Monday, April 20: Pile with Soul Low, Animal Faces and Piles at Cocoon Room, 7 p.m. ($5)
The bill at Cocoon Room on Monday might have you seeing double. Wait a second; is that Milwaukee post-punk band Piles inadvertently listed twice? No, in fact, that’s Boston’s volatile, guitar hammering indie-rockers Pile (with no “s”). The latter may leave you equally disoriented with its assorted time signatures and sudden directional changes, but latest full-length You’re Better Than This finds Pile at its most anxious and in turn, most compelling. (820 E. Locust St.)
Also: Lex Luger with WebsterX, Mike Ragal and Noer The Boy at The Miramar Theatre, 8 p.m. ($10-$20) – (2844 N. Oakland Ave., TheMiramarTheatre.com)
Tuesday, April 21: Todd Rundgren with DAM FUNK at The Pabst Theater, 8 p.m. ($36.50) – (144 E Wells St., PabstTheater.org)
Also: The Old Adage with The Visis, Daniel E. Mitchell and Color Number at Bremen Cafe, 9 p.m. (FREE) – (901 E. Clarke St., BremenCafe.com)
Wednesday, April 22: The English Beat with R.A.S. Movement at Turner Hall Ballroom, 8 p.m. ($25) – (1032 N. 4th St., PabstTheater.org)
Thursday, April 23: Sufjan Stevens with Little Scream at The Riverside Theater, 8 p.m. ($36)
Perhaps unrealistic expectations following 2005’s sweeping, beautiful Illinois pushed Sufjan Stevens to retreat down bizarre musical rabbit holes. First, the graceful troubadour backed away on the claim to record an album about each state, saying that the whole thing was a marketing ploy. Then after the massive success of Illinois, Stevens followed up with two minor works in 2006—a 21-track compilation of alternative versions and previously unreleased tracks and then a Christmas album. But those were refreshing in comparison to his orchestral soundtrack to an art project called The BQE, which was a slog on its own. When he finally returned with a proper album in 2010, the glitchy electronic elements of Age of Adz tended to obscure from his natural ability of being a delicate storyteller. But after years of left turns, Sufjan Stevens has finally returned to his old self. On this year’s Carrie & Lowell, Sufjan re-discovered that pensive voice and pure despair that made him sound so special 10 years ago. Let’s not get too worked over it this time, though. (116 W. Wisconsin Ave., PabstTheater.org)
Also: Har-Di-Har with New Boyz Club, Lorde Fred33, Sophagus and Jack Tell at Linneman’s Riverwest Inn, 9 p.m. ($6) – 1001 E. Locust St., Linnemans.com)
Friday, April 24: Neutral Milk Hotel with Circulatory System at The Riverside Theater, 8 p.m. (SOLD OUT)
Even in the current music landscape where every band eventually reunites, Jeff Mangum’s reclusive and skittish nature since the break-up of seminal indie-rock band Neutral Milk Hotel in 1999 made it seem like the group would never return to the stage. But following a solo tour in 2012 where Mangum trotted out his old songs with only an acoustic guitar (including a Milwaukee stop), the full band shortly got back together. The songs from In The Aeroplane Over the Sea truly soar with the additional accompaniment of horns, singing saws, bowed banjos, accordion, trumpets and trombones, adding an intra-generational feel to Magnum’s historical narratives. (116 W. Wisconsin Ave., PabstTheater.org)
Also: Milwaukee Record 1st Anniversary featuring Space Raft, The Trusty Knife, Sin Bad and Holy Mary Motor Club at Linneman’s Riverwest Inn, 9 p.m. ($6)
Milwaukee Record, the arts and culture website co-founded by former Music Notes contributor Tyler Maas, celebrates its one-year anniversary on Friday night at Linneman’s Riverwest Inn. The party includes some of the city’s finest current bands like the Big Star-conjuring Space Raft and pop punkers Sin Bad and some scene veterans like fractured ‘60s pop four-piece The Trusty Knife and the return of Holy Mary Motor Club, the band from other Milwaukee Record co-founder Matt Wild. (1001 E. Locust St., Linnemans.com)
And: Hiss Golden Messenger with Phil Cook at Club Garibaldi, 9 p.m. – (2501 S. Superior St., ClubGaribaldis.com)
And: GGOOLLDD with Buhu and Workout Music at Cactus Club, 9:30 p.m. – (2496 S. Wentworth Ave., CactusClubMilwaukee.com)
And: Europe with Black Star Riders at Potawatomi’s Northern Lights Theater, ($25-$35)
Saturday, April 25: Lord Huron with Leon Bridges at The Riverside Theater, 8:30 p.m. ($20)
The Los-Angeles-based Americana act Lord Huron sounds like music you’d hear around a campfire. Songwriter Ben Schneider fills his sepia-hued songs with an assortment of colorful characters. On the band’s latest, Strange Trails, you’ll find a greaser gang member, a lounge singer, and a past-his-prime rockabilly singer. (116 W. Wisconsin Ave., PabstTheater.org)
Also: Juicy J with Alex Wiley at The Rave, 8 p.m. ($27-$144) – (2401 W. Wisconsin Ave., TheRave.com)
And: Video Villians 3rd Anniversary Party featuring WebsterX, milo, Buju Fanta, Slim Brit and Bliss & Alice at Mad Planet, 9 p.m. ($7) – (533 E. Center St, Mad-Planet.net)
And: Tapebenders with Evacuate The Earth, The Bang Bang and The Midwestern Charm at Cactus Club, 8 p.m. – (2496 S. Wentworth Ave., CactusClubMilwaukee.com)
And: Low Down Sound with The Young Revelators, Cherryball and Ryan Holman at Linneman’s Riverwest Inn, 9 p.m. ($6) – 1001 E. Locust St., Linnemans.com)
Sunday, April 26: Rhiannon Giddens with Bhi Bhiman at Turner Hall Ballroom, 8 p.m. ($25)
While gaining fame playing in the pre-war music revivalist string trio Carolina Chocolate Drops, Rhiannon Giddens has continued to embody a music historian on her solo debut full-length, the T Bone Burnett-produced Tomorrow is My Turn. The lively folk record features covers of legendary singers like Patsy Cline and lesser-known figures like blues singer Geeshie Wiley, who originally recorded “Last Kind Word Blues” at Paramount Records in Grafton, Wis., 85 years ago. Giddens’ soulful reinterpretations put a fresh coat on songs tied to an earlier era. A peaceful waltz called “Angel City,” Giddens’ only original contribution to the album, makes a strong claim that she belongs in the company the record keeps. (1032 N. 4th St., PabstTheater.org)
Also: Börn with Miserable Friend, Fox Face and Floods Fires at Quarters Rock ‘n Roll Palace, 9 p.m. – (900 E. Center St.)
