Unlike some sensitive singer-songwriter types who lean toward melodrama, Curt Perkins keeps his inner diva in check on his solo debut, Get Something Started. Besides, with a voice as lovely as his, a little emoting is called for. His knack for teetering along the edge of falsetto, whether to confess or seduce, at times recalls the greats of Motown, at others Jeff Buckley. Like his sometime employer Josh Rouse, Perkins clearly loves early-’70s soul—a couple of tracks on the album, particularly “Another Love Story,” sound like they could have been outtakes from Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On. (Perkins even covers the Gaye classic “Where Are We Going?”) Other songs run the gamut from the dreamy pop of the title track to the sultry Brazilian rhythms of “California,” which gives Al Green’s “Tired of Being Alone” a run for the title of Song Most Likely to Get You Laid. (curtperkins.com) Family Wash —JACK SILVERMAN MUSIC
FRIDAY, 24TH CHARLES “WIGG” WALKER & THE DYNAMITES Walker is an expressive ’60s soul singer fronting an aggressive, ’70s-style funk band. Their horn-driven, turn-on-a-dime dance music has become popular in nightclubs in the last decade, though it’s never really gone out of style. Walker more than rises to the challenge presented him by his younger musicians, slipping and sliding playfully through notes while charming and rousing his audience. The veteran singer has always deserved more recognition for his work, including his early stuff—he recorded his first sides in Nashville for Champion Records—but that never stops him from proving it all over again every time he hits the stage with the slinky Dynamites. Exit/In —MICHAEL MCCALL GHOSTFINGER As oddly recorded and evasive as The Rolling Stones’ Between the Buttons, Ghostfinger’s These Colors Run simulates emotion convincingly enough to satisfy fans of banal pop. Singer and songwriter Richie Kirkpatrick’s mock sincerity recalls that of Mick Jagger or Arthur Lee, but his relationship to his sources goes beyond the usual postmodern history lesson. These Colors peaks with “Moon,” which makes country-rock sound sinister, while “Rock” demonstrates Ghostfinger’s command of rock basics. “Aminal Eye” overplays things just enough, and if their pastiches partake of schlock, they skirt emotion without falling in. This show is the band’s first in months, and again features keyboardist Matt Rowland. They’ll be playing plenty of new material, and Kirkpatrick says the band plan to record in early January at Hope High School in Hope, Ark., which sounds like the perfect, spacious setting for these mustachioed ironists. (myspace.com/ghostfinger) The Basement —EDD HURT
SATURDAY, 25TH DAVID MEAD David Mead is a master of the crisp, literate pop singer-songwriter genre—something we have quite a few of in this town. But Mead is one of the best, spinning deliciously ironic tunes in his rich, spry voice, such as “Hard to Remember” off his latest, Tangerine. “I wrote a song that’s hard to remember,” he sings. “It could be any one hiding in your MP3s.” The record is his fifth full-length (including two for RCA at the turn of the millennium) and you can hear the maturity in his quiet confidence, in the unassuming way he drops lines that detonate upon delivery. The album is bursting with bright, infectious pop like the stand-out “Hallelujah, I Was Wrong,” an exuberant anthem about intra-relationship diplomacy executed with a soulful, 1979-era Josh Rouse-style orchestration that manages to be charming and sweetly sad at the same time. (davidmead.com) Mercy Lounge —LEE STABERT SHADOWWAX With all the god awful bands out there making a mint by ransacking the most obvious signifiers of ’90s grunge (bellowing, brooding, bitching), it’s nice to hear a band that proceeds from the mindset of acts like Pearl Jam, Nirvana and Soundgarden while retaining the pop jones, emotional honesty and grasp of dynamics those bands shared. Knoxville’s shadowWax absorb additional influences from Jeff Buckley to The Beatles into a bruising, brawny sound on their debut, Invitation Karma Crash. They’re in the middle of a bill that also features Murfreesboro’s Halo Stereo and Atlanta’s The Swear. (shadowwax.com) Exit In —CHRIS NEAL TOM WAITS TRIBUTE NIGHT The news of Scarlett Johansson recording an album of Tom Waits cover tunes was met with sneering criticism from some indie outlets. “(It’s) cooler than writing a bunch of craptastic tunes and weathering the inevitable criticism,” sneered