If you haven't made plans for New Year's Eve, better make 'em now. There are plenty of gigs across the state bound to satiate your sonic palate. Up north YOUNG NEAL & THE VIPERS crank it up at Chan's (401.765.1900), and down south fellow guitar legend DUKE ROBILLARD hits the Knickerbocker in Westerly; the $50 ticket comes with a four-course meal beginning at 6 pm, call 401.596.4225. Downcity highlights include THE MIDNIGHT CREEPS opening for SASQUATCH & THE SICK-A-BILLYS at Jerky's ($10 at the door), and AS220 (401.831.9327) cuts loose after Bright Night with a wild one featuring ROZ RASKIN & THE RICE CAKES and Strange Famous Records' insightful punks PRAYERS FOR ATHEISTS, one of the most entertaining live acts on the circuit. Only $5 at the door or free with a Bright Night badge. Over in the Bucket, FUNGUS AMUNGUS, SAUCE, and the KRIS HANSEN KOLLECTIVE congregate at the Blackstone (401.726.2181), and the 133 Club in East Providence will host RORY & THE HOUNDS, call 401.438.1330. Looking for lo-dough action in Newport? 75orLess Records wield the big guns in SIX STAR GENERAL, COMA COMA, and THE DIEPODS at Jimmy's Saloon. It's $10 at the door, call 401.846.5121. Hair of the dog with your brunch on FRIDAY (the 1st) will help prepare for Eric Baylies' beastly new threesome BAD MOTHERFUCKER at Jerky's (401.621.2244), with Lincoln's STALEMATE opening. Head to Firehouse 13 on SATURDAY (the 2nd) for a punk gathering led by East Provy's CALLUS BLACK, with JOHNNY CLOTHESHANGER & THE ANTI-BABIES and Worcester's THE WEIRD KIDS kicking it off at 9 pm, call 401.270.1801. Indie rock newcomers STARTING OVER TUESDAY (check out their debut disc, Because of You) get to work in '10 with a show at the Blackstone on Saturday followed by a set at AS220 on MONDAY (the 4th) with TRIPLE POINT and Warwick's ALDRICH.
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I had never come across the adjective "jangular" until I visited the Glowkid website.
- Making a beautiful racket
Where else could you see the Blizzard of '78 and I, Destroyer share the same stage?
- Behind the Red Curtain
On Saturday, four singer/songwriters will perform "in the round" at the North Star. Nothing necessarily unusual about that.
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Toward the end of "In Medias Res," the first song on Los Campesinos!' third album, Gareth Campesinos (the entire Cardiff septet have adopted the surname) asks, "Is this something that would interest you?"
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The one element needed when revitalizing a neglected canon? Verve. Ever since the Carolina Chocolate Drops hit the trad-acoustic scene a few years ago, they've kept this notion front and center.
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Note how the title of Paul Barman's third and latest sounds corny at first glance but deserves a "ha" — or at least an "I smell this dude" — on further contemplation.
- Laura Veirs | July Flame
Thanks to the string of albums she's released over the past decade or so, this Portland-based folkie has cultivated a reputation as a gifted chronicler of the outdoor experience.
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I don't want to imply that everybody who's anybody was at Jordan Hall Friday night to hear pianist Emanuel Ax's Celebrity Series recital — but that was Yo-Yo Ma sitting two rows in front of me.
- Beach House | Teen Dream
Before I talk about Beach House's third album — the top dreampop album of 2010 until further notice — I should reveal that I had the big gay whirlwind romance of my life under the influence of a steady stream of Beach House Mania at SxSW three years ago.
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On their fourth CD, the celebrated young jazz quartet with the indie-rock name continue their audacious updating of the genre's old-school avant-garde.
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John Heartsman's career had two modest peaks.
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New England Music News
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