys like Western flutes. Virtuosos on the instrument have a clear, refined sound that isn’t woody at all, and in spite of the flute’s simplicity (or perhaps because of it), players can draw out a wide range of sounds, bending and shaping notes for expression. Sri Ganesha Temple in Bellevue is presenting a concert that features a leading Indian flautist, Mysore Raman, who was a student of one of the most famous players and teachers of the instrument. Mysore V. Srikanth will accompany him on violin and B. Ravishankar on the mridangam, the Indian two-headed drum. 7 p.m., Sri Ganesha —DAVID MADDOX

SATURDAY, 7TH

THE WINTER SOUNDS Four guys and one gal from Georgia and South Carolina have a debut CD, Porcelain Empire, that’s old-fashioned modern rock. Built on chiming guitars, intermittent synths and catchy choruses, there’s a dash of emo here and a pinch of U2 there. They are better when they generate windswept romantic tunes, as on the energetic “Windy City Nights” and the slower “Poor Sailors.” And like most young bands aiming for bigger and better things, they could use more personality—or at least a novelty song or two—but then again, U2 was never a laugh riot and they’ve done OK for themselves. Cafe Coco —WERNER TRIESCHMANN

JESSE MALIN Singer-songwriter Jesse Malin is capable of writing some pretty darn excellent rock ’n’ roll infused with a radiant pop sensibility that’s pleasantly cosmopolitan. It’s a shame he also has a tendency to drop the occasional clunker of a line—something so cumbersome and rhymey that it makes the eyebrows involuntarily rise. Fortunately, the good stuff is worth the price of admission. Malin has a casual, expressive voice and a distinct delivery that matches well with his crisp guitars and stuck-in-your-head hooks. Bruce Springsteen is a fan, as is Malin’s good friend Ryan Adams, and it’s easy to hear how they could appreciate his subject matter—a pitch-perfect balance of the mundane and the heartbreaking: a girlfriend moving to Brooklyn (which might as well be the end of the earth), riding on the subway or his sister’s love of John Travolta. Malin’s latest, Glitter in the Gutter, is another collection of rampaging, just-dirty-enough pop—an apt soundtrack for a hot summer in the city (just what we’re having). Exit/In —LEE STABERT

SUNDAY, 8TH

THE ZOOPY SHOW Part puppet show, part rock band and part burlesque, The Zoopy Show’s characters come adorned in Muppets-from-hell costumes, supplemented by their own troupe of go-go dancers called the Zoopy Girlz. Comprised of gigantic monster musicians born 8,000 years ago on the other end of the universe, Fartfire the Dragon, Dancing Piggy Boy and Slee-nard serve up electronic, dancy punk that occasionally breaks into lounge territory—music supposedly taught to them by a drug-addled, womanizing puppet named Zappato. Described by the band as “live Japanimation,” The Zoopy Show is as much a carnival sideshow as it is a live concert performance; it’s also the subject of an upcoming graphic novel called They Came to Earth. Springwater —MATT SULLIVAN

YOUNG BUCK From listening to Young Buck’s oeuvre, now two discs deep, it’s clear the brother has a grudge. When he’s not hitting back at haters, he’s popping off on G-Unit traitor The Game, or dissing gold-digging women. If all this sounds like modern rap formulaic jibber jabber, it is. Yet Buck manages to transcend both Dirty South and thug rap trends by creating pop-rap records that crack with club-ready bounce. Buck “done come up” within the G-Unit crew, and now he’s the second most popular member of the association. Though he still reps G-Unit (and Ca$hville) hard, he appears to be carving his own path. Fiddy is the only one of his boys to appear on the latest LP, Buck the World. The record has ripped up the charts largely on the strength of crunching beats provided by Dr. Dre, Polow Da Don and a cadre of producers. Da Don’s contribution is the anthemic “Get Buck,” with Buck riding roughshod over Da Don’s percolating horn march. Dre has provided one of his best efforts in recent years with “U Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere,” a grown folks rap song that, despite Buck’s lesson in Rap Misogyny 101, is a sweetly simmering mid-tempo groove. It’s the one thing on the record that comes anything close to originality. Innovation isn’t something listeners expect from a Young Buck record—his rhymes are straight out of the “I love Scarface” rhyme book. Still, his guttural, muscular vocals exude the kind of swagger that rap fans gravitate towards. Municipal Auditorium —MARK MAYS

MONDAY, 9TH

THE PINK SPIDERS Cadging a color-coded cue from The White Stripes, the pink-and-black-clad Pink Spiders purvey rocket-fueled garage-punk-pop, squealing wheels through the turns with turbo blast perk and a passion for shiny, shimmying hooks. The local trio recalls old school Cali-punks Redd Kross when they hit the gas on infectious little sugar-coated nuggets like “Modern Swinger” and “Back to the Middle,” while other tracks (“Little Razorblade,” “Going Steady”) suggest the new-wave pop classicism of Weezer. While producer Ric Ocasek may have cleaned up their dirty, rumpled strut, he compensated by highlighting the songs’ crisp construction and insistent melodic verve. Grit or not, they come on stronger than a frat boy at closing time, and are much more difficult to deny. They may not be radioactive, but you’ll definitely feel something after this spider’s bite. This free show is a temporary break from recording for the band, who just wrapped up three new songs in L.A. with modern rock mega-producer Brendon O’Brien. From a batch of rough mixes we heard, songs such as “Busy Signals” show the band moving toward a bouncier, sunnier new wave, while “Stranglehold” is a propulsive burst of tensely jagged pop. The band heads to Atlanta after this show to finish work on their Geffen follow-up. Exit/In —CHRIS PARKER

