Free the Robots, Dr. John. Alex Cuba and Merle Haggard

TUESDAY/JUNE/15

WOODSIST FESTIVAL AT ECHOPLEX AND THE ECHO
New York's Woodsist label has been a wonderfully consistent source for lo-fi badassery over the last four years, counting among its roster such venerable garage rock/punk names as Vivian Girls, Crystal Stilts, Blank Dogs and Wavves. Thus, it should come as no surprise that when Woodsist comes to town, Woodsist comes hard, commandeering both floors of the greater Echo complex and stuffing it full of incredible talent. A quick review of the art-grunge revue: New Jersey's Real Estate offers up jangly, reverbed beach pop; Woods (founders of Woodsist) bring a country-kissed, full-band psychedelic folk; Philadelphia's Kurt Vile channels Lou Reed through a Sebadoh filter; L.A.'s own Abe Vigoda returns with its trademark tropical punk; the San Fran-based Art Museums plays minimal proto garage with a drum machine beat; their neighbors in the Mantles and Nodzzz play louder and punker; two local audio collagists, the funk-steeped Sun Araw [see music feature] and beat-based Baths, appear as well; and a special appearance from All Saints Day — the new project from Vivian Girls' Kickball Katy and Cat Power keyboardist Gregg Foreman — rounds out this exceptional bill. (Chris Martins)

PHOTO COURTESY OF JAMES DEMARIA PRODUCTIONS

He wears sunglasses at night (trippin'): Dr. John

Location Info

Map

Queen Mary Park

1126 Queens Highway
Long Beach, CA 90802

Category: Parks/Outdoors

Region: Out of Town

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• Chris Martins
• Gibson Amphitheatre
• Whisky a Go Go
• Arts, Entertainment, and Media
• Indie Rock and Indie Pop

LEGAL WEAPON AT THE REDWOOD BAR & GRILL
You can see why major labels were once smitten by Legal Weapon singer Kat Arthur. Although she and founding guitarist Brian Hansen were better known for throttling punk songs like the early-'80s classics "Equalizer" and "Daddy's Gone Mad," they also crafted occasional pure-pop surprises like the jangling potential hit "Too High." The charismatic Arthur could sing practically anything, with far more verve and personality than the other local punk divas. (She certainly predates such simpatico soul-punk singers as the BellRays' Lisa Kekaula.) Legal Weapon were even signed to MCA in the late '80s, but their best work came out on underground labels, including their underrated self-released and self-titled 2002 CD. What makes the ongoing L.A. band's career so exciting is that they have a lot of great new songs and don't need to look backward for kicks. (Falling James)

JUSTIN CURRIE AT THE TROUBADOUR
Del Amitri's official MySpace page sports the self-deprecating descriptor "sickeningly mainstream pop/rock from Glasgow," but that's not too far off — minus the "sickeningly" part, perhaps. Justin Currie is the singer of the band, whose largely unchallenging mash-up of FM pop and light country did score Del Amitri a handful of hits (remember 1995's "Roll to Me"?) and countless tours since the late 80s. As a solo artist, Currie's ear for easy-to-swallow hooks and knack for somewhat poetic lyrics about modern life and love casts him as a Richard Ashcroft-type – mainstream, sure, but not without distinct character. His latest album, The Great War, ditches the sobriety of his 2007 solo debut for more of the upbeat jangle that his band was famous for. The supporting acts are an odd but talented bunch: Jaymes Reunion is a Christian band with a Maroon 5-like flavor, and Jane Carrey is, in fact, the blues-singing, dulcet-voiced daughter of actor Jim Carrey. (Chris Martins)

MELODY GARDOT, FEDERICO AUBELE AT THE EL REY
Funk-phobic Norah Jones fans turned off by last year's groove-heavy The Fall should lend an ear to Melody Gardot: On her latest disc, My One and Only Thrill, this young Philadelphia-based singer hits a folk-jazzy sweet spot not far removed from the one Jones zeroed in on her smash Come Away With Me —the album even includes several handsome ballads cowritten by Jesse Harris, who penned "Don't Know Why." Gardot occasionally allows Larry Klein's sumptuous wine-bar production to overpower her expertly underplayed vocals, but tonight that's unlikely to be a problem (if indeed you consider sumptuous wine-bar production a problem in the first place). Argentinean opener Federico Aubele looks more or less exactly like Andy Samberg, but there's nothing remotely Lonely Island-ish about his mellow pan-American soul. (Mikael Wood)

Also Playing Tuesday: MY EDUCATION, NOHOW ON at Bootleg Theater; JIM VAN SLYKE at Catalina Jazz Club; ANDY McKEE, JOHNNY DICKINSON at the Mint; PURPLE MELON at the Viper Room; THE RICHARD GLASER BAND at the Waterfront; STING W/ THE ROYAL PHILHARMONIC CONCERT ORCHESTRA at the Hollywood Bowl.

WEDNESDAY/JUNE/16

JUNIP ROSE AT EAGLE ROCK CENTER FOR THE ARTS
Swedish-Argentinean singer/songwriter José Gonzalez has a nice way with color and temperature, you might say, flowing as he does with a burnished-gold indie-pop that soothes the nerves in an unruffled, unhurried way. While his solo albums have highlighted a particularly elegant songwriting, usually adorned only by his own nimbly picked nylon-string guitar, Gonzalez gives his lighter-than-air tunes substantial weight and heft on the rare occasions when he widens his instrumental palette. His longstanding and unfairly obscure band Junip Rose — Gonzalez on guitar and vocals, drummer Elias Araya and keyboards/Moog man Tobias Winterkorn — flesh out his new songs with a wondrous, resonant economy on their recent The Rope & the Summit EP (Mute). A full-length album is promised for 2010. (John Payne)

Also Playing Wednesday: STRANGELOOP, SHLOHMO, TEEBS, TIMEBOY at Low End Theory; CHICAGO, THE DOOBIE BROTHERS at Gibson Amphitheatre; LOCAL H, LEFT BRAIN HEART at the Troubadour; HOT HOT HEAT, EASTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS, THE JANKS at Bootleg Theater; GEORGE KAHN at Catalina Jazz Club; CHIDDY BANG, THE PACK, 2AM CLUB, XV at Glass House; PEDESTRIAN, MATT ELLIS at Hotel Café; ANDY McKEE, JOHNNY DICKINSON at the Mint; SKINNY WARPED TOUR at Roxy Theatre; ACTRESS, THE IVY WALLS, LUNAR YOUTH at Silverlake Lounge; ASHES DIVIDE, RAINING AND OK at the Viper Room; STING at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater.