THE SHOWDOWN: Dangerously close to obnoxious

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THE SHOWDOWN: Dangerously close to obnoxious

POSTED: Monday, November 30, 2009, 8:18 PM

Filed Under: Music The Showdown

A concert a day keeps the doctor away.

Monday: The Canadian band Do Make Say Think can be heard in dorm rooms of liberal arts colleges across the nation. Their instrumental music, drawing on jazz and rock, is the kind that takes patience to appreciate. With it's slow building and tearing down of layers, this could be the chillest show of the night, man. Who's bringing the bong? With The Happiness Project & Years, 8 p.m., $14-$15, First Unitarian Church, 2125 Chestnut St., 267-295-2710.

Tuesday: It's Imogen Heap's subtlety that makes her songs so gripping. You don't realize how invested you are in a song until it's half way in. Her songs sneak up on you, and before you know it, the album is over. You listened to and liked the entire thing, even though you were skeptical at first. At 8 p.m., $22.50-$25, TLA, 334 South St., 215-922-1011.

Wednesday: Ted Leo + The Pharmacists stick to what they're good at: upbeat songs with catchy hooks, a bit of guitar feedback, and percussion that makes you wanna air-drum all over the steering wheel. It's a formula, yes, but we can't hold it against them. The formula works, people, and we keep asking Mr. Leo to give us more and more. With The So So Glos, 8 p.m., $10, at th First Unitarian Church, 2125 Chestnut St., 267-296-2710.

Thursday: Some bands are dangerously close to obnoxious, and Jaguar Love is one of them. But it's their proximity to obnoxiousness that makes them sound as good as they do. With a whiney howl from singer Johnny Whitney, they take a gamble, risk sounding emo and come out in the end sounding like a trio that is too tough to care about risking it all. The fact that members hail from Blood Brothers and Pretty Girls Make Graves doesn't hurt their rep, either. At 8 p.m., $10, Kung Fu Necktie, 1250 N. Front St., 215-291-4919.

Friday: Ghostland Observatory makes music that you can't help but dance to. But they also weave in a darkness that you seldom find in other electro phenomena. With Slapping Purses & JAYO, 8:30 p.m., $19-$21, at the Troc, 1003 Arch St., 215-922-5483.

Saturday: If you listen closely, you might be able to hear the sound of rain in the background on Erin McKeown's latest, Hundreds of Lions. Each song ' even the ones that pose as upbeat and sunny ' have a sadness that has settled deep within McKeown. No matter how hard she may try to hide it, the sound of disappointment remains, and it adds to her charm as a folk singer. With Jill Sobule, 7:30 p.m., $25-$35, World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut St., 215-222-1400.

Sunday: Weird, dreamy tunes are perfect for a Sunday night. Get your fix of sound that moves from marching band drums to trace-like loftiness with Van Allen Belt. Their MySpace claims they only have four members, but they're the type of group that sound like there could easily be twice as many. Van Allen Belt uses guy and girl vocals and harsh language over something that sounds like warped, oldies vinyl. From song to song, their sound is tweaked a bit, building some mystery each time. With Foosa & Family Animals, 7 p.m., $8, North Star Bar, 2639 Poplar St., North Star Bar, 215-684-0808.

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Featuring everything from event roundups to concert reviews and sex talk, City Paper's Critical Mass is a space for off-the-wall coverage of Philly's A&E scene.

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