WEDNESDAY, 11TH

IAN MCLAGAN & THE BUMP BAND As a sideman, he’s played keyboards with more rock ’n’ roll legends than you can shake an empty bottle of Jack Daniels at, but Ian McLagan is most fondly remembered as a key player in two great British bands—’60s psych-era mods The Small Faces, and their ’70s reincarnation as the b(l)oozy good-time rockers Faces. These days, when he’s not busy overseeing the Faces’ legacy—he produced 2004’s exquisitely programmed box set Five Guys Walk Into a Bar, and his 2006 release Spiritual Boy was a tribute to a fellow Face, the late great Ronnie Lane—McLagan keeps the spirit of his former band alive with The Bump Band, a ragged, revolving-door assortment of musicians that has recently included former Lucinda Williams associate Gurf Morlix. Now based in McLagan’s adopted hometown of Austin, The Bump Band specializes in a cheerily ramshackle brand of rootsy bar-band rock. Mac’s rollicking keyboard style is in the foreground on old Faces tunes such as Lane’s lovably raunchy classic “You’re So Rude,” as well as more recent faves like “She Stole It!” in which Mac is left heartbroken after a female acquaintance runs off with his record collection. So let the more famous Face, Rod Stewart, thrill housewives with his schmaltzy standards and warmed-over classic rock retreads, Mac and his pals supply the real deal—gutsy, down to earth rock ’n’ roll with a nod and a wink. Mercy Lounge —JASON BENNETT

UNWED SAILOR W/THE BIRD ENSEMBLE Instrumental rock is not only an apparent contradiction, but it also can be more difficult to connect with, as accustomed as we are to being bull-horned by feelings, lyrically—if not quite poetically—expressed, and way up in the mix. Former Pedro the Lion and Roadside Monument bassist Johnathon Ford’s Unwed Sailor succeed in plumbing emotional depths in the course of their well-crafted, diligently performed songs. Like many of their brethren in the post-Slint era, Unwed Sailor use melodic repetition and irregular waltz time rhythms to coax out thoughtfully understated moods and near-orchestral moments of sublime beauty. Locals The Bird Ensemble open the show. They recorded their album, Migration, on Music Row, but their sound is more shimmer than shimmy, more shoegaze than boot-stomp. Similarly indebted to Louisville’s Slint while also nodding to Seam’s chiming open strings, The Birds breeze through jazzy rhythmic shifts, lush chords and slinking guitar lines. You may not go home from this show humming any catchy choruses, but you’ve already heard everything that rhymes with love—so why not take a chance on some unsung heroes? Exit/In —STEVE HARUCH

EVENTS

WORLD HOOP DAY Hump day comes once a week, but Hoop Day, alas, comes but once a year. This Saturday, put a hoop on your hips and let your backbone slip—hula-happy Nashvillians will be gathering in East Park to make merry and gyrate in unison with World Hoop Day participants around the globe. Why all the hoopla? According to organizers, the goal of World Hoop Day is “to educate and encourage an active and healthy lifestyle to children around the world by providing quality hula hoops and instruction.” Hoop Day emissaries have already distributed hundreds of hoops to children living in poverty. (Find out more at worldhoopday.com, where you can also view a map of hoop enthusiasts worldwide.) Sunny Becks, founder of HoopRama, Nashville’s first (and probably only) hoop dance classes, will lead the celebration as well as provide instruction. The event runs from 5 to 7 p.m. East Park, 700 Woodland St.

FILM

HITCHCOCK WEEKEND CLASSICS: STAGE FRIGHT OK, this is weird. This weekend at the Belcourt, you can see the Edith Piaf biopic La Vie en Rose, which dramatizes a meeting between Piaf and Marlene Dietrich. Or you can go next door and see Alfred Hitchcock’s 1950 suspenser Stage Fright—in which Dietrich sings (what else?) “La Vie en Rose.” Are the hairs on your neck standing up yet? For more information, see belcourt.org. —JIM RIDLEY

BOOK

H0WARD FRANK MOSHER In far northern Vermont, along the Canadian border, is a place the locals call the Northeast Kingdom. It is a wild and sparsely populated land, as fiercely independent from the rest of Vermont as Vermont is from the rest of the country. It is here that veteran novelist and essayist Howard Frank Mosher has set his 11th book, On Kingdom Mountain. Set in the 1930s, the story concerns the quest of a 50-year-old former schoolteacher, Jane Kinneson, to stop a highway from being cut through her ancestral lands. Miss Jane lives a stubbornly independent life and stands as a formidable obstacle to the road builders. Assisting her is a treasure hunter named Henry Satterfield who crashes his biplane on Miss Jane’s land in a search for gold coins stolen from the local bank by “copperhead” Confederates during the Civil War (an actual event). As the conflict grows, Henry and Jane wind up having visions and communicating with their ancestors, and it soon becomes apparent that almost anything can happen on Kingdom Mountain. Mosher’s writing is leisurely and droll, rich with the stories and lore of rural Vermont. Mosher will appear at Davis-Kidd Booksellers on July 7 at noon. —Wayne Christeson