Monday, September 15: La Luz with Beach Patrol and The Olives Cactus Club, 9 p.m.
When one thinks of trailer park music, sun-blistered melodies and surf rock guitars don’t immediately spring to mind. But there’s nothing trashy about La Luz’s infectious, ‘60s girl group sound, which the Seattle-based quartet captured in a Bothwell, Washington trailer park for an EP, Damp Face, and full-length Its Alive. (2496 S. Wentworth Ave., CactusClubMilwaukee.com)
Tuesday, September 16: She Keeps Bees with Shilpa ray and Ivy Spokes at Club Garibaldi, 9 p.m. – (2501 S. Superior St., ClubGaribaldis.com)
Wednesday, September 17: Bob Mould with Cymbals Eat Guitars at Turner Hall Ballroom, 7 p.m. ($20)
After Hüsker Dü’s unceremonious break-up in the mid-80s, it seemed that Bob Mould would always be defined by his work in the seminal Minneapolis hardcore band. After a couple solo records, Mould formed a new group, called Sugar, and released Copper Blue in 1992, an album which left an indelible print on ‘90s indie-rock’s noisy yet melodic sound. Sugar dissolved a few years later and a still-developing Mould experimented into electronica music for a short time before returning to his guitar rock roots. His latest, Beauty & Ruin, is perhaps his finest record since Copper Blue, a moody record that delves into the death of the singer’s alcoholic and abusive father. (1032 N. Fourth St., PabstTheater.org)
Also: Spoon with EMA at The Riverside Theater, 6:30 p.m. ($26.25)
Spoon perfected its catchy, up-tempo formula during an impressive five-album stretch during the 2000s, broken by 2010’s Transference. Ironically, the more cerebral (and therefore aggravating) direction actually re-energized the group. August’s follow-up, They Want My Soul, celebrates a return to tight, groovy melodies. They haven’t sounded this fresh in ages. (116 W. Wisconsin Ave., PabstTheater.org)
Thursday, September 18: Iron & Wine with Jesca Hoop at The Pabst Theater, 7:30 p.m. ($29.50)
South Carolina folk musician Samuel Beam, who dons the moniker Iron & Wine, will perhaps forever be revered for a song he didn’t even write. His 2002 wispy cover of The Postal Service’s “Such Great Heights” was one of the standout songs on the massively successful (and massively polarizing) Garden State soundtrack. Not simply a good cover artist, Beam’s original output stacks up nicely, as well. His fifth album, 2013’s Ghost on Ghost, finds him incorporating more arrangements and layers to his previously bare sound. (144 E. Wells St., PabstTheater.org)
Also: Adam Widener & the Cola Kids with Crappy Dracula and Ramma Lamma at Bremen Café, 9 p.m. – (901 E. Clarke St., BremenCafe.com)
Friday, September 19: The Midwest Beat (album release) with Phylums and Towers at Cactus Club, 9:30 p.m. – (2496 S. Wentworth Ave., CactusClubMilwaukee.com)
Also: Chris Demay with Lisa Ridgely and Old Earth at Circle A Café, 8 p.m. – (932 E. Chambers St., Circle-A-Café.org)
And: Crooked Keys with Parellel and Claudia Johnson Group at Linneman’s Riverwest Inn, 9 p.m. ($5) – (1001 E. Locust St., Linnemans.com)
Saturday, September 20: Canopies with GGOOLLDD, Rio Turbo and Wax Addicts at Mad Planet, 9 p.m. ($5)
The synth-pop group Canopies make their long-awaited return to the stage with an album’s worth of new material. They released two songs (“Miss You Now” and “Getting Older”) a few months ago on a limited press lathe-cut vinyl, but expect them to introduce a few more from their forthcoming debut full-length Saturday night. (533 E. Center St, Mad-Planet.net)
Also: Daniel & The Lion with The Sleepwalkers and Michaela Thomas at Linneman’s Riverwest Inn, 9 p.m. ($10) – (1001 E. Locust St., Linnemans.com)
And: Nik Turner’s Hawkwind with Witch Mountain and Moon Curse at Cactus Club, 9 p.m. – (2496 S. Wentworth Ave., CactusClubMilwaukee.com)
And: Overkill with Prong at The Rave, 8 p.m. ($21.50) – (2401 W. Wisconsin Ave., TheRave.com)
And: R5 with Brandon & Savannah and Ryland at The Pabst Theater, 6 p.m. ($27 advance; $30 door) – (144 E. Wells St., PabstTheater.org)
Long touring schedules exact a heavy burden on any musician, but none romanticize the journey like the War on Drugs singer Adam Granduciel. Like a cross-county road trip, his sprawling songs maneuver between sleepy, indistinctive towns and popular, stimulating landmarks. Fuzzy synthesizers relax beneath the surface of the songs and incorporate a mesmeric ambient sheen to Granduciel’s ramblin’ take on classic rock great Tom Petty. (144 E. Wells St., PabstTheater.org)
The War on Drugs photo by Dusdin Condren.
