WEDNESDAY, DEC. 8
NO1UNO Don’t be surprised if after listening to a few measures of their music you suddenly start thinking of Jed and Ellie Mae Clampett taking laps in the “cement pond”. No1Uno is a bluegrass band and there’s no mistaking it. From lingering banjo’s to down-home guitar, if bluegrass is what you want you’re sure to get your fix as they bring Southern drawl and knee-slapping fun to the stage in Charlotte. Free, Puckett’s Farm Equipment, www.puckettsfarm.com (Debra Renee Seth)
PRADIGY GT The beat maker turned rapper, now guitarist and band front man is making a mark with his current musical entity. The band strives to make genre-bending music that evolves hip-hop and rock, making a sound all their own. The show is the first of the QC Music Series, a planned twice monthly event to showcase local talent, and features Yung Bo, Terry Motivation, Joe Crutch and DJ Pyro also on the bill. $5, Ultra Lounge, 2815 Crisman St., Charlotte. (Mike McCray)
FRIDAY, DEC. 10
TARTAN TERRORS Call it renaissance (festival) music. The band of musical gypsies from the frozen climes of Canada plies all things Celtic. Ballads are intermingled with perky jigs, reels and Gaelic marches, with fair maidens dancing along. And there’s comedy. It’s Friday night; chug down a couple of pints and dance and hum with the Tartan Terrors. $12, The Evening Muse, www.theeveningmuse.com (Samir Shukla)
TRAPT Sure, there are hundreds of other bands with a similar sound on contemporary alterna rock radio, but place Trapt among the more honest and appealing of the bunch. The Southern California band’s melodic grunge and nu metal is in full bloom on their most recent recording No Apologies, especially on reflective tunes like “Stranger in the Mirror.” Also on the bill are Since October. $17-$20, Amos’ Southend, www.amossouthend.com (Shukla)
ANDY THE DOORBUM People have been known to refer to ol’ Andy as a Daniel Johnston-type — not that that’s a bad thing, ‘less you mean mental-health wise — mostly because he writes horribly (yet gloriously) lo-fi songs about subjects like anesthesia-inventing dentists with chloroform habits. There’s also cheap Casio-bleep, shards of guitar and spare (spare molding putty bucket) percussion, too. Plus, dude’s known as the Doorbum, and has a big ol’ bees’ nest beard and, like a G.B.V., gets the idea down, gets a good take or two, and moves on. Call him Bob Collard. Part of this weekend’s radtacular Recess Fest. With Wild Wild Geese. $10, Yau Haus, www.recessfest.blogspot.com (Timothy C. Davis)
SATURDAY, DEC. 11
STREET DOGS The workingman always gets stiffed. That’s the pervasive message from Boston punks the Street Dogs. With their activist lyrics and over-the-speed limit punk rock, the combo takes its views seriously. But with guitars hopping and the bass bopping, they avoid overt lecturing and the good-time music keeps blasting. They’ll go out kicking, though, no doubt. With Flatfoot 56, Have Nots, 25 Minutes to Go, and King Sized Killers. $10-$13, Tremont Music Hall, www.tremontmusichall.com (Shukla)
DOC WATSON Over three decades in the game, Doc Watson has established himself as one of America’s bluegrass music pioneers. Part blues, gospel and folk, his musicianship is truly one of a kind. This visit will be his 12th time gracing the stage at the ‘Hood. Long-time tour buddy and famed acoustic guitarist, Jack Lawrence, is also on the bill for this Americana music must-see. $32-$45, Neighborhood Theatre, www.neighborhoodtheatre.com (McCray)
SINNERS AND GIVERS Everyone is always looking for a way to give back, especially around the holidays. The first-ever Sinners and Givers show will be a benefit for the Levine Children’s Hospital. You can get $5 off the price of admission to the event if you bring a toy to donate. It’s a great cause, and also a great concert. Wink Keziah, The Go-Devils and JT and the Dragpipes will all be performing. $15, $10 with donation. Puckett’s Farm Equipment. www.puckettsfarm.com (Jeff Hahne)
SUNDAY, DEC. 12
INSANE CLOWN POSSE Fish, meet barrel. Barrel, gun. Look, what the hell these guys are up to is anyone’s idea. Are they a Christian band who pen dirty songs to better convert the unwashed (and freshly face-painted) masses down the road, as the band has suggested? Putty-headed mooks all hopped up on Faygo and Juggs magazine? Two fugly dudes with barely a high school education trying to hang on to what little “fame” and fuckability they have left? Or, as some jurisdictions have claimed, are they the leaders of a (gasp) gang, the Juggalos? Most probably, they’re just a banal rap-rock retread with enough one-for-all anthems to make the pimply and pubescent feel a little less alone in the world. Which is fine, long as you grow out of it by, say, 16. With ABK (Anybody Killa), Axe Murder Boys and Bout It Boys. $23-$25, Tremont Music Hall, www.tremontmusichall.com (Davis)
This article appears in Dec 7-13, 2010.
