Can any band match the eclectic resume of Jon Langford, Tom Greenhalgh and the rest of British post-punk vets The Mekons? They’ve mastered the role of cheeky punks, delved into country and folk (and have even received a few “godfathers of alt-country” votes for 1985’s “Fear and Whiskey”) and cleverly wielded humor and politics into a thirty-year catalogue, all after contributing to the late-seventies new-wave Brit-punk movement. Since 1977, The Mekons have released seventeen albums (most of them ridiculously titled, like “Pussy, King of the Pirates” or “The Mekons Honky Tonkin’”), but “Fear and Whiskey” has rightfully been considered the cream of a pretty damn good crop. These anarchists effectively claimed back a piece of country music for the (extreme) left, wrestling away what had become a right-wing dominated genre while reforming their sound by blending punk impudence with fiddles and slide guitar. The Mekons may not be as self-destructive as The Pistols or possess the rebellious reputation of The Clash, but, unlike those two bands, these guys have been together (and stayed alive) for thirty years. (Andy Seifert)
July 30 at Schubas, 3159 N. Southport, (773)525-2508, at 8pm. $20.
Brutal Finesse: A Preview of King Crimson at Ravinia There have been few new compositions from King Crimson these past two decades, but the live arrangements of songs from its catalog are often strikingly different than the recorded versions.
Cooling It: A Preview of Colleen Green at Cole’s Bar When Green strums power chords or chiming notes on top of her backing track, you might think you’re at Ramones karaoke night and Madonna is taking her turn.
For “Want” of a Change: A Preview of Rufus Wainwright at Ravinia Park Rufus Wainwright isn’t the first singer-songwriter to reinterpret earlier work through an orchestral lens. And much of Wainwright’s third and fourth albums, “Want One” and “Want Two”—whose twentieth anniversaries are the prompt for this new tour—is fully scored. But when Wainwright hits the Pavilion stage at Ravinia tonight, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra will be behind him.