Scott Stereogum. Hopefully, The Basement’s “Get Behind the Mule: An Evening of Tom Waits” won’t become as lost in translation. Featured artist Joshua Black Wilkins almost seems like a bastard son of Mr. Waits, his tough-as-nails voice an octave above Waits’ phlegmy growl of Marlboro Reds and broken glass. Other Mule variations on the bill include Imagine Asians, Justin Earle, Ole Mossy Face, Chris Scruggs and Hopsing Project. Proceeds benefit Toys for Tots. (thebasementnashville.com) The Basement —JOEY HOOD JUCIFER Ten years after spending close to half of their time on the road anyway, Athens duo Jucifer—Amber Valentine and Edgar Livengood—made the ultimate career decision in 2003. Already touring in a Winnebago they called home for most of the year, the couple’s rented house in Athens went on the market. They rushed to Georgia, scrambled to salvage their belongings and hit the road again. They’ve been there ever since, parking the Winnebago for sleeping and recording. One detail of that episode is perhaps the best metaphor for Jucifer’s sound: in rescuing their possessions, they had to find a home for some 5,000 pieces of vinyl. Fronted by Valentine’s dichotomous voice spontaneously shifting between a beckon and a blast, much like her guitar, Jucifer reach for influences from the MC5 and Black Sabbath to Sonic Youth and P.J. Harvey. They spit them up in a historical cavalcade of on-wax badass. (jucifer.com) The End —GRAYSON CURRIN
SUNDAY, 26TH LEIGH NASH The former Sixpence None the Richer frontwoman recently released a likable solo album, Blue on Blue, that proved Nash didn’t lose her knack for jangly folk-pop when she lost her band. Expect selections from the disc tonight—request “My Idea of Heaven,” a goofy fake-reggae number—as well as stuff from Nash’s cute new holiday EP, Wishing for This, on which she turns in Starbucks-ready renditions of Ron Sexsmith’s “Maybe This Christmas,” the standard “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” and “Last Christmas” by Wham! (leighnash.com) 3rd & Lindsley —MIKAEL WOOD THE NEW FLESH Baltimore is garnering a reputation for fostering a wildly experimental, noisy and uncompromising music scene. Take The New Flesh, for instance, who describe their brand of brutal punk as melding elements of ’60s psychedelia, ’70s art punk, ’80s West Coast hardcore and ’90s noise rock. Simply put: they’re loud. While emphasis is certainly placed on volume, underneath the fuzzed-out ceiling of distortion lies a bedrock of tried-and-true punk rock. This particular brand is punishing, but the barrage is accessible enough to eliminate the pretensions and alienation from which far too many noise bands suffer. (myspace.com/thenewflesh) Springwater —MATT SULLIVAN
MONDAY, 27TH RED JUMPSUIT APPARATUS Thanks in part to the power of MySpace, this new five-man alterna-rock band (average age: 21) from Florida are bubbling up on the charts. Though their guitar-heavy emo/screamo sound doesn’t differ wildly from the sonic attack of peers such as Breaking Benjamin and Hawthorne Heights, RJA display empathy, a rare trait for any rock band. “Face Down,” the band’s current single, is a skillful cry against domestic abuse. And though the rest of the songs on their debut, Don’t You Fake It, aren’t as pointed, many still rock. (redjumpsuit.com) Exit/In —WERNER TRIESCHMANN
TUESDAY, 28TH FLATHEAD One of the pleasures of living in Nashville is the opportunity to see bluegrass musicians turn up at the Station Inn in nifty combinations unlikely to ever hit the road. Case in point: Flathead, an intriguing set of pickers that includes banjo player (and maker) extraordinaire Steve Huber, fiddler/mandolinist Troy Engle, bassist Andy Todd, guitarist Bill Baldock and fiddler Shad Cobb. Despite the range of day jobs and regular gigs, the quintet share a deep knowledge of driving ’grass and a lyrical inventiveness to match—exactly the skills needed both to build a set list with hardly a second thought and to deliver it with confidence, gusto and plenty of grin-inducing surprises. They may never tour, or even produce a record, but Flathead is nevertheless some serious bluegrass fun. Station Inn —JON WEISBERGER DISTURBED W/STONE SOUR & FLYLEAF Chicago’s Disturbed are one of heavy music’s most unlikely success stories. The Chicago quartet play flamboyant disco-metal anthems about being yourself and resisting authority that appeal to fist-pumping meatheads probably given to beating down wimps on the way home from school. I spent a few days on the road with the group earlier this year for a profile, and discovered a much more complex personality in singer David Draiman than his onstage demeanor suggests. Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor’s side project Stone Sour allows the masked noise-metal maven a chance to flex his more commercial muscles. Flyleaf, from small-town Texas, do Evanescence-style goth-pop that’s not quite as satisfying as actual Evanescence. (disturbed1.com, stonesour.com, flyleafmusic.com) Gaylord Entertainment Center —MIKAEL WOOD DISTURBED W/STONE SOUR & FLYLEAF Chicago’s Disturbed are one of heavy music’s most unlikely success stories. The Chicago quartet play flamboyant disco-metal anthems about being yourself and resisting authority that appeal to fist-pumping meatheads probably given to beating down wimps on the way home from school. I spent a few days on the road with the group earlier this year for a profile, and discovered a much more complex personality in singer David Draiman than his onstage demeanor suggests. Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor’s side project Stone Sour allows the masked noise-metal maven a chance to flex his more commercial muscles. Flyleaf, from small-town Texas, do Evanescence-style goth-pop that’s not quite as satisfying as actual Evanescence. (disturbed1.com, stonesour.com, flyleafmusic.com) Gaylord Entertainment Center —MIKAEL WOOD STRAYLIGHT RUN W/MATT POND PA & KEVIN DEVINE Suburban New York’s Straylight Run formed as an offshoot of Taking Back Sunday, but they’ve spent the last few years inching away from TBS’s screamy emo-rock. Their 2004 debut featured lots of piano, ballad tempos and titles such as “Existentialism on Prom Night,” while the unreleased stuff on the band’s MySpace page could just as easily be by Fiona Apple. Matt Pond PA, from Brooklyn (via Philadelphia), mine an even deeper soft-rock vein. Their best tunes (including a cover of Oasis’s “Champagne Supernova,” featured on The OC) marry crisp folk-pop strumming to handsome string-and-horn arrangements. Tell ’em Christmas is coming and demand their dreamy take on Lindsey Buckingham’s “Holiday Road.” Fellow Brooklynite Kevin Devine kicks out politically minded emo-roots jams. (myspace.com/straylightrun, mattpondpa.com, kevindevine.net) Exit/In —MIKAEL WOOD
WEDNESDAY, 29TH JACE EVERETT When label monoliths Sony and RLG merged into the mega-monolith Sony BMG, a bloodletting was inevitable—and sure enough, the end of the fiscal year brought a purge of developing artists from the newly combined company. Perhaps the most disappointing name to see among the pink-slip recipients was that of Jace Everett, who released a promising self-titled debut in March to frustratingly little notice. There’s a sense of danger and mystery in the sultry, slyly insinuating Jace Everett that suggests the Fort Worth native’s time spent as a journeyman bass player in Europe (the continent, not the heavy-metal band) was particularly well spent. (myspace.com/jaceeverett) Douglas Corner Café —CHRIS NEAL PETER BOYER The BMI composer-in-residence at Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music, Boyer is fast developing a reputation as one of the country’s most gifted up-and-coming composers. His symphonic music is known for its atmospheric color and dramatic power. A gifted orchestrator, he has also worked on the soundtracks of two films with Michael Kamen—Against the Ropes and Open Range. On Wednesday, the Vanderbilt University Orchestra and Symphonic Choir will perform a couple of Boyer works, a new choral work called And the Night Shall Be Filled With Music (with text by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow) along with Celebration Overture. The free concert starts at 8 p.m. and will also feature a smorgasbord of symphonic excerpts from Dvorak, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Bernstein and Copland, among others. Ingram Hall —JOHN PITCHER THEATER THE DOYLE AND DEBBIE SHOW Bruce Arntson’s hilariously clever send-up of the country music biz continues playing to enthusiastic crowds at Bongo After Hours Theatre. Arntson has tweaked the script a bit and added a couple of songs since the show first opened back in the spring, and the locals are still laughing heartily. Jenny Littleton remains Arntson’s co-star. The show is in an open run, and producer Ken Bernstein has scheduled shows over Thanksgiving weekend. For reservations, phone 385-1188. —MARTIN