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Local MC IOMOS MARAD is a kindred spirit; his 2003 debut, Deep Rooted, featured J-Live on one track. His new EP, Go Head, documents his growth as a blunt-talking truth seeker in the tradition of his cohorts on Chicago’s All Natural label.
cplanes mistaken for stars There’s so much about this Denver hipster-metal band that ought to be off-putting: artsy name, too-clever song titles, wrist-slitter lyrics, repetitive staccato punches. Oh–did I mention beards? It’s like Planes Mistaken for Stars is trying to find some new level of profundity for testosterone. But these elements, rather than making for the most aggravating and flavorless Victory Records reject of all time, actually jell into something compelling–Mercy (Abacus), the band’s newest, is far more sublime than it is absurd. I’ll be damned if I can figure out how they did it–it sounds like they’ve boiled their influences down to just the gleaming bones. I keep listening to the record over and over, much to the annoyance of the city workers going at the sidewalk in front of my apartment with their jackhammers. Haymarket Riot, North Atlantic, and Viva La Foxx open. a 9 PM, the Note, 1565 N. Milwaukee, 773-489-0011 or 866-468-3401, $8, $6 in advance. –Monica Kendrick
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holy roman empire This local quintet is still working last year’s Lost in Landscapes EP (Hewhocorrupts Inc.), a wickedly strident assault of angular posthardcore. Front woman Emily Schambra, late of Long Distance Runner, injects a welcome shot of estrogen into the reedy arms of the band’s Guyvillian nerd metal with her full-throated shriek. But it remains to be seen if they can write music as distinctive as the vocals. Sybris headlines; the Record Low and Dogme 95 open. a 9 PM, Double Door, 1572 N. Milwaukee, 773-489-3160 or 312-559-1212, $10. –Monica Kendrick
c+/- The +/- set I caught at CMJ a few weeks ago tore my asshole a new asshole. I was never a big fan of Versus (singer-guitarists James Baluyut and Patrick Ramos’s old group), and I mainly thought earlier +/- albums were mildly clever revisions of Unrest’s eclectic postpop. But the band’s songwriting and chemistry have–and I know this term is thrown around loosely–matured dramatically. They opened their set with “Fadeout,” a slow-burning fuse of a song from the new Let’s Build a Fire (Absolutely Kosher) that showcases their greatest strengths: complementary riffs that interlock so tightly the guitarists could be joined at the hip, deliberate and tasteful deployment of neato pedal noises, and the ingenious drumming of Chris Deaner, who not only wallops a standard kit but uses laptop-connected pads to trigger a variety of vivid punches and sequences. I had no choice but to spray Yuengling all over the stage–and next to me, former Unrest front man Mark Robinson broke into berserker mode, geometrically jerking his camcorder around like a short-circuiting boom crane. The Changes headline both shows. a 7 PM (18+) and 10:30 PM (21+), Schubas, 3159 N. Southport, 773-525-2508, $12. –J. Niimi
cslits There have been three major reasons why punk bands have re-formed over the past decade or so: the chance to cash in, the chance for a Big Chill-style reunion, or the chance to finally reap some long-overdue accolades. You could say that all of the above apply to the legendary Slits, who recently reemerged after a quarter century of deep freeze with only two original members–vocalist Ari Up and bassist Tessa Pollitt. The new five-piece lineup, which includes old scenemates Paul Cook and Steve Beresford, made its debut last year with a three-song EP, Revenge of the Killer Slits (S.A.F.), that felt a bit like a glorified jam session, even if you could still sense some of the old life force. Going by reviews of the current tour, it sounds like they’re determined to claim a legacy–not necessarily as a groundbreaking feminist band, but for having the prescience to fuse punk and dub before the Clash thought to do it. (Apparently Ari has even been pointing out the “punk” and “dub” parts of each song as they play them.) Coughs play second, in what they’re saying really is their last show this time, and the Drastics open; DJ Chuck Wren spins throughout. a 8:30 PM, Logan Square Auditorium, 2539 N. Kedzie, 773-276-3600 or 866-468-3401, $17, $15 in advance. A –Monica Kendrick
