Music Picks: Gary Numan, Ana Moura, Mark Sultan, XBXRX

Also playing Tuesday: BEAR HANDS, HOLLOYS, RANDOM PATTERNS at the Echo; SPESUS CHRIST, SOAP COLLECTORS at Echo Curio; AMANDA JO WILLIAMS, SHAKEY GRAVES, CASEY NEILL at Bootleg Theater; THE BRONX at El Rey Theatre; JOHN BROWN'S BODY at the Roxy; WARPAINT, DUNES at Occidental College; THE KISSAWAY TRAIL at Spaceland; TAYLOR HAWKINS & THE COATTAIL RIDERS, DIOS MALOS at the Troubadour; RESONANT HEADS at the Hotel Cafe; OVER KILL at House of Blues; THE STATE OF MUSIC at Cat Club; EMANUEL AX at Disney Hall; RATT at Key Club; THE EAGLES at the Hollywood Bowl.

Would you like some BBQ with your 'shrooms? Mark Sultan

That's Mr. Gnome to you!

Location Info

Map

Gibson Amphitheatre at Universal CityWalk

100 Universal City Plaza
Universal City, CA 91608

Category: Attractions/Amusement Parks

Region: Out of Town

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4 user reviews	Write A Review

Nokia Theatre

777 Chick Hearn Court
Los Angeles, CA 90015

Category: Music Venues

Region: Downtown

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• Chris Martins
• The Viper Room
• Mikael Wood
• Arts, Entertainment, and Media
• Music Festivals

WEDNESDAY/APRIL/21

GARY NUMAN AT EL REY THEATRE
Let's just get this out of the way: Latter-day Gary Numan sucks. Sounding like some sort of ill-advised mash-up of Nine Inch Nails, Depeche Mode and the Deftones, 2006's Jagged is music for the diehard devotees alone. So what if those three bands would've been nothing without the man's contributions to darkly tinted synthesizer music? It's a good thing, then, that this gig finds Numan performing the entirety of his indispensable 1979 classic, The Pleasure Principle. That album contains the new-wave hero's lone U.S. hit, the claustrophobic and still-relevant "Cars," plus an assortment of quirky-cool, angular tunes whose depiction of life among androids was as Philip K. Dick as it was wholly punk-rock. And unlike so many other period pieces chock-full of space-age effects and dense atmosphere, The Pleasure Principle doesn't feel the least bit dated. Instead, it sounds like the sound track to a future we've yet to see, even as its lessons manage to resonate quite well in the here and now. (Chris Martins)

MICHAEL ROSE, DUBTONIC KRU AT THE ECHOPLEX
In the celestial order of reggae vocalists, Michael Rose ranks among the highest, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Bob Marley and Burning Spear. The charismatic, evocative singer works a rich mixture of slow burn and passionate intensity that's as arresting as it is distinct. Rose's powerfully delivered messages of protest and spirituality ring with authority, and (unlike many peers) he never falls into self-important scolding or sanctimonious proselytizing. That veracity has served him well, even as a teenager going the talent-show and hotel-lounge route in mid-'70s Jamaica. Producer Niney the Observer plucked him from that world to launch what became a phenomenal recording career. Several years later, as the lead proclaimer of vocal trio Black Uhuru, Rose stupefied the reggae world with their masterpiece Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, a stunning disc featuring the incomparable Sly & Robbie that represents an artistic peak still unmatched (every song on the album was composed by Rose). Beholden to none, doing strictly as he pleases, Rose — backed now by superb Jamaican band Dubtonic Kru — remains one of the music's most remarkable stylists, a fact that he'll make quite apparent tonight. (Jonny Whiteside)

Also playing Wednesday: MEGAFAUN, BREATHE OWL BREATHE at the Echo; SASHOMON at the Mint; SEMI PRECIOUS WEAPONS at Roxy; FOZY SHAZAM, BAD RABBITS at the Troubadour; BITCH, ANGIE EVANS at Spaceland; THE KEVIN EUBANKS GROUP at the Baked Potato; DELTA NOVE at Alex's Bar; "LOW END THEORY" at the Airliner; L.A. OPERA at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.

THURSDAY/APRIL/22

GROUPER, JOHN WIESE, ILYAS AHMED, INFINITE BODY AT THE SMELL
Boys are for noise, the girls are too: Grouper is Portland's Liz Harris, whose bleakish reveries in electro-acoustic ambience coalesce via guitar, Wurlitzer and wraithlike vocalese veiled in damp sheets of reverb/delay. Local new-sound stalwart and Merzbow collaborator John Wiese deals in clashing clusters of sonority whose radical rewirings of sampling softwares, digital/analog effects, obscure radio transmissions and mic punishment can be brutal, literally painful and, like Merzbow's, cleansing. Pakistan's mysterious Ilyas Ahmed brings a genuinely psychedelic brand of electronic ragas/drones and sonic meltdowns, heard to unnerving effect on his recent The Vertigo of Dawn (Time Lag). Also Zen-simple electronic-keyboard mysticism courtesy Kyle Parker, aka Infinite Body. (John Payne)

ANA MOURA AT SKIRBALL CULTURAL CENTER
Count Mick Jagger and Prince among the many fans worldwide who've been seduced by the distinctive style of sad, romantic Portuguese balladry known as fado. Or perhaps it's more accurate to say that these notorious horndogs are really fans of the singer Ana Moura. After seeing the attractive fadista sing in a nightclub, Jagger asked her to join him in a duet of "No Expectations" at a 2007 Rolling Stones concert in Lisbon. Last year, Prince approached the Portuguese singer after another local gig. "He came from the U.S. just to watch the show," she claims. "He heard my records and wants to collaborate on something that he didn't reveal." It's easy to see why such celebrities are smitten. Moura intones songs of loss and longing in an achingly pure, melodious voice on her fourth and latest album, Leva-me aos fados (World Village), accompanied by little more than delicate, classical-style acoustic guitars. She puts it best when crooning Amélia Muge's "Não É um Fado Normal" ("This Is No Ordinary Fado"): "May someone break this spell/for I no longer answer for myself." (Falling James)

BONOBO AT EL REY THEATRE
Some people and some acronyms are so intertwined that the brain just blurts the connection reflexively. John Peel? BBC! Eazy-E? N.W.A! Bonobo? IDM! Poor Simon Green, the man behind Bonobo, who's been saddled with the "Intelligent Dance Music" association since he emerged with those popular Tru Thoughts releases in the early 2000s. The show he's bringing to L.A., pegged to the release of his fourth album, Black Sands(Ninja Tunes), promises to be the opposite of a visually dull "guy and his laptop" setup. The new record also aims for the much-coveted soul-jazz vibe (aided by sultry vocalist Andreya Triana), as Green attempts to stretch his art beyond what his press material calls "any dusty subgenre of dance music." Bonobo's new creation is still the opposite of dumb, you can certainly dance to some of it, and it's a music lover's delight. Just stay clear of acronyms! (Gustavo Turner)