BRADY HAVING OUR SAY For its second production, the fledgling community theater Collards & Caviar is staging this play based on the factual lives of Sadie and Bessie Delany, centenarian African American ladies who welcome the audience into their home in Mount Vernon, N.Y. The two sisters are preparing dinner in remembrance of their father’s birthday. Along the way, they recount events and anecdotes drawn from their rich family history, including their own amazing journey from girlhood in Jim Crow-era North Carolina through their careers as pioneering black professional women. First a 1995 hit Broadway play, and later a 1999 CBS television special starring Diahann Carroll and Ruby Dee, Having Our Say offers a rare story that celebrates America’s people but also serves up pointed commentary about discrimination and social injustice. LaQuita James and Darlene Knight star under the direction of Eugenia Sweeney. There are three performances at the Darkhorse Theater over Thanksgiving weekend, Nov. 24-25, with a special preview media performance on Nov. 22. For further information, phone 868-6800. —MARTIN BRADY FILM FUR: AN IMAGINARY PORTRAIT OF DIANE ARBUS Mention Diane Arbus’ name and you’re likely to find that, some 35 years after her barbiturate-induced suicide, opinions still diverge as to whether the influential photographer was a genius or a mere voyeur, a sympathetic eye cast upon society’s outcasts or a glorified carnival barker beckoning us into her pictorial sideshow. So it’s probably for the best that, in bringing Patricia Bosworth’s acclaimed Arbus biography to the screen, director Steven Shainberg and writer Erin Cressida Wilson (who previously collaborated on Secretary) have effectively disposed with Arbus’ brilliant career to instead focus on the three-month period preceding her decision to become a professional photographer. “Imaginary” is the operative word here, as Shainberg and Wilson take fragmentary details from the life of Arbus (Nicole Kidman)—that she was the daughter of a prominent Manhattan furrier; that she assisted her husband, the photographer Allan Arbus (very well played by Ty Burrell), in their home portrait studio—and fold them into a Buñuelian dreamscape about a hirsute circus “freak” (Robert Downey Jr.) who leads her down a rabbit hole of the disfigured and dispossessed, sparking her creative fire. Fur wants to capture that most ephemeral of things—the moment at which an artist comes into his or her own sense of being an artist. And though its ideas on the subject aren’t always profound, much of the film is as strange and oddly beautiful as one of Arbus’ own photographs. The film opens Friday at the Belcourt; see the review on p. 66. —SCOTT FOUNDAS THE MALTESE FALCON “The stuff that dreams are made of,” Humphrey Bogart’s Sam Spade calls it—the statue that sets a priceless pack of Warner Bros. supporting players (including Peter Lorre, Sydney Greenstreet and Elisha Cook Jr.) on a path of bloody intrigue. John Huston’s 1941 directorial debut was the third movie version of Dashiell Hammett’s detective novel in a decade; this one’s the keeper, with Bogie’s Spade a compelling sadistic heel whether he’s menacing the perfumed Mr. Cairo (Lorre) or coolly sending his dead partner’s wife (Mary Astor) to the gallows. One of the last movies to show at the old Belle Meade Theatre, the movie is this weekend’s attraction at the Belcourt’s Weekend Classics Matinee. —JIM RIDLEY THE FOUNTAIN Darren Aronofsky’s sci-fi fantasy skips across 1,000 years, from the time of the Spanish conquistadors to the present to a cosmic plane 500 years in the future. Linking every time zone is Hugh Jackman as 16th century explorer, 21st century medical researcher and 26th century guru. Anyone who takes drugs beforehand will wind up babbling on a street corner in his underwear. It starts Wednesday; see the review in our Movie Listings on p. 66, with a longer review online at nashvillescene.com. —JIM RIDLEY THE FOUNTAIN Darren Aronofsky’s sci-fi fantasy skips across 1,000 years, from the time of the Spanish conquistadors to the present to a cosmic plane 500 years in the future. Linking every time zone is Hugh Jackman as 16th century explorer, 21st century medical researcher and 26th century guru. Anyone who takes drugs beforehand will wind up babbling on a street corner in his underwear. It starts Wednesday; see the review in our Movie Listings on p. 66, with a longer review online at nashvillescene.com. —JIM RIDLEY
