RECOMMENDED With new guitarist Johnny Marr firmly in tow, the band that built the blueprint for modern indie rock is on the road again. Following up their commercial breakthrough, 2004’s“Good News For People Who Love Bad News,” the band released “We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank” earlier this year. Effortlessly navigating that steep canyon between oddball underground darlings and reluctant Billboard inductees, “We Were Dead…” might just be the band’s strongest album to date. Ringleader Isaac Brock lets loose the quirk, but with the measured ear of a songwriter at the top of his game. Post-punk freakouts mingle with disco-ready pop tipples, but “We Were Dead…” pulls off the fray with only a mildly schizophrenic sensation. Although smeared with an expected coat of radio-friendly gloss, the new release preserves that signature weirdness that longtime Modest Mouse fans adore. (K. Tighe) Sunday, December 2 at Congress Theatre
Still Breathtaking: A Preview of Sting at Ravinia Festival Sting's solo catalog boasts more than a dozen studio albums. He may not rack up the hit singles like he once did, but he remains a compelling writer, musician and performer.
Last Punks Standing: A Preview of Mekons at Hideout Mekons have endured by refusing to adhere to anyone's ideas regarding what is and isn't punk rock (which is in and of itself a defiantly punk attitude).
