Smile Politely

The Overture: November 5–11

WHAT: Rick Ross, Meek Mill, Wale, Machine Gun Kelly & DJ Scream

WHERE: Assembly Hall ($29–$70)

WHEN: Monday, November 5th at 8 p.m.

Huge hip-hop event going down at the biggest venue around, the Assembly Hall. Rick Ross and the rest of his touring crew make their way thorough on their MMG Tour, which is pretty stacked by the looks of it. Rick Ross has put out some of the best rap albums and solid mixtapes over the last few years. He’s also been featured on numerous albums, probably most notable of them being Kanye West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.

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WHAT: Self-Proclaimed Narcissist, Enta, Ryan McCoy

WHERE: Red Herring ($3)

WHEN: Tuesday, November 6th at 10 p.m.

Oregon’s anti-folk band Self-Proclaimed Narcissist fill out the touring band section of this bill, sandwiched by locals post-hardcore outfit Enta and Midstress’ Ryan McCoy. SPN just put out some of his unreleased tracks on his Bandcamp (which you can stream below), calling it It’s an Oldie Where I Come From: a Collection of Splits, B​-​Sides, and Re​-​Recordings, which is definitely worth checking out prior to this one.

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WHAT: Electric Six, Little Hurricane

WHERE: The Highdive ($12)

WHEN: Wednesday, November 7th at 9 p.m.

Detroit rockers Electric Six might be best known for their hilarious track “Gay Bar” or lead man Dick Valentine’s antics, but there is some substance here. Joining them is Little Hurricane, whose track “Haunted Heart” was used recently in a Taco Bell commercial. They’ve also played Austin City Limits and Lollapalooza, so there’s some good stuff there as well. We’ll take a closer look at this show later this week.
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EDITOR’S PICK: GRANDKIDS, ANNA KARENINA/ANNA KARINA, FAUX PAW
Mike ‘N Molly’s ($5) — Thursday, November 8th at 10 p.m.

We got an excellent look at some of the new material Grandkids have been cooking up when we had a chance to catch them at Pygmalion back in September. Only promising material featured in that set, and we’re very much looking forward to hearing all the new songs on tape when they complete their full-length debut. Hopefully that hits us sooner rather than later, but for now we have these shows to keep us satisfied.

Joining in on the fun is one of my favorite new(ish) outfits in Anna Karenina/Anna Karina, who have been very impressive in the handful of times I’ve seen them play over the past few months or so. Put Lafayette, Indiana, crew Faux Paw in the mix and you’ve got yourself quite the bill to fill the upstairs at Mike ‘N Molly’s Thursday. No brainer pick this week. Check out some of the demos Grandkids have on their Bandcamp for a raw taste of some of the new material.

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WHAT: Kopecky Family Band, The Divide, Coco Butter Kids

WHERE: The Highdive ($8)

WHEN: Friday, November 8th at 7:30 p.m.

Nashville, TN’s folk rockers Kopecky Family Band bring their crew along with their new record, Kids Raising Kids, to the Highdive with a couple of locals. They mash up some really likeable male/female harmonies that could compare to Of Monsters and Men or something of the like. Definitely along those lines.  …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

WHAT: Bruiser Queen, Middle Class Fashion, Mille Nomi

WHERE: Mike ‘N Molly’s ($5)

WHEN: Friday, November 9th at 10 p.m.

Skuzz rock duo Bruiser Queen headline this one on Friday night, lending some dreamy surf rock to the cold weather that we have been slowly acclimating to as Fall fades into Winter. Another St. Louis band joining them is Middle Class Fashion, and locals Mille Nomi round it out. No shortage of toe tapping tunes at this one.

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WHAT: Sun Stereo, Duke of Uke & His Novelty Orchestra

WHERE: Cowboy Monkey ($5)

WHEN: Friday, November 9th at 10 p.m.

Local synth/indie pop outfit Sun Stereo play with Duke of Uke Friday, which isn’t exactly a pairing I would have expected, but cool nonetheless. SS’s infusion of keyboard pop with some catchy melodies makes them one of the pleasant surprises of 2012. Check them out before the year comes to a close.

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WHAT: Joe Pug, Denison Witmer

WHERE: The Canopy Club ($13 advance/$15 door)

WHEN: Saturday, November 10th at 10 p.m.

Acoustic howler Joe Pug makes his annual/semi-annual stop through C-U at one of his favorite places (or it must be by now) in the Canopy Club. We took a look at his last show when he was here in town back in February, which you can check out right here. Pretty great opening act in Denison Witmer to make this one that much more appealing, as he’s opening for Pug along the stretch of dates he has over the next few weeks.

 

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WHAT: Abnormous, Love Toy, DJ Belly & Harshpro, The Foundation featuring Epilep(c) and The Interns, DJ Wesjile & DJ KOW

WHERE: The Highdive ($5)

WHEN: Saturday, November 10th at 10 p.m.

Another mix-up going down at The Highdive this weekend with a handful of eclectic acts to fill the bill. As some of the others have been in the past, they feature a little bit of hip-hop, a bit of DJing, some indie rock, as well as some stuff in between. Not to mention their poster artwork is typically awesome, as you can see to the right. 

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WHAT: Coed Pageant, Zapruder Point, The Fights

WHERE: Mike ‘N Molly’s ($5)

WHEN: Saturday, November 10th at 10 p.m.

Coed Pageant have been very busy this year, putting out a new EP for every season. This time around, they have prepped their new collection of tracks to release for Autumn, and they are releasing it into the wild this weekend with Zapruder Point and newer outfit The Fights (includes former Elsinore drummer Dave Pride on the skins). 

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WHAT: The Dirt Daubers, Stay Gold Boys, Corn Desert Ramblers

WHERE: Cowboy Monkey ($8)

WHEN: Saturday, November 10th at 10 p.m.

Roots & blues rock comes to Cowboy Monkey Saturday night with southern rockers The Dity Daubers. Be sure to check out their latest LP, Wake Up, Sinners, over at their Bandcamp page prior to this show. Even though it came out last year, it will get you fired up for the show with some knee-slappin’ folk rock tracks.

Executive Editor

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