“If I get old/ I will not give in/ But if I do/ Remind me of this/ Remind me that/ Once I was free/ Once I was cool/ Once I was me … Remind me of this/ The night we kissed/ And I really meant it/ Whatever happens/ If we’re still speaking/ Pick up the phone/ Play me this song”—from an obscure recording by the band known only as Radiohead.August March spent the beginning of this year’s holiday season indulging his latest obsessive habit. He used his notoriously deep yet somewhat brittle mind to conjure up the names of just about every human he has known in 50-plus years. That kind of activity can be mind-numbing. Luckily he had a salve in mind. It’s a musical sauce for the bones, a flavor that both restores the past and reconnoiters the future. Live music is the cure and like Mr. March, we urge you to take it in as the end of the year inevitably rolls around.
Show Up!: Friday
Super padre Latinx ensemble Baracutanga—a sly double entendre when one considers that Baracutanga trombone mastermind Micah Hood just became a father (Way to go, Mr. Hood!)—goes acoustic for one amazing night on Friday, Dec. 6 at Outpost Performance Space (210 Yale Blvd. SE). This special concert is being advertised as a fundraiser for the esteemed multicultural, progressively political outfit’s new album. Volver Atras is scheduled to drop in Spring 2020. In the meantime, enjoy the fruits of musical labor created by Hood and his colleagues: Jackie Zamora, lead vocals; Kilko Paz, percussion and charango; Carlos Noboa, bass and quena; Joseph Altamirano, guitar and pan-flutes; Nick Baker, drums, percussion, accordion and vibes; and Paul Gonzales, trumpet and percussion. 7:30pm • $15 to $20 • All-ages.
Show Up!: Saturday
Just about a year ago, everyone in Burque was listening to Entourage Jazz Wishes You a Cool Yule. The award-winning record by Entourage Jazz was the hit of the holiday season and what’s more, it showed off the precisely wonderful and wide-ranging instrumental and vocal talents of a group of Burqueño musicians led by jazz master Emerson Corley. Corley’s superlatively smoking vocals—in tune with the musical arrangements of pianist Roger Baker and the super-solid ensemble playing of a band that includes local luminaries like drummer John Bartlit and trumpeter Bruce Dalby—have helped revitalize jazz in Dirt City and now they’re hoping to shine up the holiday season, too, with a repeat performance of a must-hear collection of traditional Christmas tunes. Catch them live on Saturday, Dec. 7 at Outpost Performance Space (210 Yale Blvd. SE). 7:30pm • $15 • All-ages.
Show Up!: Sunday
En serio, dudes, there is a musical genre known as nerdcore hip-hop. It was started by a rapper and web developer known as MC Frontalot, but that was like almost 20 years ago. These days, the nerdcore banner is being illustriously, riotously and musically waved by a fellow named Christopher Brendan Ward, who is known as MC Chris in the parlance of the field. He’ll be performing at Launchpad (618 Central Ave. SW) on Sunday, Dec. 8. Note to self: This guy went to art school just like Thom Yorke so it’s okay to take him seriously even if MC Chris did voice the character MC Pee Pants on “Aqua Teen Hunger Force.” The rapper and comedian left teevee behind to concentrate on his career as a performing artist in 2004. His best album, Eating’s Not Cheating, dropped that year. Shubzilla x Bill Beats and Rusta Rhymes open this can of nerdy, body-moving worms. 8pm • $20 • 21+.
Show Up!: Tuesday
There is a band called Cattle Decapitation. I knew this before I wrote about it because Alibi Assistant Art Director Corey Yazzie totally digs their riotously sludgy and socially conscious sound. Straight outta San Diego in Califas, this extreme metal band features headbanging tuneage that is highly critical of just about everything loathsomely human—but in particular animal abuse and genocide. They’re jamming at the Historic El Rey Theater (622 Central Ave. SW) on Tuesday, Dec. 10. Their latest work in the genre is titled Death Atlas. It dropped just a few days ago—on Black Friday, JaJaJa—and features killer compositions like “One Day Closer to the End of the World” and “Time’s Cruel Curtain.” Believe us now, puny human, you will totally dig this show and afterwards will never want to eat eggs again. 8pm • $20 • 13+.
