With a jacket, tie and a clean-cut appearance that says “accounting major” far more than it does “soul frontman,” Eli “Paperboy” Reed doesn’t really look like the guy to save R&B from the throes of British divas, but it looks as if this gutsy Massachusetts twenty-something will have to rescue us from this new sloppy, drunken British invasion. The Paperboy’s record from a year ago, “Roll With You,” honors the gods of soul while showcasing his furious vocal chops, nailing everything from the James Brown funk-burners to the Otis Redding sympathy ballads, his backing band The True Loves blaring and bubbling with pomp and zeal. But the studio can’t contain Reed’s fire—in a live setting, the guy is belting it and playing lead guitar, almost daring the audience to try and keep up with his riffs, his grooves and his sweat. (Andy Seifert)
March 25 at House of Blues, 329 N. Dearborn, (312)923.2000, 10pm. $10-$12.
